Music: Jeff Hemmings

The Maccabees – former Brightonians are back in town

In the mid-2000s, Brighton proved to be the ideal launching pad for this much loved indie band, one who had initially sprung out of a loose South London scene that had included the likes of Jack Penate, Rumble Strips and Jamie T. “I went to Sussex, and most of the boys went to Brighton (uni). At first it was just a means of keeping the band together… we all dropped out pretty fast” laughs Felix White, guitarist with the band. “Brighton is where we got a deal, so we decided to stay for a few years, before migrating back to London.”
It’s been quite a journey for the five piece, with four of the founder members still a part of the band; singer Orlando Weekes, brothers Felix and Hugo White, and bassist Rupert Jarvis, while drummer Sam Doyle joined in 2008. Synonymous with a particularly buzzy Brighton scene at the time that included British Sea Power and The Kooks, Hugo remembers their time here as the place where they wrote both their debut album, Colour It in, and the 2009 follow up, Wall of Arms. “Brighton was a relief from growing up in London. It was somewhere that was a bit calmer for a while. It didn’t feel like anyone you knew had a job, everybody was just hanging out all day, and everywhere was just five minutes walk away. There were so many venues and so many bands, it was quite exciting for us. If we hadn’t moved to Brighton I don’t think we would have found that context for ourselves at that stage. It was only through word of mouth or whatever, filling out the Freebutt (infamous Brighton venue that is no more) every other week or whenever that was, that was when labels came to see us and we found management.”
Named after flicking through a copy of the Bible – the original Maccabees were the leaders of a rebel Jewish army that seized Judea in 2nd century BC, and reasserted the Jewish religion – the band’s third album Given To The Wild saw them reach their highest album chart placing (number four), as well as a Mercury Music Prize nomination. After a false start or two and thoughts of packing it in, the fourth album was finally delivered earlier this year, to much acclaim. Appearances at Glastonbury and as a special guest at Brighton’s Great Escape helped to cement their return, and they’ll be back in Brighton later this month. “It took a long time to work out what it was we were making,” says Felix. “We almost had to re-learn how to write as a band in a room again.
Concert Hall, Brighton Dome, Mon 23 November, 7pm, £25