Bovidae
From mad cows to Meshuggah-inspired polyrhythms and aggressive violins, these Sheffield instrumentalists are pursuing the unplayable.
“We often say that if we can immediately play it, it’s maybe not good enough.”
Bovidae – ruminating animals, like antelopes, sheep and cows. Or the Sheffield instrumental quartet mangling together heavy metal, classical and jazz. “Somebody said it’s like an ogre picked up a room full of musical instruments and threw them all down the stairs,” says drummer Danny Bacchus. “That wasn’t necessarily supposed to be a compliment, but I like it.”
Bacchus and pianist Janine Rogers recorded Bovidae’s 2016 debut album as a trio with guitarist Adam McSweeney, before seeking a different sound. “We talked about whether it was going to be sax or violin or whatever but then the perfect violin player showed up,” says Bacchus about classically trained Sam Flinders.
“I wanted to do something a bit heavier, not always making the violin sound beautiful,” says Flinders. “Sometimes it sounds aggressive and harsh, so a perfect fit.”
Bassist Paul Sparshott completed the picture in August 2023, and they set about perfecting their wilfully complex music, replete with odd measures and polyrhythms. “Originally, we were very conscious of we didn’t want it to be boring,” says Rogers. “We can’t repeat ourselves; it’s got to keep moving. There’s not really anyone else like us in Sheffield, so we ended up being put with a load of post-rock bands. Watching audiences connect with the minimalism of post-rock, seeing that you can just groove on a riff and people like it, we thought, we don’t need to be in such a hurry.”
Work is underway on a new album, 'Soundtracks To Future Calamities'. “It’s going to be like a feature film in essence,” says Sparshott. The concept is built around the character from the band’s bovine logo, Boss Cow. “It’s this bipedal, kind of minotaur cow,” explains Bacchus. “Boss Cow is on this journey to discover himself and come to terms with his life and it’s difficult because he can’t rationalise. He’s a really angry cow.”
Bovidae found their herd at last year’s 'Prog The Forest'. “That was the best experience,” says Flinders. “We’ve been put on with heavy metal bands and people tend to look a bit confused; it was really nice to play somewhere where we felt that everybody appreciated it.” The music may be technically demanding but the band want their live shows to be fun. “At 'Prog The Forest', somebody said it’s like our songs have little in-jokes, moments where we’re winking at each other,” says Bacchus.
“We’re all committed to making sure we deliver the songs as well as we can, but within ourselves, we’re just trying to make each other laugh most of the time,” adds Sparshott, although that playfulness is balanced by the desire to stretch their limits. “Writing the music, we often say that if we can immediately play it, it’s maybe not good enough,” says Rogers. “We push ourselves to write things that are initially unplayable and it might take us a couple of years to get to where we can play it live. But in terms of who we are as people, we’re just four nerds.”
- David West
Prog File
Line-Up: Danny Bacchus (drums), Janine Rogers (piano), Paul Sparshott (bass), Sam Flinders (violin)
Sounds Like: 20-25 Meshuggah meets Philip Glass and Mahavishnu Orchestra or, to quote Paul Sparshott, “Like being chased by a ghost through a haunted amusement park. Total //Scooby Doo// vibes.”
Current Release: 'Bits' is out now via Bandcamp : Music | Bovidae
Website: www.facebook.com/bovidaeband Facebook