Newcastle alt-indie five-piece Polyvinyl are a band who do nothing by halves. Their second EP Where This Ends, which is out now, follows a journey from trauma towards acceptance, and arrives not just as a collection of songs, but as a full creative universe, with the EP, five music videos weaved into a short film, and a premiere event that’s looking like a red carpet, dress code, and host set-up. Joanna Long caught up with drummer and creative driving force Jamie to talk reflection, collaborative songwriting, zombie cheerleaders, and why 30,000 streams sometimes don’t feel real.
Where This Ends is out now. It’s your second EP and by far your most ambitious and creative project. How does it feel to finally have it in the world?
It’s always a strange one. This project has been over two and a half years in the making, even longer if you count the writing. As you build it up, you’re really looking forward to it being out, and then when the day comes, nothing happens. People are listening, you’re getting lovely messages and support, but physically, there is nothing. That’s the bit I always struggle with. I feel like there should be a big party, which I suppose with the EP launch there will be.
The EP follows a journey of drifting through trauma before reaching acceptance. How personal is that journey for the band?
It didn’t start as anything specific. The original concept was actually nuclear war, someone’s journey through a bomb dropping. But as the songs developed, it shifted into something more real. At the end of 2024, a close friend of ours passed away. We took a break, and when we came back to the project it reframed everything. And then Ryan and Hannah left the band, and our new members, Annabelle, Chris, and Vlad, had all been through very similar experiences themselves. Annabelle lost a friend around the same time. It’s coincidence, but I think it’s because it’s a relatable story. That’s why it’s purposefully vague; it can be anything, for anyone.
Bad Dreams is already your biggest ever release. Did you know when you wrote it that it had something different?
We knew it was good. But everyone thinks their stuff is good, there’s no point doing it otherwise. The surprising part is the scale of people it’s reached. Though streaming is a funny thing. You get 30,000 streams but you don’t see the people. It’s so passive. Can you imagine if 30,000 people knocked on your front door? I’d have to give out USBs.
Running From Home marked a real shift in direction for Polyvinyl. Did that happen deliberately, or did it just arrive?
It just kind of happened. We’d actually started writing it before the first EP came out, which is mad. But we knew it was different, we knew it was going to mark something, even at the time we knew it was going to be the lead single. We’d always wanted to go in a slightly poppier, more ’80s direction, late ’80s specifically, 1986 to 1989 in my head, although some people say it sounds more ’90s.
The EP is described as your most sonically diverse yet, but also your most cohesive. Those sound like they should be in tension. How did you make both things true?
Two things. The production team, having Paul Gregory from Lanterns on the Lake mixing across the whole EP brings a cohesion that’s hard to manufacture any other way. We gave him full creative trust. And Lisa Murphy from Blank Studios as producer, her techniques run through everything too. The second thing is song order. The narrative starts high, works its way down, and builds back up towards the end. That journey is a big part of what makes it feel like one piece rather than a less connected collection.
The EP also comes with a short film, five music videos woven into one narrative. Was that always the plan?
Yes. With Closure, our first EP, the concept was the five stages of grief, and I don’t think people picked up on it as much as they could have. This time I wanted to make it more direct. The short film gives it real narrative, making it more concrete. Though it’s still abstract, it’s our interpretation of the story, not a definitive version. Like a film adaptation of a book, it’s just one way of reading it.
The film is largely John’s, our bassist’s project; he’s a director at heart. I try to keep my hands out of it as much as possible, because it’s so much work and it’s genuinely his baby. What I love is that I’ve been there for the filming, and then it goes away for months, and then it comes back. It’s like having our vision realised by someone else. That’s exciting.
There’s also a premiere event planned. Red carpet?
Red carpet is the goal. Dress code, everyone in smart attire, band in suits. We’ve got a host confirmed and a Q&A. I’ve been to a few premieres through other people over the years, and I just thought, why don’t we do that for ourselves and make a proper celebration of it? It’s still being locked in for early July. But that’s the one that feels like the real moment to mark what we’ve done.
You write collaboratively, with rights split equally across the band. How do you make that work without falling out?
You have to have the right mindset in place. With lyrics, for example, instead of saying “that’s not how I’d write it” or just leaving it because it belongs to someone else, you sit down together and work through it. And one of the best things we do is cross-instrument criticism. I’m the drummer, but I’ll comment on the guitar part. Annabelle’s the vocalist but she’ll have something to say about the drums. When you play your instrument, you can get too in your own head about how it should sound. Other people’s perspectives are how you get the best creativity out of the whole thing.
Your live shows are known for their theatrical edge, countdowns, ad breaks, the Elvis Comeback Special. What can people expect from the Cluny 2 launch?
It’s not being downsized. The Cluny 2 stage is small, yes, and with six of us, Chris being about seven foot tall and playing a massive keyboard, and a full drum kit, it’s going to be cosy. But we’ve got the measurements, and actually the projector being above the stage rather than behind it is better than most venues. There’s an intro, an outro, three moments in between, and other things I don’t want to give away. It still feels like a show, not just a gig.
The ad break at our December comeback gig was a good example of how we think about it. Forty-five seconds, very clearly tongue-in-cheek, just enough time to re-tune, and then straight into the next song. It was silly, but it was meant to be. We’re always asking “what makes this feel like a show?”
And for the festival season?
The plan is a lighter version, same energy, same outfits, same set, but streamlined. I think of it a bit like The 1975’s festival approach versus their arena show. You keep the core, you identify which moments translate to an open stage and which ones don’t. We’ve got Front Row Festival in Bicester, we’re on right before the headliner, which is mad, and Legacy Live at the end of the month, which we’re doing acoustic. And there’s more to be announced…
What’s next for Polyvinyl after all of this?
Festival season, the press, the short film, the music video releases. And then in September, there might be something else, but I’m not saying any more right now. And then we’re looking to release something for the next era, maybe November or December. Those songs are written. They might actually make an appearance a little sooner than that.
Where This Ends is out now. Polyvinyl play their EP Launch at The Cluny 2, Newcastle on 16th May.
