INTERVIEW: Mumford and Sons [The River Rat Pack Tour]

INTERVIEW: Mumford and Sons

Posted on June 6, 2008 4:54 PM
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According to the Mumford and Sons MySpace page, Marcus Mumford "Is desperate, anyone will do".

Unfortunately, the girl to guy ratio on the River Rat Pack Tour barges is a poor one. As far as we know, the mystery gypsy water woman hasn't shown up yet either.. let's hope Gerry from SixNationState doesn't have a crack at him! We caught up with Marcus for a chat about the tour so far. After a blistering gig at reading, they have everything to be excited (albeit hungover) for.

First of all, I want to know about how you are enjoying the River Rat experience so far?

It’s pretty mental. It’s crazy. It’s not a bad job to be having. I love driving this thing. It is so fun to drive. We crashed it really hard on the second day.

Which barge are you on? The posh one?

I’d call it the posh barge.

Does it have a Jacuzzi?

No, it doesn’t have a Jacuzzi. You could call that one the posh barge because they have a Jacuzzi and a TV but we have linen beds and a living room. It is all furnished. Theirs is more of a squat and ours is a hotel.

It depends how you define luxury I guess. I expect the Jacuzzi isn’t as clean as it was on day one.

Yeah, they are some sweaty boys.

How was last night? I heard it was one in one out?

It was really, really busy but it was chilled out. There were so many bands that it turned into quite an epic evening. We had a really good gig actually. It was nice.

Did you mix the set up a bit?

Yeah, that is the kind of vibe; we all play different instruments so we can all play with each other. We just prepare something very shambolic for later. When it comes to the gig, we all just fit in.

What is the plan for tonight then?

A big old curry. We haven’t got a gig tonight.

With that many men on a boat, a big curry and one toilet; you need to be careful.

Yeah, and one toilet doesn’t actually work. We have run out of running water so…

We have been sitting in the office all day feeling jealous about what you guys are doing? What’s it really like?

It’s so fun. It is natural hanging out by the river. We are right by the fields so there is so much open space.

What has been your best moment so far?

Best moment so far… probably when Jack from Naked and the Boys was like, oh yeah, I will have a go at driving the boat, and he nearly crashed into a bank. That was really cool. The poor guy was the first one of us to try and drive the boat. That was really funny. Finding our piano playing Ben asleep in a field this morning was pretty funny. He looked like a homeless guy.

Do you think that being out of the city and in the open air has made you all quite contemplative…

It’s amazing when your only worry is if you have tied up the boat or whether there will be running water today. It’s completely different to worrying about paying rent.

Do you think that perhaps you could be a boat man in the future?

I definitely could.

Who has been the biggest party person?

Some of the SixNationState lads know how to party. They haven’t slept at all. I think Derek Meins has been partying hard too. Although, he left for a day and we didn’t know where he was. He got back to London and then came back via Oxford.

A true party boy; always finds his way back.