Ellen, lead singer/songwriter of the band Ellen and the Escapades, which is touring to Eric’s on March 10.
Tell us a bit about your job I’d say it’s a pretty cool job. I get to play music with my closest friends and we have a great time doing it. We’ve been lucky enough to play some great gigs and festivals, travel up and down the country and even go abroad and play in front of lakes and mountains. We’re really very lucky.
What inspires you? Lots of things. Lots of different music, definitely. Personally, I grew up listening to The Beatles and a lot of other 60s and 70s rock and pop bands. Then as I grew older, I discovered newer artists that I really liked, who I suppose drew upon a lot of the same earlier influences. But every day, something new happens and it’s all relevant, you know.
When were you last moved by culture? That’s quite a tricky one, because I think I’ve been lucky enough to grow up in a time where we’re taught to embrace different cultures, and I’ve always been able to celebrate them – it’s kind of always been around me. One thing I would say though, as someone who gets to visit a fair few different places, is that we’re lucky to have some amazing buildings in this country. It’s quite sad that they’re not built like that any more.
Where do you see yourself in five years’ time? I can finally be making a living with the band, then that’d be great – hopefully we’ll even be another couple of albums down the line. There are a lot of things still left to achieve.
What makes you laugh? Other people laughing... good jokes, trivial misfortunes – that sort of thing.
What gets you angry? Out of tune instruments, bad gigs, rude people.
What’s your hidden talent? Trampolining... Although, I’m probably not as good at that as I used to be, ha ha.
