The 5-minute Interview: Thomas Dartnall, Musician

'I'm not miserable – it's the way my face hangs'

John Hall
Monday 16 June 2008 00:00 BST
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Thomas Dartnall (aka House of Lords) is bass player in the Ashby-de-la-Zouch band Young Knives. Their first full-length album was nominated for the 2007 Mercury Music Prize. On 26 June the band will play in their home town for the Channel 4 programme 'Gaymers Grassroots Gigs'.

If I weren't talking to you right now I'd be...

Reading Reveal. My girlfriend buys magazines about people like Cheryl Cole. Sadly, I've started to quite enjoy them.

A phrase I use far too often is...

"Sweet". When we tour we end up using the same terminology, so this time we've had to create a little in-joke swear jar.

I wish people would take more notice of...

The exaggeration of youth crime. Watching the news you'd assume all teenagers were going around spitting on the elderly.

The most surprising thing to happen to me was...

Getting fans. There's so much new music around, so it's amazing to meet people who enjoy everything that we do.

A common misconception of me is...

That I'm miserable. It's the way my face hangs.

I am not a politician but...

If I were, I'd reintroduce student grants.

I'm very bad at...

Playing complicated guitar solos. My fingers won't move fast enough.

I'm good at...

Accents. But I'm probably not as good as I think I am.

The ideal night out is...

A bit of sushi and a rock concert. I enjoy seeing weird and almost unlistenable bands to feel I've pushed the boundaries.

In moments of weakness I...

Revel in my pessimism.

The best age to be is...

I'm enjoying being 30. People seem to think you're less of an idiot as you get older.

In a nutshell, my philosophy is this...

Life is too short to worry about.

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