MuddiBrooke

A Profile

Grunge, a genre that defined a decade, shaped a generation, and bridged the gap between Heavy Metal and Rock ’n’ Roll. From its birth with the likes of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and the creation of the ‘Seattle Sound’ to the contemporary pioneers like Puddle of Mudd, Foo Fighters, and Seether, Grunge has never wavered from its distinctive sound. In recent years however Grunge has seemingly faded into the background, lost amongst the onslaught of new genres and the lack of mainstream support for bands daring to get a bit dirty with their guitars.

Despite this, Grunge still bubbles beneath the surface of every ‘Alternative Rock’ scene, within the fingers of any guitarist who thought ‘that could do with a bit more fuzz’. Over recent years there has seemed to be a revival in motion throughout the Independent scene of this hard edged genre and one young three piece from Derby in the East Midlands, UK, has already donned the flannel shirt, cranked up the volume, and has begun infecting the minds of their fans with a heavy dose of pure Grunge….MuddiBrooke.

“….Personally I’d always wanted to be part of an all girl band, all girl rock band, so I started putting up posters and holding auditions, that is when I met Anna, and she was a perfect fit, and really wanted to do it so she joined me first, then I met Mary on a drunk night out, as you do, and we got talking and I said I wanted a girl drummer, do you fancy it?, and she said ‘yeah go on then’ and that was how we formed back in January 2020….” Brooke (vocalist/guitar)

So, with the players in place it was time for this triple threat to hit the rehearsal rooms and begin crafting their own sound.

“…..We started off with more of a straight rock sound but then we naturally developed I think into the grunge sound, we all listen to grunge, and even do the whole shirts over t shirts thing, so it just felt natural….” Brooke

“….Yeah its just one day it sort of came out like that and we ran with it and enjoyed, so yeah, it was just natural….” Mary (Drums)

Their transition into Grunge would turn out to be the start of a runaway train for these Grunge lovers and it wouldn’t be too long before they began work on their own original songs.

“….I’d started writing and working on ‘Turn to Dust’ before forming the band, but then I brought it to the band and got Anna and Mary to play on it and it just worked so well that we went in and recorded it as our first single….” Brooke

Sadly, just as things were beginning to click into place the world locked down and MuddiBrooke like many bands around the world were forced indoors and had no clear idea on when they’d be back. This however, didn’t knock their confidence in their own music.

“….I think if anything the lockdown turned out as a bit of a positive for us creatively, we were able to focus more on our songwriting and try things out again and again without any real pressure, and I think that helped us when we did eventually get the chance to record again….” Anna (Bass)

After several months of ‘will they, won’t they’ bands were finally allowed back into studios and MuddiBrooke wasted no time in locking in some recording time.

“….It was in the summer, when things opened up a little bit we managed to get back into the studio and managed to record ‘Devil’ and Strait Jacket’….” Brooke

Despite being able to record again the one thing the band weren’t able to do was get in any time on a stage.

“….We’ve all played live, like personally, with different bands, but we haven’t actually performed yet as MuddiBrooke, so its been kind of difficult because we’ve had all these coverage from the likes of Kerrang, and other stations around the world and now its all riding on our first gig….” Brooke

Even without performing the band had no time to breathe with the influx of radio plays and interview requests that poured in after the release of their first two songs.

“….We just woke up one morning and suddenly had all these notifications about the song being played on all these stations and we were like, wow, just unbelievable….” Brooke

Capitalising on this boost the band are already planning for the future and are itching to get up on stage and take the roof off of venues up and down the UK.

“….We’ve got a hometown gig in Derby on the horizon, and we’re already planning a UK tour from this September and then another one from February next year, we’re just in process of getting dates in and booking it all….” Brooke

Not only are they filling the calendar with eagerly anticipated live shows but they have been hitting the studio in preparation for a debut EP release in August this year, and are already starting work on new material for an audience ever hungry for more of that Grunge goodness. With an open road ahead of them and a wealth of support behind them, the only question left really is, why MuddiBrooke?

“….There’s actually three different reasons for that, kind of, the ‘Brooke’ part was because my middle name is actually Brooke, but now I use it as a stage name and then the ‘Muddi’ part was sort of inspired by the bands like ‘Puddle of Mudd, Mudhoney, so I sort of wanted to get that in there, but then I also put stripes on my face, look a bit like mud, so ‘MuddiBrooke, and also, I did have an idea a few years ago that I wanted the band to be more acoustic, so wanted it to sound all natural, and that sounds like a natural Brook with, like mud in it, so yeah, I over think everything, so there you go….” Brooke

So take your pick. No matter what inspired the name, one thing inspires the band and it shines through in their music. A love of grunge, combined with a passion to rock out will and does make this all female Grunge band from Derby, a true member of the Grunge revival.

Follow MuddiBrooke:

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Listen here:

Bandcamp // YouTube // SoundCloud