Nat Johnson has been part of the Steel City musical scene ever since she came here to attend Sheffield University in 2002. We heard she was playing a farewell concert, and knew that no-one would be more upset than her biggest fan and Exposed music reviewer, Mark Perkins, so we asked him if he could hold back the tears for long enough for one last natter with Nat.
In all my time in Sheffield, there seems to have been few constants, but one thing that has stayed with me over the years is that when I attend music-related events here, I will, more often than not, come across Nat Johnson at some point. She might be watching a concert in Firth Court, or helping with Sensoria Festival, but much more visibly, she’ll be playing live music. Sometimes as a solo artist or at other times with her band The Figureheads, or before that as lead singer with the brilliant Monkey Swallows The Universe. But no more. Nat is finally saying farewell to Sheffield, and moving on to pastures new. I caught up with her last month to reminisce about old times.
Good to speak to you again, Nat. It’s been far too long since we heard from you. What’s the latest news?
Well, obviously the big news is that I’m leaving Sheffield. My daughter is four and a half now and, basically, we’re moving to be closer to family. My husband’s parents are up in the north-east, and I know they’d like to see more of their granddaughter, so being 40 minutes from them rather than four hours is much easier on all of us. We’ve thought about doing this for over 10 years, but we’d given up on the idea of moving, as we thought there were no jobs, but then, just as we’d given up on the idea, one came up. Moving house is bad enough, but moving cities is much harder.
I can’t really imagine the local music scene without you being part of it somewhere, so I thought we’d just have a reminiscence about your musical history in Sheffield.
My memory’s not that good. I might need to rely on you to remind me about some parts! Kevin Gori and I started Monkey Swallows The Universe in 2003, and we played together as a band until 2008. We did a 10-year anniversary gig in the Queen’s Road Social a few years ago, which was initially in the Greystones, but it was really popular and sold out in about seven minutes, so we shifted to somewhere a bit bigger. And now I’m sort of doing it all again, trying again to learn a bunch of songs for one last gig at the Greystones.
Just run me through the albums you’ve released, as I know there have been a few over the years with your two bands, and then as a solo artist.
We made two albums with Monkey Swallows The Universe, Bright Carvings in 2006, which was on the famous independent Sheffield label Thee SPC, and then made Casket Letters in 2007. After the band finished I made a solo single, ‘Dirty Rotten Soul’, and went on to make two albums with The Figureheads: Roman Radio in 2009 and I’m Across I’m Ashore in 2012. I finally made my own solo album, Neighbour of the Year in 2014, along with a few solo EPs. I also did the Connie Converse project at around the same time, with a concert in the Cutler’s Hall as part of Sensoria, and I did an Off The Shelf event about the Bronte Sisters, too. That was pretty much it on the music front, as I went back to university to do a MA in Creative Writing, in which I got a distinction. When I first came to Sheffield I studied journalism and I really wanted to just write. I sort of just fell into music so doing an MA was a way of motivating myself to do it.
Will your Greystones show be solo, or have you drafted others in to share the load?
Mostly just me. Mainly because I don’t have time to rehearse due to moving, packing up and everything else. I’m planning to have a few guests who will play a few bits of things, but mainly I’m on my own. One thing I’m finding hard is reducing it down to a manageable setlist. There are so many songs I want to sing that I’m finding it hard to choose. People will have to just put up with me until they all get bored and decide to go home. It’s a really nice feeling to know that I can still sell out a gig, as I haven’t played live for five years.
I’m glad you’ve found a way to say a musical farewell to Sheffield.
Yes, there are lots of things I’ll miss about the place. Things like gigs that we can just walk to at the Crookes Social Club, and the great food, but I’m looking forward to exploring more of the north-east. Chris is from Embeton; in fact, we got married there, and we’re moving to the coast somewhere, maybe around Whitley Bay. Leaving Sheffield will be a big deal for me, but I love being by the sea, so that will be some compensation. I’m planning on being back loads, as I’ve got 20 years of friends and memories here. One thing I’m taking with me is a big box of old Sandman magazines, which I love to look back on. It really takes me back to the early days of making music in Sheffield.
One thing I’m taking with me is a big box of old Sandman magazines, which I love to look back on. It really takes me back to the early days of making music in Sheffield.
In fact, Chris Wilson, from the old Boardwalk days, is putting me on at the Greystones, so it seems kind of appropriate that this will be my last gig here. If people can’t get to the gig, and it has sold out, there will be a chance to see me doing a secret warm-up gig on the Thursday before, when we have an extra bank holiday. Sensoria are putting on a gig somewhere in Loxley, as a tie-in with the Robin Hood book they published at Christmas, which claims he was born in Loxley. Although I do feel a bit torn, as I grew up in Nottingham, and we’ve always thought of Robin Hood as ours.
Aaaahh, but now we know the truth, and that he was from Loxley, so you can keep your hands off him. All the best, Nat!
