Behind The Scenes With…Good Health Good Wealth

Alternative singer-songwriter duo Good Health Good Wealth are carving out a distinct sound, while cherry-picking elements from the music of genre-bending artists like N.E.R.D, Daft Punk, Kanye West, The Streets and Mac Miller.

Their lyrics explore love, money, sex, stereotypes and situations that people deal with on the daily. Good Health Good Wealth have already been championed by UK industry tastemakers Jack Saunders and Sian Eleri, which is extremely promising. We caught up with the duo to learn more about their story so far, and what we can expect from them in the near future.

What are some of your individual earliest musical memories?

Bruce: listening to my Dad’s CD’s in the car, normally either on the way to school or McDonald’s.

Si: An enormous mountain of Dad’s CD’s at home and going to the semi-illegal, post-Soviet era, pirate CD market with him. That place was something straight out of Mad Max. If I remember correctly, it was set up on the balcony area of an old Soviet disco hall/music venue type place.

The building looked abandoned from the outside, and you needed to be tight with the unbelievably massive bloke on the door for him to let you in. Inside the place was filled with cigarette smoke and dozens of old stereos blasting music left right and centre. Very cool stuff. It’s beautiful how music always finds a way to be heard, even in the most unlikely of circumstances.

What are some of the main influences on Good Health Good Wealth’S music? Are there any particular artists or genres that have shaped your sound?

Si: I think life itself and all the things that happen day in and day out, moments, become very much an influence. Musically, it’s everything from old Western movie soundtracks to pumping house music. I suppose that’s one way to know if something is good, if it inspires others. Good music transcends genre. People like Baxter Dury, Channel Tres have definitely shaped our sound a little.

Bruce: Yeah, totally agree. Real life, movies, all sorts. Essentially, anything that makes you feel emotions. Have to shout out The Streets here too, as Mike Skinner is obviously a huge influence of mine.

How do you prepare for a live show? Any pre-show rituals?

Bruce: Drive there, make sure we’re gracious to the venue for having us, and then blow the roof off it. Maybe a few drinks before, but gone are the days where we’d get battered pre-show. We’re professional now.

Si: Check if the laptop got juice and send it.

Highlight of your career as a band so far?

Si: I think the real highlight for me isn’t any particular moment, but just the general love and vibes we get from people when they hear us/come to see us. They seem to be genuinely into it, which always puts a smile on my face.

Bruce: A highlight is the fact that there has never been a lowlight. Even though the industry is so hard to crack, we’ve always had fun trying. Long may it continue (hopefully with some more cracking).

Who else should we listen to from your local scene?

Si: There’s a few cats we worked with before that we always try and shout out: RarelyAlways, Fredwave, Bad With Phones.

Bruce: We supported a band called Lock – In at Lafayette. We’re not in the same scene as such, but they’re very very good lads, so go check them out.

If you had to change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?

Si: Oh there’s defo a few things…haha to name a few: Music labels/industry place way too much attention on social media nowadays, rather than the actual music, and I think the art suffers from that. If the art suffers the artist and the consumer does too.

Also ideally up the revenue from streaming somehow. It’s just criminal what these people pay us. It just doesn’t work with the way the labels are set up and the “standard” contractual procedure. Artists are left with next to nothing. Also, lower the prices for the tickets to see big acts. Some of them are like over £200, which is an obscene amount of money for young people to dish out in the current climate. I suppose they’re trying to make up some ched lost on the streaming revenue… hey ho.

Bruce: A few less nepo babies would be nice, but I’m trying to focus more on the positive side of being able to make music, rather than all the negatives

Any projects in the pipeline that you’d like to share with us?

Si: We always cooking. Got a big show planned in August coming up, and will most likely be releasing a few things here and there, so keep your eyes and ears peeled. If you wanna come see us, we suggest getting the ticket sooner rather than later. They seem to go quick, and then there’s always drama on the day to get people in.

Bruce: Truck Festival on July 25th too! After those, it’s gonna be nice to take some time to write some new material. Work gets in the way, life gets in the way, so maybe we’ll try and do a Bon Iver and go away somewhere for a while where the distractions are less distracting.

What is a superfan to you?

Bruce: My mum

Si: Sadly, no one else comes close. Top marks for efforts though. Can’t complain.

Bruce: To be honest though, anyone who buys a ticket, buys merch, shares the song. Anyone who goes out of their way to support us when they’ve got a whole life of their own to think about. You’re all super fans and we love ya.

Learn more about Good Health Good Wealth