In our penultimate music interview of 2023, we speak to British rock band Dirty Money. They share their love of making and performing music and their dream to reach world domination.
Band Name: Dirty Money
Members: John “Spud” Hudson (Vocals & lyrics), Mark Walker (Guitar), Ross Hutton (Bass) & Luis Silver (Drums)
Genre: Rock
Founded: February 2022
Originated From: Oxfordshire, UK
Discography: If (Single)
How would you describe your music?
We’re a blended fusion of classic and modern rock that has a live act that we feel is truly second to none. In short, we’re the greatest band you’ve never heard of…but you will.
What is your musical creative process like?
It’s mainly a collaborative experience. We all write together during rehearsals but we do all spend a lot of time working on ideas when we’re not together so someone will always bring something they’ve been messing with and we sort of flesh it out together.
Our music is based primarily on observations of life. We don’t think any music has the ability to resonate with a listener unless there’s the truth behind it that they can connect with. So it really does depend on what we’re feeling at the
time.
You really need to be able to make yourself vulnerable and expose that element of your own emotions in your music for people to connect with. That’s the beautiful thing about music, it has an honesty you don’t get in everyday life.
How did the band form?
Mark and Ross had a band together for many years and around that time Ross also was a pub landlord. John lived in LA at the time and had come home for Christmas and was staying with his mum who lived in the same village as Ross’ pub. So being a grown man staying with his parents, John did the only sensible thing and went to check out the locals and happened to walk into the Cherry Tree, (Ross’pub), which had various guitars and basses adorning the walls and met them both.
We all just hit it off and John didn’t leave for about three days. Anyway, John went back to the States but we kept in touch and when he moved back three years later, him and his wife stayed with Ross and his wife while they were looking for a place to live. Mark lived down the street so we just picked up where we left off.
Then when their band broke up just before lockdown, Mark called John and said they were looking to put another band together and would he like to be the vocalist and he jumped at the chance. John had got up with their old band a couple of times and we’d gelled and we’d talked about putting something together before but it took a while.
Trying to find a drummer was a different story altogether. We had about five sit in with us that either we didn’t feel fitted or they just disappeared off the face of the earth so we really struggled and it was like trying to find rocking horse shit if you’ll excuse the expression.
Then Ross, being the salesman that he is, struck upon the ingenious idea that he’d look through the classifieds for people looking to sell their drums and that was how we happened to find Silver, (or hiho as we affectionately call him) . Poor guy was trying to sell his drums and instead, Ross convinced him to keep them and join the band.
How did you come up with your band name?
The name was something we went back and forth on a lot but nothing was quite right. Spud was having one of his grumpy days and was sick of being broke and muttered “Dirty Money” to himself and had an Eureka moment. Hence Dirty Money was born.
Who influenced you within the music industry?
There are so many. Guns n Roses have got to be a big one in there for all of us. Mark especially is a massive Slash fan. For John, The Stooges are hugely influential. He honestly believe there is no greater frontman than Iggy Pop at his peak and John would love to think he could project at least half of his danger and antagonism on stage. John also loves Bon Scott as a frontman too. As successful as AC/DC were after his death, they were never the same band and never had that same energy or sense of fun again.
Have you performed live much and what was your favourite gig to play at?
Yes, we’ve been running up and down the UK all summer, which has been great. Our favourite gig has to be when we played with The Foxies in St Albans while they were over here on their European tour. Just a great bunch of people.
Having said that though, we played a gig in Oxford, which was phenomenal. We were supposed to be playing with another band who cancelled last minute so we ended up playing for an hour and a half instead of 45 minutes and the place just went nuts. So that one’s high up there.
What is the best thing about being in a band?
Just getting out there and playing. There’s something magical about creating something from nothing and seeing it grow and connect with people you’ve never met. It’s an impossible feeling to describe but it’s like you become one with the audience. If you’ve never done it, I highly recommend it.
What’s the biggest problem you’ve had to overcome so far as a musician(s)?
The pandemic was a pretty big one. We’d initially planned to put the band together literally just before it happened but it scuppered the plans completely so we didn’t actually get together until February 2022. Trying to keep the enthusiasm going for putting something together amid all the uncertainty was hard but we did it and it was well worth the wait.
What is your ultimate dream as a band?
World Domination….No look, we just take things a step at a time. At the core of it, we’re four guys that just enjoy playing together so after that, anything else is a bonus.
The next step is all about getting on the festival circuit for next summer and getting the album done, 80% of which is already written. We’d like to sneak a couple of European dates in there as well next year. The fact we’ve got places to play and people come to see us is a dream come true in itself.
You can find out more about Dirty Money by visiting their website and following them on Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.
If you’re in a band or a musician and would like to appear on this blog, please contact me and I’ll forward you an interview template.
Also, check out my other Music Interview roundups from 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 & 2022.
