Hot Press meets Stephanie Min from The History Of Apple Pie

Rumours-era Fleetwood Mac, this ain’t. London quintet The History Of Apple Pie might be fronted by a couple who started making music together when they got bored in their bedroom but, according to singer Stephanie Min, there’s little turmoil or strife with partner Jerome Watson to write about. So when Min adds lyrics to their noise-pop, she’s channeling old high-school movies.

“I don’t have a lot of drama or interesting personal experiences to write about!” she confesses. “It’s all silly stuff. Myself and Jerome’s relationship is pretty straightforward. Anything we argue about is usually pretty stupid, like washing the dishes. I mean, maybe I could write a song about that...”
It’s all quite new to Min, who wasn’t even considering a career in music two years ago. Watson had dabbled in other bands, and when the two began penning tunes at home, they thought they might as well stick them up online. Things took off quickly from there. Had Watson previously heard her piping up in the shower and thought, “She’d make a great frontwoman”?
“I don’t think he had ever heard me sing before,” she says. “The songs happened to be okay and we started getting emails showing some interest. Blogs reposting the stuff. Things got bigger and better from there.”
It meant getting a band onboard to bring the songs to stage. Initially, Min didn’t play an instrument. Watson saw this more as a strength than a weakness, as it meant she’d rein others in when they strayed too far from the golden rules of pop.
“It’s always a battle in terms of me bringing a load of cheese to the song and him bringing a load of noise! When I couldn’t play anything I was very much about making it poppy. But then I started learning guitar and now I can’t help going a bit noisy with Jerome.”
The results of their balancing act can be heard on debut LP Out Of View. It’s a collection with its feet planted in shoegaze, thankfully staying away from the tweedom their name suggests. Rumbling guitars and sweet melodies. It’s no surprise that their recent tour has been soundtracked by My Bloody Valentine’s long-awaited newie.
“A couple of us got quite emotional listening to it,” she laughs. “There were certain ones nearly crying!”
You imagine their fragile states were a by-product of the touring life.
“I was so excited to be going back on the road and then I remembered that it was just me sitting in a van with everyone else asleep! And then getting into Travelodges. Generally being tired for no reason. Or because there’s so much to do.”
It still beats being back in the office. The band, unsurprisingly in 2013, have to hang on to the day-jobs for now.
“We juggle it at the moment, we’ve been doing it for so long now. Luckily all our employers are really supportive.”
It took two attempts to nail the album, which was eventually recorded in The Horrors’ studio – Joshua Hayward is a pal.
“The first time it was literally me and Jerome sitting in our bedroom. And every so often the Horrors’ studio. It was us going to work from eight in the morning till 6pm. Coming back. Trying to mix the record until 6am. Then going back to work. That lasted for about 30 days so it was pretty tough. It drove us a bit crazy.”
“It’s all been about having a really good team behind us. And very much not about money... we don’t have any money!”