That F**king Tank talk deconstructing rock

"With two people you can play around and make mistakes, and people don't realise you're making them."
"With two people you can play around and make mistakes, and people don't realise you're making them."

Most bands we feature are shiny and new - but we'll make an exception for That F**king Tank. The Leeds two- piece actually formed in 2003 to honour a pre-booked date of their defunct previous band.

"We started the band as a bit of joke, but people came to like it," explains guitarist Andy Abbott. "I broke a string on the first gig and we didn't get to play our whole set, so they said, 'Right, you'll have to play again' - and here we are, 10 years later!"

The instrumental duo play riff-heavy "deconstructed rock music" with Andy taking cues from leftfield guitar bands such as Lightning Bolt, The F**king Champs and Captain Beefheart. It's a responsive, unrestricted form of playing, but not the kind that has you checking Twitter mid-gig.

"Me and James [Islip, drums] have been playing together since we were 11," explains Andy. "So there's an element of trying to disrupt the other person and throw them off track - with two people you can play around and make mistakes, and people don't realise you're making them."

Andy gets his frequency-filling tone from a custom aluminium Electrical Guitar Company baritone axe, which is then split through a Fender Twin and an Ampeg bass amp. "The guitar is tuned ADGADG," adds Andy. "So I play it in a way that sounds like two lines happening at the same time."

TFT's avant-garde approach has earned the duo support for Foals on their gigantic UK dates this February. "It will be interesting to play these super- huge venues," says Andy. "I don't think we'll be playing on the floor in the middle of the venue like we have in the past, but we'll play a lot of riffs people can dance to!"

For more information visit the official That F**king Tank website or connect with the band on Facebook and Twitter.

Matt Parker

Matt is a freelance journalist who has spent the last decade interviewing musicians for the likes of Total Guitar, Guitarist, Guitar World, MusicRadar, NME.com, DJ Mag and Electronic Sound. In 2020, he launched CreativeMoney.co.uk, which aims to share the ideas that make creative lifestyles more sustainable. He plays guitar, but should not be allowed near your delay pedals.