Interview: Asbestos Salesman, Pigeon Dog, National Playboys & Naomi In Blue ahead of their appearances at Bad Friday at The Windmill Brixton

Back through the mists of time, the Easter Weekend at legendary independent South London music venue The Windmill featured a double header of bank holiday all-dayers: Bad Friday and our own Joyfest, both brimming with incredible new musical talent (if we do say so ourselves) and free BBQ. And whilst Joyfest has been on long-term hiatus (can we still call it hiatus after a decade?), Bad Friday has gone from strength to strength, with yet another stirling line-up set to take the Windmill by storm later this week.

Headlined by pop-art provocateurs YAANG, the day’s festivities will also feature genre-mashing South Coast outfit Cowboyy, North London grungers Pigeon Dog, Edinburgh post-punk 5-piece National Playboys, self-proclaimed ‘post-slop’ duo Asbestos Salesman, the British-Chilean Americana of Naomi in Blue, indie pop duo Just Kids and the scuzzy riffs of South London duo Sashes. For £15. With a free BBQ. Get your tickets now.

Promoters Sonic Tonic caught up with three of the bands from this year’s line-up to find out more, and have put together a playlist featuring this year’s acts to whet our collective appetites further.

Hi Asbestos Salesman – is your name related to the fact that like asbestos it’s now virtually impossible to sell music? 

In a way, I guess. Drowning in a tide of slop, we sell spiky stuff that many people would avoid like the plague, or…. asbestos. And like asbestos, we are slowly removed from buildings at great cost. Until then, we will continue to spew toxic material and confusion almost as effectively as the current media cycle.

What’s the music scene in Southend like? Do you have any favourite venues?

Probably not as appreciated as it could be! Southend is a mixed bag, full of very interesting people. It has its own burgeoning microculture that would give your ginger and turmeric probiotic shot a run for its money. Just head down our local fried chicken doner kebab n’ barbers vape shop phone repair massage parlour and you’ll see for yourself. Don’t go too far or you might reach the big houses, tennis clubs, and golfing green (there’s not enough asbestos out there for our taste). Venue wise, we’re fond of the Fickle Pickle Club at the minute.

Having blown up on social media you’re getting a reputation for an electrifying stage performance – who do you admire the most from both live performances and musically? 

Don’t worry, since *the incident* we’ve stopped bringing our own speakers and lighting. We can assure you that we now have a new triple platinum insurance package that will hopefully cover any further loss of hair, cognitive function, or life. Not to mention unfortunately curious stray dogs.

Our live performances have a wide range of influences across music, art, film and TV. We both grew up in front of the telly so it’s hard to pinpoint where the asbestos really came from. Musically, just sieve the last 60 years of pop and counter culture and you’ll find a sprinkle of our inspiration everywhere someone is disappointed with society. Oh, and Only Fools and Horses.

What’s the rest of 2026 looking like for Asbestos Salesman? 

More gigs like this hopefully! We’re busy working on some new singles while slopmaxxing on our untitled third (double) album. Now we just need to think of a name that doesn’t include ‘slop’ or ‘sludge’. We’ve drawn a blank on that.

Hi Pigeon Dog! what’s the best venue in London and why is it The Windmill Brixton?

The Windmill is a great grassroots venue with so much character and history but it’s definitely not the best in our opinion… We’re big fans of Paper Dress Vintage – the friendliest staff and team, great sound and stage, gorgeous atmosphere and they actually provide you with a green room, discounted food from nearby and a rider (which accommodates for everyone). Sorry hahaha, you don’t have to use this answer, just couldn’t lie.

Recent single ‘Bag of Skin’ is about navigating the emotional and social landscape as a gender nonconforming human – it’s a hell of a song – did you find the writing process cathartic or difficult and what’s the reaction been to it? 

Thanks so much for the kind words on ‘Bag of Skin’! In terms of the writing process, it was actually really cathartic. Writing can be a bit of a hyperactive blur but I remember wanting to write a big filthy riff and I was pretty pleased with that one. It wasn’t initially about gender, it started off about the frustration that can come with being an independent artist – when the work all feels a bit repetitive and you have to remind yourself that you do really love creating and performing, to focus on that instead of getting yourself down with jealousy. Anyway, part of it ended up being about being non-binary, and the 2 themes connected. The response has been great, loads of lovely feedback from people (big thanks to Loud Women for naming it a top track of 2026!) and especially fun to play it live. 

You’ve been building a reputation for a really specific live energy. If you could curate a festival and pick three other acts (living or dead) to share the bill with, who would they be?

Off the top of my head I’m gonna say Die Spitz, our good pals More Money (crazy talent and energy), and Bella Artois (one of the best live shows you will ever see).  

What does the rest of the year look like for Pigeon Dog?

The rest of the year looks like a new single in a month’s time, lots more shows, recording and releasing our third EP, and hopefully playing some festivals if any of them decide to have us…

2025 saw the release of double-A ‘Fragments and Disease’, which feels like a sonic shift towards a more gothic undercurrent of bands like Banshees and Bauhaus, was it a natural shift in tone? 

Each song we have written has come naturally with us thinking too much about genre or getting a particular sound. We bring the demos in and play around and see what we like. Those bands are really cool and we take bits from all our influences. 

With five of you on stage there’s a massive ‘wall of noise’ quality to your live set. How do you approach songwriting and has this changed with the addition of new members Anna and Megan? 

Same as we also do, we start with a demo and then come on a play with the arrangements. This is when everyone adds there own personality to the songs which seems to have worked well for us so far. 

How’s the rest of 2026 shaping up?

We are currently recording our next project and we can’t wait to share once it’s ready

Hi Naomi, I see you’ve been touring in Chile which is exciting! How did it go, and how does the gig scene differ to the UK?

Yes! It’s always a joy to perform in Chile. My mum’s from there so I have a lot of family and friends there and it feels a lot like another home. This time I was touring with a brilliant band called Matorral, we released a song together last year so it was very special to play live together. The scene there is much smaller and there are fewer live music venues, but it does mean that the audience are really engaged and there’s a lovely community of similar-minded artists. 

Your last EP, 2024’s incredible It Takes Time contained such rich and varied instrumentation, it really captured the intensity of the emotional journey within the songs; was there a particular track on the EP where the instrumentation felt almost too vulnerable to record or one that surprised you how expansive it ended up? 

Thank you! I’m glad that came across. That record is about quite an intense and difficult experience I had, so when I wrote those songs I had no idea how they’d end up. The instrumentation came through a lot of experimentation, it was almost directionless but ended in a place that, to me, perfectly reflects the emotional sentiment of the lyrics. 

You’re also an acclaimed political journalist, how does this inform your music?  

I think in some ways it makes me a better writer, and there’s a lack of fear to use music as a form of social commentary. 

What does the rest of 2026 have in store for Naomi in Blue?

I will be releasing my debut album, Is this body mine? which I recorded last year with producer Gus White in his beautiful studio in the countryside. It was mastered by Cicely Balston (MPG producer of the year) so I’m very proud of this record. I also have a headline show coming up at Green Note on 23rd April, and will be doing album promo stuff throughout the year before heading on an artists’ residency in Mexico City in November to write my next album. 

Bad Friday at The Windmill Brixton, ft. Yaang, Cowboyy, Pigeon Dog, National Playboys, Asbestos Salesman, Naomi In Blue, Just Kids and Sashes, takes place on Friday 3rd April, doors at 3.30pm. Tickets £15 (including free BBQ) are available here.

Sonic Tonic: Facebook / Instagram
Asbestos Salesman: Facebook / Instagram / Bandcamp
National Playboys: Facebook / Instagram / LinkTree
Pigeon Dog: Facebook / Instagram / Bandcamp

Article by Paul Maps

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