Jane McGowan catches up with the UK based duo taking the country world by storm...
The UK country music scene is more popular than it has ever been, with acts such as The Shires and Raintown achieving recognition – not to mention great sales – on both sides of the Atlantic.
Leading the charge is Hampshire duo Ward Thomas – aka Catherine and Lizzy Ward Thomas, 24-year-old twin sisters whose first album sold more than 25,000 copies. The second, Cartwheels, released in 2016, was the first album by a UK country act to make the number one spot in the UK Albums Chart. Now the twins are about to embark on a 15-date tour to support the release of their eagerly anticipated third collection, Restless Minds.
“We are very excited that the album is finally coming out,” says Lizzy. “This is the biggest tour we’ve done ahead of an album, so we have been having lots of meetings about the production with the team and our musicians, and now we can’t wait for everyone to see it.”
The girls – whose tour kicks off down in Bexhill, East Sussex, before hitting Guildford’s G Live on February 26 and ending up in Gateshead in April – eschew pop-star glamour to travel with their five-piece band and stage crew.
“We sleep on the bus – it’s like Some Like it Hot,” laughs Lizzy, before Catherine adds:
“Sometimes it can be challenging actually to get any sleep at all.”
Born in 1994, the girls grew up on a farm just outside Petersfield and have been writing and performing from a very young age.
“I was about 12 when I started writing songs – lots and lots of songs, most of them awful,” admits Lizzy. “But it was the first sign of me wanting to go down the music route. And we have always wanted to work together; we just found that we sounded better together than on our own. When we were really little we would sing at family parties or the local pub, so performing together came about quite naturally.”
Nevertheless, when the girls revealed their career plans at the tender age of 16, their parents were a little concerned.
“We were so sure that this was what we wanted to do, but mum and dad really wanted us to go to university,” says Lizzy. “Once we started making headway with our music though, they realised this was what we were going to do and have totally supported us.”
Mr and Mrs Ward Thomas needn’t have worried: their daughters’ first album, 2014’s From Where We Stand, hit the top spot on the UK country chart, winning UK Album of the Year at the British Country Music Awards.
Although success at home and abroad has come relatively quickly, the girls are acutely aware of how fickle the industry can be.
“There is pressure,” says Catherine. “It’s important to stay current, as the music industry changes so quickly – it’s not even the same as it was 12 months ago. You have to keep up and stay on top of things.”
Once thought of as the preserve of Stetson-wearing, line dancing types, country music is now officially cool. The thought of Dolly Parton headlining Glastonbury would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, while even wrecking-ball rider Miley Cyrus has returned to her Nashville routes – albeit with the help of super-slick producer Mark Ronson.
“Country has been mixed with pop a lot more recently – and mixing genres is always good,” says Catherine. “Getting country out there is the main thing. Music can be great for opening minds – the more creative the ways the better.”
On the new album, the girls have worked with a host of collaborators, including Ed Drewett, who has penned hits for Little Mix and One Direction. Yet the country remains their first love. A fact they attribute to their rural childhood.
“Growing up on the farm we were very exposed to the outdoors and nature,” says Catherine. “Our grandmother would always listen to Loretta Lynn and Patsy Cline and we had a Canadian cousin who would visit and play songs by Miranda Lambert and the Dixie Chicks. Actually Taylor Swift was a big influence too, as her early stuff was very country. We both just loved it.”
And when their two months on the road are up, it is to the farm that the girls will return, ready to meet up with friends and reacquaint themselves with their beloved horses. They love coming home, says Catherine, before Lizzy chips in:
“We’re always so ready for a good cup of tea. We look forward to that so much.”
Ward Thomas Restless Minds tour hits G Live on Feb 26. For details visit: glive.co.uk
