I caught up with Lee from Pinto by email during his final exams at Staffs Uni in June. It had been a long time since I'd been in contact with Lee since moving from Grimsby so it was good to chat with him again.
Interview by Rick.
Hi Lee, well to start this old chat off do you want to tell me when Pinto started up, who the current line up are and what inspired you to start a band ?
Well, we originated in 1992 in our haunt of Grimsby (stinky northern fishing town) all because there was no-one locally playing the kinda stuff we were listening to so we thought that we should start a band. I'd been playing guitar for a while and everyone bought their own equipment.
The original line up was Andy - vocals, Gaz - Drums, Matt - Bass and me on guitar. Matt quit and then John stepped in for a couple of years then he left through musical differences.
Our third bass player is Sime and we won't have a fourth because if this line up breaks up that will be it for good. We're really happy about the way everything is working out right now.
Life started off for Pinto playing essentially covers of your fave band's tunes, at what point did you decide to start writing your own material and who's responsible for the lyrics and music ?
Well originally it was just for fun. Any inkling of taking it seriously wasn't there. Then we played a couple of gigs and the response we got was amazing. Everyone turned out because it was kinda new everyone was really supportive.
It was then when we thought we should start writing our own material instead of playing people bad versions of J-Church, Screeching Weasel, 411 tunes (amongst others). Everyone chips in now with lyrics but I write nearly all of the music, but there is a very democratic way of songwriting (Gaz gets grumpy and refuses to play anything he doesn't like)....not really.
It is a nightmare though cause over the past five years we haven't been able to do as much as we've wanted to with me being away at University but that will change cause by the time this interview comes out I will be a student no more. So rehearsals won't be as much of a problem. Although one good thing is when we do get a rehearsal we work like mad to get new stuff down.
Pintos are a form of beans, I know these things from my 5 years working in a health shop. So what's your favourite tucker and is farting an occupational hazard when you play gigs out of town ?
Favourite tucker....er Myself and Gaz dig Kebabs but it won't last long for me cause I'm turning veggie soon. If my willpower can stand it. Sime eats nothing apart from noodles and beans (although not together)...at least that's all he seems to have in his bedsit thing.
Andy doesn't eat..infact I can't remember seeing him eat anything for a long time. Spooky...Farting cannot be an occupational hazard more of a sport but here's a little story I can tell you and I hope I don't get into trouble for telling you this but....Andy Bryant who sings for Grimsby band Imbalance shat himself on their tour last week (May 98) but its not that bigger secret cause he told everyone at each gig.
They stayed at my house in Stoke and every morning he had to wash his bumhole just to make sure there wasn't anything extra. Know what I mean??
Probably your biggest gig was at the Godmoney premiere in London with Lovejunk, how did you feel to be on top of the bill at such an auspicious occasion and how many pairs of undies dig the band get through that weekend ?
Er the Godmoney thing was really bizarre. For a start we decided to make a weekend of it so half of us went down on Friday with the other half of the band coming the next day...but Andy & Sime came to London without an A-Z, which is totally fucking stupid seeing as we had no experience of the capital whatsoever.
So they got lost and met us five hours later than they should have. Then we stayed in Kensington across the road from Princess Di's place and did the touristy stuff. I hate London its just too frantic for me and this put me in a bit of a negative frame of mind.
Then...the night of the gig there was another gig at the Red Eye in Islington as part of a Hardcore Weekend so after the film finished loadsa people fucked off.
Then when Lovejunk played more people fucked off and cause no-one knew who we were. So it was like playing a private show for the Mad Monks crew.
Then the following night we were supposed to be getting complimentary tickets for the No Use For A Name show at the Garage courtesy of V2 but they were given to the films director and Rick Rodney from Strife (who was down for the film cause he's in it) so we were well pissed off and proceeded to drive home £170 out of pocket for the weekend as we got paid £30 and our costs were nearly £200 (in car hire n stuff) the funny thing was we had the car illegally cause neither Sime nor Andy were fully insured.
We had got one of our friends to get it for us!! Ha Ha Ha
You've hooked up with Stan Smith's Phoenix Records, so how did that all come about and when's the album out ?
Er I answered an advert in Vision On last March for demo tapes @ Phoenix records. I sent one off and he replied almost straight away with muchos interest.
Then in October we went to Nottingham to record a 13 track album....which still isn't out yet due to massive problems with the artwork. It was due out last Xmas but there's been problems here and problems there but at last contact with the designers the artwork was 80% completed.
Hopefully a month from now it will be available (June) but if you cant wait. We have split with Broccoli coming out in the second week of June on Speedowax Records plus a track on the next P101 fanzine CD sampler with Blink 182, Millencolin, Refused, Good Riddance etc.
Plus it looks like we're doing a split with Strung Out very soon too (also on Speedowax) but apparently I think we need to be vetted by Fat Mike for band compatibility. Bloody hell.
So what's the problem with the artwork ?
Well the problem is that the label told us to do the artwork and we thought that they wanted rough designs but..they wanted the 'finished article'. It was a bit of crossed wires.
Then due to commitments with work and education etc. it kinda got put on the back burner. Then Lee (one of the labels owners) said that if we send him the ideas and photos and stuff he'll get one of his mates in London to knock it up.
The deadline was missed cause the guy who was doing it had his official work deadlines ...then he went on holiday, then well...... It's been a right nightmare but IT WILL HAPPEN I assure you. Apparently it has one of our sk8 mates on the cover with our new logo which is really cool.
Will you be setting up a tour or playing some gigs to promote either the Speedowax split or the Phoenix album ?
A tour is in the pipeline. All we need is a few more contacts and we're away. (Or we could try and blag something with One Car Pile Up cause they cant keep still!!!)
Our next gig is in Leeds with Consumed on June 12 so if we don't play as shit as we did in Manchester we may meet a few people and we're really excited cause we haven't played Leeds before.
Plus we haven't played Hull yet so when my education is all over I can concentrate on writing back to people and continue the couple of fanzine columns that I have promised people but haven't delivered (sorry) ....if anyone wants to contact us to play write to the ad at the end.
Well we're just about ready for the summer, so what's your ideal summer afternoon and what sounds would you be listening to ?
I will hopefully be going to New York in September so if its still hot that would be top stuff.
Well got loadsa cool new music. The new Refused album is the greatest album EVER. Never have I heard such a ground breaking piece of music n stuff...plus Lifetime -'Jerseys Best Dancers' Imbalance - 'March Of The Yes Man' ep. Area Effect CDEP... New Beastie Boys??? Yeah I think the music's gonna be good this summer
Tell me your worst nightmare ?
Failing my degree...not getting a job and having to go work at Birds Eye for 30 years to pay off my student debts. That scary enough for ya!!
What do you hope to achieve in the future with Pinto ?
Well the odds have been stacked against us as all the Grimsby bands that were around when we started have fallen by the wayside but we're still here, six years down the line.
I think its cause we've all known each other for years and have grown up together there's more than just music.
I can't speak for everyone but I love playing music and it is one of the most important things I have in my life I kinda think it is for everyone else too. Plus because rehearsals are few and far between it has never become a chore as I have seen other bands go. Its fun and when it stops being fun is when we call it a day.
At this present time it's picking up both record wise and gig wise and you know Rick, when we started it was just a laugh, it still is. That's the key.
Everything we encounter is a bonus on top of our aspirations. As long as some people somewhere hear us and like it or spend £2 to cover us in rotten veg then I'll be happy.
Well that's all Lee, anything you'd like to add bud ?
Thanks a lot for this interview Rick, good luck as the family man and hello Sam. Shouts to.....Imbalance, Spy Vs. Spy, One Car Pile Up, Stoke oatcake munchers, Old Skool Grimsby Sk8ers, Area Effect, everyone who has read this and think I'm a twat!!! Ha Ha Ha
If you want to be added to our mailing list and/or purchase either the e.p or album or T-Shirts or stolen video...er oops, then please write to us. Take pity on the codheads and give us a gig?????
C/O Lee Byatt,
26 Chelmsford Ave,
Grimsby,
N E Lincs,
DN34 4RZ
ENGLAND
