The Alex James Band have recently rebranded as the world’s first DMD (Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy) fronted Alt-Rock band. Georgina Shine caught up with Alex to find out more about their new music and the condition.
What inspired the initial rebrand of the band to highlight the DMD?
The band started as a punk-rock outfit at university for my Masters degree. I didn’t think much of it at the time but as it went on, I was writing more songs and riffs. We then became a wheelchair-fronted indie-rock band but it didn’t quite feel right and we couldn’t decide if we were indie-rock or alternative-rock. We took some time to figure it out and decided it was time for a rebrand. And DMD is a rare muscle-wasting fatal disease, so by rebranding, we can hopefully bring awareness to DMD. DMD is a unique part of who I am and from research, I’ve found that we are the only DMD-fronted band in the world. But we aren’t using it as a sympathy vote – it’s to show that you can have a condition and still do great things which, for me, is making music.
What are you hoping to achieve by sharing the fact that there are people in music with disabilities?
We’d like to inspire other people to come forward and put themselves out there. If they are thinking “I can’t do it”, then, hopefully, seeing someone else out there they’ll think “I can do it.” I was lucky enough to meet someone who also has DMD and he said that he took inspiration from me to start making music because he saw that his condition didn’t have to stop him. We want to represent minority groups and bring attention to people throughout the industry who suffer from a disability. We want to try and spread the word about disability in the industry, start those conversations and, hopefully, inspire people to help and improve the industry for people with disabilities.
How have you found the music scene and world in terms of its approach to people with disabilities?
When I’ve attended gigs as a fan I’ve found that for the most part, especially in bigger venues, although there are disability areas, they are usually out of the way, like near the back or out of the main area, almost like you’re not fully included in the experience. I find the North East scene is pretty good in that a lot of people are willing to see past the disability and get to see you as the person; although there is still that hint of people worried about offending you or making it awkward and although they want to help cater to you, it’s not always easy to do. There is still a lot of work to do in music with things to look into as places do find it difficult to accommodate disabled visitors, especially some smaller venues and buildings that are older, but, hopefully, progress will start to be made as it’s something we are trying to highlight.
What is the creative process like for yourself and the group?
I start with the riff and then the lyrics transcend from there. The lyrics are personal and emotive because I write about what I know; it’s about being conceptual and using personal experience whilst also relating to listeners. The new single ‘Waiting for Something’ is about that feeling of waiting for something to come along and fall into place and for me, that thing was music.
What advice would you give to aspiring musicians who also have disabilities?
Keep true to yourself, find out what makes you unique and don’t try to change that to be more like others. Stick with your vision of what you want and don’t be afraid to fail in the process.
You can listen to ‘Waiting for Something’ now on all major streaming platforms.
