Last week feminist garage punks The Baby Seals released Live at The Portland Arms Supporting Lydia Lunch, a new record featuring their full set from the long-standing Cambridge venue. It features high energy performances of tracks from their LP Chaos (which featured in our 2024 end of year favourites list), bringing out the humour, the vitriol and a heavier take on some of the fantastic tunes contained within it. Those pre-existing favourites are joined by new track ‘Irene’, which showcases a darker side to the band with its rumbling, heavy psych sound and lyrics inspired by a surrealist erotic novel about a man’s relationship with an imaginary vulva. Taken as a whole it’s a perfect introduction to their weird and wonderful world, while giving plenty for existing fans to get their teeth into.
We caught up with the trio to find out more about the record, the gig where it was recorded and the experience of playing with no-wave legend Lydia Lunch.
Where did the idea for recording this show and releasing it as a live album come from? Why this show in particular?
Amy: This wasn’t really a consideration before the show. Once we’d played, we found out that Joe Nicholson (who engineered our album Chaos and subsequent singles) had recorded the gig. That show sounded incredibly raucous and, once Joe worked his usual magic on the tracks, low and behold – we had a live album!
The show was a support slot for Lydia Lunch – how was that experience? Did you get a chance to speak with her? Any wisdom passed down?
Kate: It was excellent and we hung out a lot with her. She has huge warmth, guts, an earthy sensuality and is brutally honest – which means she’s as quick with praise and love as she is intolerant to any bullshit (quite right too). It’s a fabulous, heady, beguiling mix. Lydia is gloriously herself, you know where you stand with her and she’s uncompromising in all the right ways. She felt like a kindred spirit. I was really hoping we’d get the support slot for Lydia as I really dig her, and out of the bands shortlisted, she chose us, which we were delighted about. She’s also the first person that’s described us as a hard rock band, which I liked. She watched our full set, gave big props to us throughout her own set and could not have been more encouraging or generous with her time and praise. The evening culminated with me and Lydia drinking together ‘til pub closing, swapping lipstick, perfume and stories – ha ha! She also gave me the last of her Jaffa cakes as I was really hungry! Which felt like a sweet parallel as famously the moniker ‘Lunch’ was supposedly given to her by her friend Mink DeVille, as she used to steal food to feed her friends in New York in the ‘70s.
Many of the songs on the live recording are from your 2024 album Chaos, are there any that have taken a different form, or that reveal a different side of themselves in the live version?
Kerry: We play around a lot more when we play live, so the instrumental parts are usually longer and more improvised. The live version has those moments. Especially when we tour, when you’re playing back to back, you get a bit more cocky and you start playing around with how you start a song, but we try not to mess with the actual form too much. ‘Vibrator’’s a good example – on the record we’re pretty much straight in, but when we play live there’s more of a build up and the beginning of the song is always different.
What do you enjoy most and least about playing live?
Kate: It’s my favourite thing! There is nothing like the feeling of playing music you like, mega loud, on a stage with your mates, to a bunch of people who seem to be having a good old knees up. We’re really locked in, so there’s that magical synergy thing between us, which has an otherworldly alchemy that I love, but just the sheer buzz of playing live, is an incredible feeling. It’s like a drug! Despite a lifelong love of hard/heavy music, my background is acoustic guitar, lots of tunings, fiddly fingerpicking. I never found doing that solo live an enjoyable experience. But playing music of a style that’s deep wired/fused with my very being, very very loud, that’s my happy place. And to do that with two great mates, even better. I also love the camaraderie between band and crew – a renegade gang working all hands to the pump and in synch for the same goal – that’s a special thing.
As for what I like least? I don’t love lugging massively heavy gear around. I’m no young kid, and I have some health stuff that makes it more challenging (note to self – need to start lifting weights). It can be hard and exhausting, especially on tour when we’re on the go all the time.
Kerry: There’s nothing better than that feeling when everything locks in and you’ve got a decent sound on stage and you can just let go and ride with what’s happening. I don’t always reach that state – it’s not something you can force. But, if you can get into the right head space it’s the ultimate recalibration. The cherry on the playing live cake is looking at the audience and seeing they’re going through that too. It’s like one big love- in / mass cleanse.
Least fave bit is a hard one – probably arriving at the venue after a long drive needing a wee (?!).
The album also includes a new track, ‘Irene’, with both a live and studio version included on the record – it’s got a darker vibe than might generally be associated with The Baby Seals – how did it come about, and does it give a glimpse of what might be coming on your next album?
Kerry: I was messing about with a little riff in practice and Kate said “I like that, we should do something with that”, so we started playing it and it became the song very quickly. The lyrics I finished writing in a Premier Inn bath the night before we recorded, so I can be bit all or nothing! Thematically, current affairs, domestic life, marriage, motherhood’s been quite the trip – things like that all have an influence. Soundwise it’s probably a reflection of our jams – we jam a lot more now, and we just love playing together, so there’s a bit more space in the songs.
What have you got coming up for the rest of the year and heading into 2027?
Amy: We’re planning to write, record and if there’s time, nesting ourselves silly! By drinking copious amounts of tea, maybe a hobnob or four and cracking down with album number 2. We’re very excited by the songs already written and the ones that are yet to be. We’re also hoping to launch a Patreon programme in the new year.
Live at The Portland Arms Supporting Lydia Lunch is out now on vinyl and digital download – get you copy now on Bandcamp
The Baby Seals: Website / Instagram / Facebook / Bandcamp
Interview by Paul Maps
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