“Intense from the start and delivered with joy” – Louder Than War
Karla Chubb (lead singer, guitarist), Sam McCann (bass, vocals), Jack Callan (drums) and Zac Stephenson (guitar) return to Edinburgh for the first time since they played Sneaky Petes in October 2021. The Dublin quartet released their debut album ‘Letter To Self’ via City Slang in January 2024, and there’s a palpable flurry of momentum surrounding the grunge and punk inspired noise rockers.
“Noisy post-punk energy to raw, frank, witty lyrics – best caught live. Watch out for them at festivals this summer.” – The Guardian
In a blur of back-to-back wins the band unveiled their Top 20 debut album Letter To Self; opened for IDLES and Pixies; and delivered feverishly talked-about sets at Glastonbury, End Of The Road and All Together Now. They are an essential new name in contemporary rock, building a reputation for urgent, compassionate songwriting blackened by personal tales of trauma and resilience.
“The post-punk band channels rage into communal uplift” – Pitchfork
SPRINTS arrive at Hidden Door following their sold out debut US headline tour and their biggest show to date at London’s O2 Forum Kentish Town – another major milestone for a band in perpetual motion, always pushing themselves to level up.
“Sprints are one of the most exciting young rock bands in the world, one that could hold their own alongside some of their most fiercely beloved inspirations. Run, don’t walk, to hear them as soon as you can.” – Stereogum
Karla joined Hidden Door for a chat ahead of their Thursday night headline slot.
Could you describe Sprints in five words?
I suppose the first thing that came to mind was cathartic, energetic, fun, community and probably sweat!
How do you feel about performing in a disused paper factory that’s on a 15 acre site on the edge of Scotland’s capital (that’s the size of eight football pitches, by the way)?
I’m really excited! And honestly, we only find out just now talking to you, that it’s a disused paper factory. I am a big notebook nerd, and especially a book nerd and collector, and so is Jack and Zac. We’re all very avid and voracious readers. I’m excited now to check it out and explore and see what kind of relics I can find and accidentally pack in my suitcase on the way home.
We haven’t played Edinburgh in years. It’s one of my favorite cities in the UK. I just have such beautiful memories of it. I think it’s got a lot in common with Dublin, it’s just so rich and full of history and culture. Even when I’ve been there in the rain just walking around the castle and, you know, the beautiful parks and up the hills. It’s just really a gorgeous place. I’m excited for us to go back and play, I think, for the first time since we’ve had the album out. It’s just never worked with our UK tours in terms of travel. So I’m excited, and I’m also sad that we don’t get more time there, because we’re really there just for the day.
Which Sprints song would be the best introduction to the band?
I think ‘Up and Comer’ is probably a good one to choose because it is an encapsulation of a lot of themes, I think, that we tackle in our songwriting. It’s got that classic Sprints long fuse build to an explosion. I think energetically, it’s got a little bit of that tongue in cheek attitude, and it’s just a lot of fun live, lots of moments where the crowd can engage and interact with it. So I think that’s the best way to introduce people to us. The music isn’t necessarily about us. It’s about getting the crowd engaged and having a good time.
Any exciting plans for 2025 you want to share?
Yeah, 2025 is going to be a big year again for us. We had a really great 2024 and a really difficult 2024. A lot of changes, lot of shows, 103 in the end for the debut album. So we’re excited to follow that up, and, you know, show how we have matured and progressed, I think, in our sound and our performance.
Please share one interesting fact we need to know about Sprints.
I think we’re way more boring, probably, than we come across. We like going for long walks and playing tennis and eat loads of hummus!
I think the one thing that unites us all is we have a very big shared love of video games, particularly Fallout that’s been turned into a TV series. We’re all nerds. We each own something called a steam deck, which Sam introduced us to – a portable handheld console. And when Zac joined the band, the three of us had consoles on tour, and we played them in the back of the van in silence. So now Zach has a steam deck, our sound engineer! Every member of the Sprints touring party has a steam deck so that we can all shut off and play video games.
That’s our tour survival.
The debut album ‘Letter To Self’ came out in January 2024, but am I right in thinking that you played the second album (as yet unreleased) in full in Dublin recently, when you played two sets in a day?
YES!
I think doing two shows in one day after a nine week hiatus was ambitious, because we’d obviously done so much touring last year. We played Rockaway Beach in January, but we were supposed to be off touring for a couple of months. It was just something we really wanted to try, for ourselves and especially for younger fans. We always wanted to do an all ages show. And then we had just wrapped a big project, so we thought let’s road test this live. But it was great. It ended up being two shows and a DJ set, so myself and Zach were in that building for 15 hours! But The Grand Social (venue in Dublin) is like a second home for Sprints, they have been such a massive supporter. So we really wanted to come back to an independent venue, a grassroots venue, and do something special. I feel like that’s always going to be a part of our story – going back to where we kind of started.
And what can we expect from the second album? Is there anything that you can share about it thematically?
People always talk about the difficult second album and obviously that was floating around in our heads. But I think the best thing about what we’re doing next is that we never had a moment where we were “Okay, I’m writing the second album now.” It was very natura, it came together very rapidly. Some of these songs have even been road tested since September.
I think people can expect a more mature sound, probably something that’s a little bit unexpected maybe in parts. We’re definitely playing around with new influences, trying to add in new instruments, and, you know, just push our sound forward. I think in some parts it’s simultaneously slower and heavier at the same time. And it’s definitely a big, mature step, I think, in my songwriting. Also I think the growth production wise has been great, but some of the influences might surprise people, because we’re pulling from everything, like country and western to cowboy ballads to Mannequin Pussy. I’m excited to see what people think. Can’t wait.
And this summer you are going to be playing Glastonbury for the second time. How is it going to be different?
Well this time it’s televised, so we have to be on our best behavior!
You know that already?
Yeah, they tell you in advance. We had to fight tooth and nail for a televised slot. So we did, but I think that’s a massive step for us. It’s something we’ve always wanted to do. It’s like a massive bucket list moment. I mean, as a music fan, I’ve watched Glastonbury on TV every year for, I don’t know how many years. I think people can expect new material. They can expect a big show. They can expect a lot of fun, a lot of energy. We’re playing the Sunday afternoon. So it’s definitely our job to get you up and get you excited for the last day. And you know, we’ll definitely be enjoying our last day, but yeah, mostly it’s just an honor to be part of it again.
You have so many amazing shows to look forward to this summer, including In The Meadow in Dublin, curated by Iggy Pop with a stacked line-up, supporting Idles in Greece and Fontaines D.C. in Germany.
I obviously love Fontaines. They’ve been one of my favorite bands for a long time, so to get the nod is obviously incredible. We’re very grateful. I don’t think there’s any denying they’re the biggest band in the world right now. To bring us along for a couple shows, I mean, we’re really thankful, and we can’t wait. And yeah, the Iggy Pop show, I think it’s our only Irish festival, only Irish appearance of the year. So it’s really great, and the fact that it’s curated by Iggy is just unbelievable. I mean, if you told me that six years ago, I would have died. The Stooges have always been a massive reference point for us. So I think it’s kind of mad, because you kind of forget it’s happening. And then I think when the day arrives, we’re going to be “Whoa. This is nuts.” But yeah these little micro moments are really, really great. And I think for reinforcing confidence.
