'We've Grown Into Arenas Over The Years': The Wombats on 'Oh! The Ocean' And Their Massive UK Tour
Tuesday, 11 February 2025
Written by Rishi Shah
Photo: Julia Friedland-Godfrey
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. These days bassist Tord Øverland-Knudsen can look back at The Wombats playing Liverpool’s Echo Arena — now going by the name of the M&S Bank Arena — in November 2008 and admit that they probably weren’t ready for that sort of room. But hot on the heels of their debut album ‘A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation’, instant indie classics such as Moving To New York and Kill The Director had propelled them into the UK mainstream. “It was more suitable in theatres back then,” he tells Stereoboard.
But it’s different now. Fast forward nearly two decades and the staying power of those very same sleeper hits – with the help of TikTok sensation Greek Tragedy and four more stellar indie-pop albums – have gradually transformed The Wombats into a fully-fledged arena band. Having also conquered major festival stages more times than we can count, while finding themselves inundated with a Gen Z fanbase that continues to grow, their sustained success has been remarkable.
“You kind of grow up to the task,” adds Tord. “You release more records and songs that are more suitable. Greek Tragedy works really well in an arena. It's becoming a place where we feel comfortable…it blows my mind, really. After all these years, we can still continue to grow. We don't take it for granted at all.”
With their sixth album ‘Oh! The Ocean’ on the horizon, not to mention a massive UK arena tour in March, we caught up with Tord to find out about the melodies on the record, drawing parallels with football, and what his eight-year-old daughter makes of The Wombats.
How do you feel about your first UK tour entirely in arenas?
“It’s obviously a big step up…you’re feeling the pressure of the moment. It does feel slightly more nerve-racking, especially something like the O2. It’s also the fact that we have so many friends, family, all my folks that travel from Norway coming over to see. At the end of the day, essentially, it’s the same as playing in front of 450 people in a small club. It’s equally important, if you can have that mentality that every show is important. I’m into football, I’m a Man United fan. Hearing them talking about matches [against] a big team, versus having the same mentality when they would meet a team that is lower down the table. We still have that same mentality, trying to perform regardless.”
Has the novelty of your first few arena shows worn off, be it Liverpool’s Echo Arena in 2008 or Wembley Arena in 2019?
“When you hear the sound of 15,000 people…comparing it to football again, when you hear the sound of a big crowd, it definitely has a different impact on your body. It’s unbelievable. I feel like we’ve grown into arenas over the years. We did a few arenas on the first album, and we weren’t ready for them at all.”
Blood On The Hospital Floor has one of the best basslines on the album. What still draws The Wombats to such massive hooks?
“We’re suckers for hooks, whether it’s a vocal hook, guitar hook or bass hook. It’s just a feeling, if it feels memorable. We can literally stand and jam for an hour… that was a track when we were jamming really and it was one of those moments when you just [start] figuring it out. That melody hit a loop point where it’s like, ‘Oh, that’s the hook,’ and then we just continued. We are pretty drawn to hooks, I guess. It’s something we look for in not just the music we make, but the music we listen to.”
Alternatively, The World’s Not Out To Get Me, I Am is more minimalist and groove-driven…
“The demo sounded very different – like an alt-J song – andwe completely restructured it. Now, it’s way more like a band again. We had a bit of a struggle, to get the feeling right, but we got there in the end. That guitar solo, the Jack White sound was the reference on that. We never really have solos…no, actually, Blood On The Hospital Floor has a guitar solo as well. So, this is the album of guitar solos!”
How was it working with John Congleton on this record, after Mark Crew produced your previous three?
“Me and Dan [Haggis, drums] have a side project called Sunship Balloon, and we’ve actually worked with John before. A lot of the records he worked on, I love. St. Vincent, Death Cab For Cutie, Wallows, Angel Olsen. He’s very spontaneously driven – it’s all about catching a moment, a feeling, rather than, ‘Let’s make this second verse perfect.’ He was more interested in getting us all playing together. It's about picking things that work together – essentially, keeping a lot of mistakes. That gives more of a push and pull. We haven’t worked like that since maybe our first album.”
Will academic studies be required to figure out why Gen Z continues to embrace The Wombats, almost exponentially?
“What is quite unique with our situation is that our fans don’t really get any older with us. The crowd is pretty much the same age as it was 10 to 15 years ago. I do believe there are people that have grown with the band, but they might not be at the very front and in the mosh pits anymore! A lot of the lyrics are cross-generationally relatable in many ways. The way the world is right now, there’s a little sense of positivity in there and coming to a Wombats show. It’s a very happy place to be.”
Will your daughter and her friends continue that trend?
“She’s been to a few shows, and my wife asked her a question the other day – I wasn't even in the room. ‘What's your favourite band?’ She loves Chappell Roan, Taylor Swift, and she’s got a bit of a Radiohead hang-up at the moment. She loves Fred Again.., she’s got the cool stuff and the pop stuff, all that. And she’s like, ‘It must be papa's band, it’s The Wombats. That’s my favourite band.’”
That’s so sweet!
“Hopefully she's representing what all the kids [are listening to]. She’s eight years old. Hopefully that can reflect on other kids, so we can continue to do what we do.”
The Wombats’ ‘Oh! The Ocean’ is out on February 14 via AWAL Recordings.
The Wombats’ Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Thu February 13 2025 - KINGSTON UPON THAMES PRYZM Kingston
Tue March 18 2025 - NOTTINGHAM Motorpoint Arena
Wed March 19 2025 - LONDON O2 Arena
Fri March 21 2025 - CARDIFF Utilita Arena
Sat March 22 2025 - MANCHESTER AO Arena
Sun March 23 2025 - HULL Connexin Live
Tue March 25 2025 - GLASGOW OVO Hydro
Wed March 26 2025 - LEEDS first direct Arena
Thu May 29 2025 - STOKE Trentham Estate
Thu June 19 2025 - LIVERPOOL Pier Head
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