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“We love playing with the surreal, especially when it comes to the British.”

“We love playing with the surreal, especially when it comes to the British.”

You’d think the Stingrays had just rolled off the set of a ’70s British sitcom – full of cheeky grins, inside jokes and a touch of that absurdity that makes you wonder if they’re taking the piss or just the piss have fun. But Hector Delicious, Milo-G and George Van den Broek have a long history. As a teenager, he spent his time wandering the countryside, dreaming of something bigger and eventually forming the live band Yellow Days. Somewhere between all the touring and late-night jam sessions – the kind where you’re not sure if the surreal songs fit together or if they’re just caught in another round of nonsense – the Stingrays were born.

Her debut EP, My everythingis a love letter to nostalgia, but not the teary-eyed kind – more the kind that winks at you from across the pub. It’s all there: the countryside, the coastal towns and a penchant for the absurd that can only come from a trio who have been friends for years. In this interview, the band talks about their past, their music and the joy of not taking themselves too seriously.

Photo credit: Jay Izzard

Harvey (Interviewer): You all come from the south of England and that comes through clearly in your music and your images. Can you tell us a little about how your rural upbringing influences your actions, particularly when it comes to this? My everything Video?

Bullying: Yes, we all grew up in the country. We moved to London after school and this video really captures our romantic memories of the place. In this way, our generation looks back on things before we were even born – through this completely rose-tinted lens. We just wanted to celebrate the beauty since we spend a lot less time there now.

George: However, there is also a certain irony in this. We kind of over-romanticized the rural thing, made it intentionally cheesy and cheesy. Both the music and the visuals somehow fit this mood. It’s British summer, like a village fete or fair but with a slightly surreal twist. We wanted it to feel really playful, almost borderline too much, you know?

Harvey: The video expresses that feeling of nostalgia, but your recording process was completely different – you shot it underground in Hackney, underneath a sandwich shop. How did the contrast between these two environments shape the EP?

Milo: When I was recording down there it didn’t even feel like Hackney. There are no windows, no sense of where you are – it’s like a liminal space. You could really be anywhere. It’s a kind of sensory deprivation that helps you get out of reality a little.

Bullying: Exactly. Once you’re in this room you don’t feel like you’re in East London. It allowed us to kind of create our own world down there, and that contrast with the rural influence in the music – it just worked.

Milo: It was actually the perfect environment to work in. You lose track of time and only focus on the music. We went up for air, grabbed a sandwich, and then dove right back in. In a strange way, we tapped into the feeling of being in two places at once – this urban, gritty environment that embodied something far more rural.

Harvey: You mentioned that the three of you have known each other since you were teenagers. How has your friendship influenced the way you make music together?

Bullying: It all started when we were 15 or 16. We were just messing around together, you know, going to the pub, running around on the beach and stuff like that. It’s funny because back then we were so desperate to get out of that life. We wanted to be in London, part of a scene, but now we look back and appreciate what we had. The music somehow reflects that – we long for the past, but also find it funny.

George: Yes, friendship definitely shapes everything we do. We know each other’s limits and what drives each other. We’ve been through so much together and it gives us this shortcut in the studio. We make many of our creative decisions without saying a word. We just know where we want to go with it.

Milo: It’s also about the silliness. We’re friends first and foremost, and that’s why there’s so much humor in the music. When you’ve been friends for so long, you’re always trying to make each other laugh, and it shows in what we create. Even when we do something sincere, there is always a touch of that playful side.

Harvey: Let’s talk a little more about that humor. Your music has this mix of sincerity and whimsy, and you’ve mentioned how you were influenced by these quirky, almost absurd British bands from the ’60s. What role does this absurdity play in your music?

Bullying: Oh yeah, we’ve been dealing with some really strange things lately. It’s that mix of discovering new old music, you know? It’s a joy to discover all these forgotten British bands from the ’60s and ’70s who made brilliant, strange music that just fell through the cracks. There is something about the absurdity of British humor from this period that connects us.

George: We listened to bands like the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and even stranger things. There’s this song called “Two Pints ​​of Lager and a Packet of Crisps” that’s literally about a man in a bar who keeps shouting his order because the bartender isn’t listening. It’s ridiculous, but it’s also so British. This kind of surreal, playful side is what we love.

Bullying: Exactly, we are prone to this absurdity. As George said: There’s a lot of joy in writing absurd lyrics or coming up with ideas that feel bizarre but have a deeper meaning. We actually have some tracks that are a little too strange to release, but one day you’ll hear them. The result is a whole concept album that is somewhat reminiscent of a surreal pub experience.

Milo: Yes, absurdity is definitely part of our DNA. But we balance that with sincerity. You can have something that on the surface is whimsical or surreal, but on the inside it’s truly heartfelt. It’s about not taking ourselves too seriously but still caring about the music.

Harvey: They all come from the Yellow Days, and while there are clear similarities, there are also big differences from the Stingrays. How is this project different from what you did with Yellow Days?

Bullying: It just happened naturally. We jammed for years, just playing around and recording stuff, and eventually it got more serious. We thought, “This is really good,” and that’s how The Stingrays came about. It felt like a natural progression, not forced at all.

George: Yellow Days was more about George as a solo artist and our work as part of that project. This is completely different because there are three of us and we all make the same contribution. The focus here is also much more on British identity – on ourselves, our identity, where we come from.

Milo: Yes, with The Stingrays we are more thoughtful. We draw on those British influences, from country style to old school rock, but we also think about what it means to be us now. It’s like a journey back to our roots, but with all the experience and perspective we’ve gained.

The stingrays 2

Harvey: You mentioned some weirder, more hectic material that didn’t make it onto the EP. Can you tell me a little more about it? What are the “strange things” we might hear from you in the future?

George: Oh man, there’s a lot. We’re working on this concept record with all these characters hanging out in a bar. It’s all a bit crazy. There are songs that feel almost like sea shanties, and then there are parts where we plunge full force into the absurdity. There’s this sketch with three drunk guys singing nonsense – it’s totally out there.

Bullying: We love playing with the surreal, especially when it comes to the British. I think there was something special about British culture in the ’60s, particularly in rock music, where people were really interested in the absurd. It was almost like a reaction to the times – let’s not take everything so seriously, let’s have fun with it.

Milo: Yes, we’ve been working on this for a while, but it’s not finished yet. We just let it emerge naturally. It will definitely be different from the EP, that’s for sure.

Harvey: So what’s next? The stingrays? The First Fifty show at The Great Escape is just around the corner. What can we expect from it?

Milo: It’s exciting because this is our first real show as The Stingrays – where we really show ourselves. Live is a little different. We all play electric guitars and it’s becoming more and more of a party. It’s like we’re taking it up a notch.

Bullying: Yes, exactly. It’s always been fun for us to make the live show feel like it’s really knee-jerk. The EP is more relaxed, but live we really want people to have fun. It’s about dancing and having a good time. That’s what we want to bring to this show – just a lot of energy and a lot of fun.

George: And because we’ve all toured with Yellow Days before, we’ve already been to the big festivals. Now we’re really excited about this smaller, more intimate thing. There’s less pressure and it’s just more about connecting with people and having a good time. We enjoy the freedom to do things our way.

The stingrays
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