13 Questions with Achers

Long-form acts notwithstanding, it’s rare for us to cover bands that have only released two songs. But like everything, there are exceptions to rules, and Achers are one of them.

The London-based band, consisting of Pat Smiley (guitar/vocals), Pavel Borisov (guitar) and Sabrina Amade (bass), released the two-song Demo at the end of September, and instantly there was something about this band that was as unshakable as a winter cold.

With the help of Ilia Lebedev from behind the drumkit, on Demo, Achers announce themselves with a new spin on post-hardcore. Firstly, there’s the urgent rush of Go In – a gritty wall of noise that feeds into the primal rawness that made us fall in love with post-hardcore in the first place. And with senses well and truly sparked, there’s no let-up on second track, Asahi Bear, either– a song that echoes the young energy of In / Casino / Out-era At The Drive-In.

While there is little doubt that Achers will feature throughout these pages in the very near future (more music is on the way, of course), through the lens of our ‘heavy/light’ 13 Questions, here’s a little taster into how the band began and what makes them tick.

As you’re about to find out, it’s clear that the members of Achers are true lifers. It’s an ethos not only welcomed around these parts, but also an attitude that we need in underground music more than ever.

13 Questions with Overhand Sam

1. Can you tell us the history of Achers?

Sabrina Amade: “We formed in 2022 to play First Timers Festival (a gig where each band plays their set for the first time). Pat and I knew each other through a previous band, and he found Pavel online who later brought in Ilia who played drums for us on the demo.” 

Pat Smiley: “Yeah. We’d talked about doing a project that was a bit Unwound, Fugazi inspired. And Sabrina being brave and gung-ho signed us up to play before we’d written a single thing. We had no songs, no full band, I’d never done lead vocals, (Ilia had never drummed), and we had only weeks to get sorted. So that was thrilling / absolutely terrifying. But it went pretty well. People were kind. No eggs were thrown.”

2. The two-song demo came out in September. Tell us about the first song, Go In?

PS: “Go In is about overcoming anxieties and throwing yourself into life as best you can. Easier said than done, of course, but it’s both a call to action and reminder.”

3. And what about Asahi Bear?

PS: “Asahi Bear is about holding yourself accountable and doing the work. A call to action and reminder again.”

All Souls Day: The Burning Universe of Unwound

4. From these songs I find that you find the space between At The Drive-In and Sparta. Are they bands you grew up listening to?

PS: “At the Drive-In was actually my second ever gig. After Blink 182 (hah!). Sparta I didn’t listen to to be honest, but I do like Jim Ward’s youtube interview series. Seems a lovely fella. At the Drive-In though were definitely a formative, gateway band for me. Not long after hearing them on the Radio 1 rock show I was attending sweaty emo and hardcore shows in the backroom of London pubs and diving into distros, obsessed with the DC scene (Revolution Summer), the San Diego scene (Threeoneg, Gravity etc.) and loving ’90s emo like Indian Summer, Jimmy Eat World, The Van Pelt. That, besides Oasis, Queen and what my parents loved was what I grew up on. I’ll always have a lot of love for them, for sure.”

Pavel Borisov: “I was obsessed with At the Drive-In back in the day and saw them live at Reading in 2012. It was a pretty disappointing show, to be honest. Maybe that’s why we started Achers – to show how it’s done, (hah!). Jokes aside, ATDI obviously influenced my guitar style, but in Achers I tried to channel Drive Like Jehu, Jawbox and Unwound more.”

SA: “I was at that same At the Drive-In show as Pat at the Astoria before we knew each other. Got sucked in when I heard someone one play One Armed Scissor. They were part of the same scene as …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead (both from Texas) who I listened to a lot back then. There used to be a show on XFM called the High Jack where bands would take over the radio for an hour and play their favourite tunes. I remember doing my homework to that on a Sunday. The episode with Graham Coxon was like a gateway for me into all kinds of bands like …Trail of Dead, Mission of Burma, Swell Maps. He also introduced me to the Wipers, Pavement, Fugazi…”

5. As a current recording artist, are you constantly seeking out new music and artists, or are you more rooted to your past influences?

PW: “The others in the band are a lot more up on newer music. I think I’m listening to new music and find I’m way late to the party. So yeah, I’m a bit stuck in a time warp. I’m usually going backwards in time or getting giddy at reissues.”

PB: “I run a semi-popular music blog and a podcast (all in Russian, so don’t bother searching for it) and I mostly listen to new music. I spend two-three days a week at gigs and always looking for new and fresh names and sounds.”

SA: “Pat keeps me on my toes with regular playlists. Always something new to me in there even if they’ve been around for a while. We share music a lot in our band WhatsApp group. I like podcasts like Bandsplain and Every Album Ever which are great for digging deeper into bands that I probably should’ve listened [to] ages ago. I’m quite lazy about seeking new bands. It tends to be a case of being in the right place at the right time when I discover something new. Usually support bands or something that someone’s recommended to me.”

6. How have you found the underground scene in London post-lockdown. Have things started picking up again?

PB: “As someone who goes to gigs a lot, I noticed that it’s easier to buy tickets, and it means that less people are eager to go to gigs. It sucks. But at the same time, I see lots of new bands (SUDS blew me away the other day), lots of enthusiasm and I hear many good songs about the state of things, desperate songs. That’s great.”

SA: “London’s smaller grass roots venues are such an important part of the underground scene. I was worried about losing some of them during lockdown but luckily my favourite ones survived. It’s where bands start out and in my opinion it’s the best place to watch them when they’re on the cusp of making it big. The Windmill in Brixton in particular is very dear to me. It’s kind of lost its reputation for being underground as it’s become like a Mecca for the best new bands although I haven’t seen any good bands coming out of there in a while. The last one was Black Midi around 2019 but for me they’ve lost some of the magic of their early Windmill shows when they were just a four-piece with a second guitarist. There’s some great footage of those shows on YouTube.”

PS: “I went from lockdown to becoming a dad, so I’m not at many shows at all nowadays. But I follow along vicariously through Instagram and discord, and it seems like there’s a whole new crop of energised bands and littles micro scenes all putting on shows and supporting one another. Always nice to see.”

7. Some fun questions now: do you have any hobbies outside of music?

PB: “I skate a lot. Landed my first kickflip at 34, so it’s never too late to start.”

SA: “Music is my main hobby. Going to gigs and playing in bands takes up most of my free time. I’m in five other bands.”

PS: “I’m just changing nappies and playing guitar super quietly between naps and the next practice. But I’m a massive bookworm, and also a wrestling nerd. I did actually try it as a hobby but man, that shit hurts for real, so I went back to spectating. I suppose bombarding friends with endless playlists is one too.”

8. What is your favourite view?

PS: “Blythe Hill very near me in SE London. It’s like a secret Primrose Hill or Greenwich for locals. Also, Malin Head in Ireland is a stunning spot I go back to every couple of years.”

PB: “Beachy Head in the middle of February when it’s raining and wind is strong as hell and it’s getting dark.”

SA: “Anything high up. Primrose hill, Franks Cafe in Peckham… Walking along a beach when all you can see is the horizon is very grounding. The view along the Barril beach in Portugal where I’ve been going since I was little with my family is beautiful.”

9. Funniest band story?

PS: “Hmmm. Not been too much hijinx jet. People get our name wrong constantly which is funny, and totally fair enough/easily done. But we’ve been called Archers so many times now we may have to learn the Archers theme and start playing it live.”

PB: “The funniest story about the band is that we recorded a demo on an 8-track mixer in a cupboard that we call a rehearsal place with cheap mics and no experience at all, mixed it by ourselves and now we’re answering questions, getting reviews and seeing lots of interest from promoters and listeners. Feels like someone is playing us. Also, I have no idea what the Archers theme is, and I think I never heard the word ‘Achers’ before Pat suggested it as a name for the band.”

SA: “I’ve done silly things like playing an entire gig gesturing at the sound guy to turn me up and then realising at the end of the show that my volume knob was turned all the way down. We’ve only played one proper show so far with Achers, so I’ve got a clean slate, but things are bound to go a bit more Spinal Tap once we start gigging more.”

Light Up the Stars: Remembering Rick Froberg

10. Favourite records so far in 2023 so far?

PB: “Wednesday: Rat Saw God, Prewn: Through The Window, Pool Kids: self-titled.

SA: “Protomartyr’s Formal Growth in the Desert. They played a blinder recently at the Electric Ballroom. Mac Demarco’s been really prolific this year. He put out an album with 199 songs and another shorter instrumental one, 5 Easy Hot Dogs. I kind of went down a rabbit hole listening to that. It’s mostly sketches of songs. Really playful and intimate.”

PS: Sufjan Stevens: Javelin, Lync, These Are Not Fall Colors (reissue but even so). This is the time of year I frantically try to listen to AOTY contenders and actually find out what’s happened.”

11. Vinyl, CD or streaming?

PS: “I sold all my CDs when I was super broke, but I still have my vinyl and I stream constantly. So as long as music comes out of it, I’m for it.”

PB: “To be honest, streaming. I love vinyl and cassettes, but it’s not that convenient. And the access to all commercial music on your phone is priceless.”

SA: “Streaming is easier as records skip when they’re scratched, and I don’t always put them in the right box/sleeve. I like it when the algorithm suggests something new to me and how I can carry all the music I want in my pocket. Saying that, I hate the way things get compressed and remastered when I’m used to listening to something on vinyl. It’s really noticeable. And artists with songs that have been played over a million times should earn more than 1p.

12. What’s next for Achers?

PS: “We’re writing lots and planning on hitting the ground running in 2024 with shows and a summer album, I think.”  

13. Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. Any last words?

PB: “Go to gigs, support your local scene. The world is fucked, but at least we have punk.”

PS: “What he said. Thanks!”

Demo is out now. Purchase from Bandcamp.