Five Day Forecast: Legends Of Country

The Boy Least Likely To's Jof Owen helms Legends Of Country, who released their beautiful debut record Talk About Country last year. It's distinctly British, with songs about Little Chefs and Welsh darts players - there's a particularly moving number called "Saturday Days" - but with an American twist.

Tickets for the Five Day Forecast are on sale now.

Stream the pair's "After A Time" below, and then read the Five Day Forecast Q&A after.

Could you introduce yourself for us please?

We’re an English alt. country band inspired by a love of country music and memories of growing up watching Pebble Mill and listening to Johnny Cash and George Hamilton IV and Glen Campbell. It’s like classic country with an indie-pop twist. Our debut album, Talk About Country, came out last Summer and The Line Of Best Fit described it as “one of the most charming debuts we’ve heard all year”, which was really nice. I’m also the singer and one half of The Boy Least Likely To if that helps.

What do you try to do with your music and how do you achieve this?

When we first started recording the album we talked about it sounding like a cross between Johnny Cash and Bananarama, and we talked bout it being "country music for girls to dance to", but really we just meant country music for our wives, who are all girls, to dance to. I think it was Simon Davey, who mastered the first single, that came up with the description "country music for people who don't really like country music", and we kind of like that, but kind of hope that people who do like country music like it too. Otherwise what are we doing? It feels like we made a country record that was true to ourselves and true to where we come from - songs about Welsh darts players, seaside towns, A roads and Little Chefs. In our heads we thought we were making a classic Merle Haggard album, but we failed, and I think it sounds better for it.

Can you tell us what musical and non-musical influences have shaped your sound?

Cowboy Jack Clement, Bobbie Gentry, Billy Sherrill, Lydia Davis, Tom T Hall, George Jones, Tammy Wynette, Sylvia Plath, Ricky Skaggs, George Strait, Clueless, Heartbreak by Andrea Dworkin, Dolly Parton, Miranda Lambert, Hoyt Axton, Henson Cargill, Jonathan Richman, Carson McCullers, Joss Whedon, Lee Hazelwood, The Rockingbirds, Sarah Records, "53rd and 3rd", Dwight Yoakam, Anne Sexton, Willie Nelson, Hank Williams Jr, Smash Hits magazine, Waylon Jennings, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Brandy Clark, Everett True, Merle Haggard, Susan Faludi, Buck Owens, Douglas Coupland, Loretta Lynn, Gram Parsons, Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, Nora Ephron, Heart’s Needle by WD Snodgrass, Seinfeld, Freaks And Geeks, Naomi Wolf, Sammi Smith, Don Williams, Emmylou Harris, Porter Wagoner, Kenny Rogers, Philip Larkin, Ivor Cutler, Oliver Postgate, Ally McBeal, Peanuts, Parks And Recreation, Alan Jackson, Lefty Frizzell, Bananarama, Orange Juice, Aztec Camera, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Jeannie C Riley, Johnny Cash, Jessica Jones, and Kacey Musgraves.

What should people expect from your Five Day Forecast show?

Rhinestones and vengeance.

What are you working on now/next?

We’ve just started work on our next album. There should be something new coming out in April. It sounds amazing, but I don’t want to give much more away. There’ll be a single though, and then an album later in the year.

How is 2016 shaping up? What are you looking forward to this year?

It’s shaping up nicely. We’ve got so much exciting stuff to look forward to with Legends Of Country, and I’m looking forward to a new album by Brandy Clark and to the UK Americana Festival in February, and just to seeing all the amazing country artists already booked to play over here. Angaleena Presley, Lindi Ortega, Daniel Romano, Miranda Lambert, Chris Stapleton, Dwight Yoakam, Jason Isbell, Eric Church, Ashley Monroe, and Kacey Musgraves are all coming over before April. Country music hasn’t been this exciting in a while, and I might not even need to go to Nashville next year to be a part of it all. Oh, and the Hinds album. I really like the Hinds album.

Legends Of Country headline London's The Lexington Wednesday 13 January with Smash Williams and Legends Of Country also performing. Grab your tickets now.