Returning to Portsmouth's Wedgewood Rooms is A Matter of Life and Love for Skinny Lister

Now the folk-punks are back – and with a toddler in tow.

With dad being co-vocalist and guitarist Dan Heptinstall, life has certainly taken a turn for the hard-touring band – with Lorna’s mum often joining them as on-the-road babysitter.

Since becoming a mum, Lorna says it’s given her a new purpose: ‘It makes going on stage even more special for me. I've really enjoyed gigs since having Bonny, I don't think I've had a duff one. You get to bed late, and then she's not really asleep, so I'm up at 5am and a couple of times in the night, but it's definitely worth it. The buzz is even more palpable now than it ever was.’

Bonny was born in March 2020 – the week we went into lockdown

‘The timing was sort of perfect for us,’ says Dan, ‘we were going to grind to a halt anyway for a bit with Bonny coming along.

‘And we'd done 10 years of solid touring,’ adds Lorna.

‘We weren't about to hang up our instruments or anything,’ Dan continues, ‘but we were ready for a little break, so when the pandemic happened... it didn't really affect us as much as it would have in previous years. Not only were we not on the road, but no one was on the road! Not that we wished it that way.

‘It was hard in other ways,’ says Lorna, ‘having a newborn and not being able to see family for months – it was tricky but we survived that.’

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However, Dan adds that they also ‘used the time constructively’ to write what became their fifth album, 2021’s A Matter of Life & Love. The album does feature a song for their daughter – Bonny’s Eyes.

But as Dan says: ‘Having a kid certainly changes your perspective on things, and that inevitably influences what you write. That song is specifically written about the experience of having a kid for the first time. But I didn't want to overdo it, I didn't want an album of tracks like that – and the others in the band certainly didn't! But we write about our experiences and that was definitely a Big Thing which happened in mine and Lorna's lives.’

They were also keen for it not to be a 'pandemic album.’ ‘There's a lot of songs on there about making time for family,’ says Lorna, ‘like when I was recording (the heartfelt album centre-piece) Embers, I imagined being in a room full of people who had lost people over the time, and couldn't see them. I got quite emotional singing it. There's loads of songs on there about getting together and that community spirit.

‘Weirdly, when Dan was writing the songs, he wrote a song called Circuit Breaker, even before it became a "lockdown" expression, it wasn't about that but it was ditched because it was far too weird and specific to the time.’

Dan elaborates: ‘I think that was an inevitable consequence of the lockdown. The last thing I wanted to write about was anything to do with the pandemic – I didn't want to tie it so much to that period. I wanted the songs to still be timeless. But there’s some influence (from the pandemic), mainly in those ways – valuing the time that you've got with your friends and your family, and important things you sometimes take for granted...’

There have been a couple of personnel changes recently for the band, too. After stepping in to cover drummer Thom Mills on a tour supporting American punk veterans Less Than Jake earlier this year, Tim Hillsdon has taken over full time.

Dan says: ‘Due to other commitments, and he's just had another child, he's decided to step away, but everything's good between us, and it’s in good spirits.’

And guitarist Sam ‘The Mule’ Brace has also departed.

‘At that same time Sam had some serious medical issues,’ Dan explains, ‘and he had to not do that tour. That was just before the tour was happening and we were quite panicky. But we did it with Tim and without Mule. It was a bit of a change for us, but it went really well and we really enjoyed it so Tim stepped seamlessly in to the fold. Then Mule continued to have some medical issues, but he also lives in Greece, so it was becoming logistically very tricky to get him back for gigs, so in the end it was a mutual decision.’

The band decided not to replace Sam, so are now a five-piece again, as they were earlier in their career. But as anyone who caught their set at this year’s Wickham Festival knows, the band still know how to throw a party live. However, one key aspect of their pre-pandemic shows remains ‘on the bench’ for the moment – a flagon of rum used to get passed around the audience at the climax of their set.

‘Some people are still really cheering for it, but it doesn't feel quite right yet,’ says Laura, but as a compromise Dan says: ‘What we have done is bring out a bottle of rum anyway, and pour a load of shots across the front of the stage and hand them out.

Laura adds: ‘It helps keep that alive – it will come back, but it's just being sensitive.’

During the pandemic, the band started selling mini handmade flagons through their website.

‘They've been selling like hotcakes, they sell quicker than our albums!’ Dan laughs. ‘They go in minutes – we put a batch of 50 up and they're gone. People who've got those can always bring them along to the show – it's not quite as communal, but you know…’

They return to The Wedge, in Southsea, on Thursday, December 1. Support comes from Berries and Tom Jenkins. Go to wedgewood-rooms.co.uk.