'We Don't Want to be What You Want Us to Be': Swim School On Their Debut LP and Tour Plans
Monday, 20 October 2025
Written by Laura Mills
Swim School are in the midst of a deeply exciting time, with the release of their self-titled debut album running straight into a buzzy UK and Ireland headline tour, which kicks off in Newcastle on November 5. Comprising guitarist-vocalist Alice Johnson, guitarist Lewis Bunting, bassist Lee Brown and drummer Billy McMahon, the Edinburgh band’s sound is a potent blend of shoegaze noise and heady melody — we caught up with them to chatting about everything from the brutality of the music industry to blending genres and touring in a cold van.
What were your biggest musical and lyrical influences on the album?
Alice: “We’ve been inspired by Fontaines D.C.’s album ‘Romance’. A lot of artists from the ‘90s also inspired us — we’re not inspired by Oasis in terms of our music, but the revival of them and love of guitar music becoming more centre stage inspired us. I think lyrically the album is kind of passive aggressive. It about the effect the music industry can have on you, and a lot of the songs are how we felt. We don’t want to be what you want us to be.”
Billy: “Now, you’re in a band for five years, you’ve got eight seconds to convince someone that they want to go and listen. You put so much effort and hours and hard work and dedication into being judged on an eight second clip. It just doesn’t sit right. This album is obviously not eight seconds long, it’s 35 minutes.”
Are there overarching themes or stories that tie the tracks together?
Alice: “It’s about finding that confidence in an industry that constantly just puts you down and compares you and humbles you, almost destroys your love for it, in a way. But, also, you love music, so you’re not going to quit. Am I Good Enough Now, for example, fitted so well with the rest of the album, which is a fuck you to the music industry. The last lyric that ends the album is a question: “Am I good enough now?” It felt poetic.”
Did you go into the studio with a concept already in mind, or did the album find its shape as you worked?
Lewis: “Previously we’ve gone all out with lots of different sounds and synths, really played around with that type of thing. We went into the first batch of recordings and we thought, ‘Why don’t we strip everything back and become more of a raw rock band?’ We recorded three songs that were done with the mentality of less is more. We were really happy with them. Although there are a lot less synths and stuff on the tracks compared to what we’ve done before, it’s still Swim School.”
What have you learned as a band that’s reflected in these new songs?
Alice: “I think the album is very present. Previously, we’ve had to look to the future when we’ve been in the studio — things like not not touring with a bass player, you’ve got to think, ‘Right, that does sound really cool but how is that going to resonate live?’ Whatever feels right now is right, and we don’t need to think about how we’re going to do it further down the line. And I think when you listen to the album, it feels very present. It’s pretty exciting to see, not jumping ahead, but when we do album two, how that’s going to relate to album one. We’ve covered a lot of genres in this one album. But that’s what I love, and we’ve always been that band that never wanted to be pigeonholed.”
Do you have a goal or a wish in mind for the debut?
Alice: “I just can’t wait for someone who’s never come across our band to go into a record shop and have nine brand new songs. That’s such a special thing, you know? We’ve never done an album, so it’s almost like the band was reborn, but with five years’ experience.”
What are you most looking forward to on this tour?
Lewis: “We’ve never really played for over an hour before and our headline tour set currently is looking like 15 songs every night for like a month, which I can’t wait for.”
Alice: “The fact that our music is taking us to Dublin and Belfast and Rotterdam and Paris and Berlin. Even Cologne! I’m buzzing for Glasgow. I feel like Scottish shows are always amazing for us, and London as well. We’re really excited for Rotterdam because we’ve had to upgrade the venue and it’s insane to say that.”
Billy: “Being in a freezing cold van and just doing what we love!”
Swim School’s ‘Swim School’ is out on October 31 through LAB Records.
Swim School Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Wed November 05 2025 - NEWCASTLE The Grove
Thu November 06 2025 - HULL Polar Bear Music Club
Fri November 07 2025 - SHEFFIELD Sidney & Matilda
Sat November 08 2025 - LEEDS Key Club
Mon November 10 2025 - BELFAST Ulster Club
Tue November 11 2025 - DUBLIN Whelan's
Wed November 12 2025 - MANCHESTER Manchester Academy 3
Fri November 14 2025 - GLASGOW QMU
Sat November 15 2025 - BIRMINGHAM O2 Institute3
Sun November 16 2025 - NORWICH Waterfront
Tue November 18 2025 - BRISTOL Fleece
Wed November 19 2025 - BRIGHTON Patterns
Thu November 20 2025 - LONDON Garage
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