AFTER what feels like 'forever', Jonathan Higgs was gearing up for his first shows since the pandemic hit when Weekend caught up with him.

His twice Mercury Prize nominated band, Everything Everything, were set to play Standon Calling and Tramlines in Sheffield within days of us talking to him and he admitted it felt strange to be going straight into 'festival season' after so many restrictions and lockdowns.

"It’s been a pretty insane time," he said.

"The most normal thing that has happened yet is these couple of gigs we’ve got coming up. We’ve been completely turned on our heads by the pandemic – like everyone.

"It’s great that it’s happening but there is still a level of apprehension. We have to stay in our bubble and be really careful because if anything happens it could ruin someone’s next job.

"We’re lucky to be doing it at all so we’re just going to take it as it comes. But the best part of being in a band is the show – that is not going to change

"The main thing is making sure we’re ready for it as we’re a little bit rusty."

There has been some good news for the art rockers, who have been shortlisted for an Ivor Novello Award five times, during this uncertain time though.

Jonathan added: "Alongside the pandemic, two members of the band have had children during this period as well. We’ve got dads now!

"So it’s all a big change. It’s about trying to find the time for the music and being a lot more organised."

Everything Everything's third gig since 'Freedom Day' will be in Warrington.

They are headlining an open air show at Old Market Place for RivFest on Saturday, August 7.

The festival is in memory of River Reeves, his Viola Beach bandmates Kris Leonard, Jack Dakin and Tom Lowe and their manager Craig Tarry after a terrible accident in Sweden claimed all their lives in 2016.

Jonathan said: "The festival is a great way of remembering the boys. It’s doing something that they would like and it’s part of this thing they were doing which was being a young band.

"Playing live music means a lot to anyone who’s been in a band. We spent many years in a van going around the country and around Europe.

"We know what it’s like to be a band of that size to have that dream – there’s a camaraderie and a romance to it and that’s worth celebrating.

"Their story is worth remembering and worth celebrating. I’m proud to be involved with it."

These gigs will also be the first time fans will be able to hear songs from the band's top five album Re-Animator live. It came out just months before Covid hit.

But Jonathan said the first shows back on the road will be more a 'celebration' than an 'album tour'.

The 36-year-old added: "We haven’t played any gigs in such a long time and we’re just happy to be back so it’ll be more of a celebration set that we play.

"So it’ll be a lot more laid back than your usual album tour. It doesn’t have the pressure of an album campaign."

Because of the timing of Re-Animator's release, the four-piece were able to keep releasing music during the crisis.

Jonathan, who also creates pretty much all of Everything Everything's music videos, said: "We were lucky because we recorded the album just before the pandemic. A lot of other bands were in a situation where they couldn’t record their new songs but we already had ours.

"All we had to do was sit there and make videos for a year and a half which is what I did basically.

"That has kept me busy. It’s been a constant case working out how to do the next one and learning computer programmes and things like that.

"It’s kept me sane really as otherwise I would have had very little else to do."

The downtime also means fans are likely to see a sixth album sooner rather than later as Jonathan has been doing a lot more songwriting too.

He added: "I’ve been writing quite heavily over the past couple of months. We’re going to be back in the studio next month."

That fire to keep on pressing forward with the band is probably why Everything Everything has had enduring success over a decade.

Three of their records made the top five over that spread of time with fans sticking by them.

Jonathan, known for his falsetto singing style, said: "I’ve always said that I was going to be in a band since I was about 13 or 14. I was very determined. I always intended it to be like this.

"Obviously we’ve been lucky because we’ve had fans that have grown with us. That’s really helpful for a band’s longevity

"If you find your still making music for teenagers when you’re pushing 40 you are kind of in trouble. That can happen to a lot of bands.

"We try to keep changing. It can mean you lose fans because they only like your old stuff – but you make new ones as well.

"That’s all you can do because the changing taste of things like radio is impossible to predict and impossible to do anything about. You’ve got to just take that as it comes and keep making music you believe in."

For more information or tickets to RivFest visit parrhall.culturewarrington.org or hcpromotions.co.uk