Okehampton’s homegrown indie-pop band Quorum are back in business with their new EP The Death of Intellectual Success. Liam caught up with band member Jake to talk all things Quorum and their plans for the future.

The four Okehampton boys, Jordan Hookway, Noah Groves and Jake and Mack Hodgson, have comprised the band’s line up for the last two years. They go back quite a bit further than that though, as they have known one another since they were just five years old. ‘We’ve known each other so long, it was only a matter of time before we started playing music together,’ said guitarist Jake. Jake and drummer Mack are brothers and grew up in a very musical family. ‘Me and Mack have always been brought up around different styles and varities of music. We started listening to things like pop punk and through our parents’ varied influence there was a lot of rock and metal which I remember listening to on the cassette player in the car.’ The boys naturally progressed to make their own musical discoveries as they grew older and began going to live music events on their own or with friends as soon as they could.

Despite drawing inspiration from various different artists and sources, Jake cites Guns N’ Roses and Green Day (led by Slash and Billie Joe Armstrong respectively) as two of his biggest inspirations. After seeing Green Day live at Wembley in 2009 as one of a crowd of 120,000, Jake was mesmerised and inspired by the electrically charged atmopshere the band created. He knew from that point onwards that he wanted to make a living from music and imbue audiences with those exact same feelings and sensations he felt, along with his best friends.

Quorum have occasionally been compared to The 1975, particularly when first featured by BBC Introducing in February 2020. Whilst they certainly see this comparison as a compliment, they actively stress the importance of individual identity and believe that whilst you can always aspire to emulate others’ successes, it’s important not to sound the same as other artists on the radio.

Music is important to the boys for many reasons; primarily because of the profound emotional impact it accords. Personal experiences from all areas of life are the main source of inspiration for their lyrics — whether it be relationships, jobs, education or break ups; relatability plays a huge part in captivating audiences. Furthermore, the band’s creative process is very in depth and fundamentally collaborative; they pool ideas and bounce off one another, often going through a certain amount of test and trial before sculpting their finished lyrics. In the last year, the band have worked with James Fitch, a fellow musician and videographer. James and Jordan have worked closely together, operating with James’s guidance when contemplating a huge array of ideas which serve as inspiration for music video creation and direction.

The boys refused to let the difficulties that lockdowns (induced by the coronavirus pandemic of the last 18 months) inflicted on everyone deter them; although initially uncertain about how to proceed, they instead quickly utilised the opportunity to surge ahead with the writing and creative processes (remotely) and have resultantly flourished, producing their new EP The Death of Intellectual Success, which links to their 2019 EP Art is Dead. The title track serves as a polemic against celebrities who are granted a certain level of fame somewhat gratuitously, for no reason other than their presence or following on social media platforms (notorious for facilitating duplicity and subterfuge) or casting on a controversial and (arguably) degrading reality television show and then venerated as role models by young children — an issue becoming all too prominent and one which lead singer Jordan believes leaves society in a dangerous place. The band however, vehemently encourage personal interpretation of their song titles and lyrics and enjoy seeing how their fans and listeners' perceptions differ.

Now restrictions have been lifted, the band are out in full swing. Playing at Chagstock Festival in July and having toured in September with sold out dates alongside other bands For The Girl and Namsake in locations such as Exeter, Manchester, Nottingham and Newcastle, the band’s performances were hugely auspicious. ‘To get out practicing and gigging again feels great, it’s so much more motivating than working behind a computer screen all the time. The energy when we’re all together is like nothing else. We want to take ourselves as far as we can,’ said Jake.

Outside of music, Mack and Jordan co-own Idle, their own barbering and bespoke grooming shop based at 3 West Street, Okehampton.

The band are planning another tour in March next year as they are eager to get out on the road again. In the meantime, their upcoming performances include a date at The Lighthouse in Poole, to be confirmed, as well as performing as a support act for The Snuts at the Exeter Phoenix on November 2, for which tickets have already sold out. This is a band on their way up, watch this space!