Dirty Blonde release their new EP, Looking For Trouble, today.
Manchester’s Dirty Blonde are a blonde-bombshell alt-rock duo, fronted by the powerhouse pairing of Ailis Mackay (vocals, guitar, drums) and Hayley Tait (guitar, backing vocals). Since forming in January 2023, they’ve shared the stage with acts such as Frank Carter and the Sex Pistols, Louis Tomlinson, The Lottery Winners, Cast, The Subways, and The K’s.
In their new EP, Dirty Blonde prove that authenticity is their signature sound. Tracks like ‘Adore Me?’ and ‘Polly’ carry a sly charm, serving as the “nicer cousins” to the fierce anthems ‘Checkmate’ and ‘Rush’, while previous single ‘Northern Twang’ stands as the powerful matriarch anchoring it all.
Dirty Blonde have also launched their new YouTube series titled In Bed With Dirty Blonde which sees the duo talking through their songwriting techniques and other band anecdotes as well as answering fan questions.
After the success of previous EP Favourite Record, Dirty Blonde’s return reaffirms their status in Manchester’s alt-rock scene. Described as “Your dad’s new favourite band”, this EP is just the start of their journey and the future is looking blonde.
We had a chat with the duo all about the origins of the project, the making of Looking For Trouble, what they have planned next and more. Read the Q&A below.
Hi guys! How are you? For anyone discovering Dirty Blonde here for the first time, please give us a brief history on the band, your influences and describe your sound.
“We’re doing great! We’ve been a band for almost two and a half years now, and it all started in a pretty unexpected way – on a deep-sea fishing trip in Greece! Our influences are pretty diverse since we both grew up listening to different styles of music, which eventually blended together as we got older. We love all types of music and we think that mix of influences has really helped shape the Dirty Blonde sound. The inspiration for our Looking for Trouble EP ranges from Kings of Leon to Billie Eilish.”
Speaking of the new EP Looking For Trouble, what can you tell us about this collection of songs? And what do you hope fans/listeners take away from it?
“We had a lot of fun writing and recording this EP, and all the songs came together in different ways. We grew a lot – had a lot of ups and downs as a band and as people. We think a lot of the EP was finding a way of channeling all of these crazy things and emotions you go through trying to figure life out when you’re in your twenties.
“We hope fans feel connected to the songs – we have tracks that are meant to make you feel like a boss but there are also more introspective moments. It’s all about embracing who you are and owning it, even if it’s chaotic.”
Please take us through your songwriting/creative process for Looking For Trouble. We’ve heard it was quite cathartic for you? Did you do anything different compared to Favourite Record?
“The songwriting process for Looking For Trouble was different from song to song. ‘Adore Me?’ came together really quickly through a series of WhatsApp voice notes. It was definitely the quickest and easiest we’ve ever written a song. I think the way the process differed from Favourite Record was that we allowed ourselves to trust our instincts. Playing festivals and seeing people singing songs that we’ve written in our bedrooms gives you the confidence to think outside the box and not worry about how things are ‘usually done’. It’s always exciting to see a song come together from that initial spark of an idea to the final version. We’re really lucky to have Ailis, who’s super talented at recording and producing our demos. It allows us to bring the songs to life before we even step into the studio which allows us to really develop and fine-tune the songs.”
What was your favourite part making Looking For Trouble and what did you find most challenging?
“Kind of a cheat answer but we’ve loved every part of Looking For Trouble. It’s amazing having a handful of song ideas on a voice memo and then they end up having their own little world. We decided to challenge ourselves to have a music video for every release, which has definitely been the most testing part – but also the most rewarding. Hayley is a pro videographer so we’ve done everything completely DIY on a budget pulling in favours from our mates. The lads who play with us have also been super hands on and we couldn’t have done it without them.”
Finally, what’s next for Dirty Blonde? Any shows coming up? You recently launched a new Youtube series called In Bed With Dirty Blonde – any updates on that or anything else to add?
“We’re headlining London Dingwalls 2 on 16th May (in Camden). In Bed With Dirty Blonde is a series we’ve made for people to get to know us a bit better- talk about how we make music, how we make the videos, what we’ve been up to and answer any questions people might have – anything goes! We have so much to catch up on – we allocated some filming time but then we ended up playing a couple of shows for Louis Tomlinson and it’s all been a bit mental since! We have the first episode out now and we will be putting out the next few episodes soon – it’ll cover the shows we’ve been doing, our writing process and a special collaboration episode.”
