Will Joseph Cook’s up-beat, pop-rock summer-anthems have earned himself a rapidly-rising reputation, excelling him well into the forefront of Britain’s indie scene. His 2017 debut album Sweet Dreamer saw a great reception and he has high hopes for the latest EP, If You Want To Make Money, released on Friday 27th, expecting it to “transition smoothly” to the next album.
Will was making headway through the latest Louis Theroux documentary when I caught up with him. It never occurred to me that famous musicians watched the same TV as us, I just assumed they were either playing shows or on the piss with Pete Doherty. Despite this, after a casual chat about the America and heroine, we got to business.
“I just wanna make sure it’s sick.”
He was taking a well-earned break before the last rehearsal for his tour of the UK, starting in Preston on the 13th, the same day the single ‘If You Want To Make Money’ was to be released. He told me excitedly that “this’ll be the last tour of this album before I go away and do some more writing”.
It was clear he was genuinely enthusiastic about the tour when we spoke about the shows he’s played in the past, “When people are vibe-ing and dancing and singing back your lyrics, it definitely builds confidence.”
He admits, “I used to get pretty nervous before shows”. However, a steady stream of successful gigs and a sterling band have put the indie rocker at ease. I asked him if he worried about future directions including the EP, to which he replied simply, “I’ve got lots of demos I’m working on…I just wanna make sure it’s sick”. A sentiment, I thought, we can all learn from.
We spoke more about his often goofy, self-conscious style of music videos. In one of which he speed dated himself dressed in drag. He confessed, “I always cringed at the idea of doing a serious video.” I agreed that a boyband ballad-esque scene might detract from his usually energetic sound.
It’s clear that Will puts everything into his music, and the result is something unique, inspired and, in my opinion, well deserving of a listen on Spotify or a cheeky groove at his gigs. Any fans of the Magic Gang or Sundara Karma should definitely give If You Want To Make Money and gander!