Let Em' Talk: Spin Class guide us through their idiosyncratic new E.P 'Dinner at Derek's'

 

When Fleetwood Mac sang "You can go your own way" on their massive single from Rumours of the same name, it wasn't intended to be creative advice - perhaps it should have been. Bristol's Spin Class seem to have no problem following that mantra.The band recently released second E.P Dinner at Derek's; a collection of ideas that flit around with enough regularity to keep you interested and engaged, but not enough to make you question their mental health. 

The band comprising of  Louis Slater on vocals, Sonny Gazzard on guitar, Sam Savidge on bass and Harry Parkes on drums certainly aren't concerned with the notion of conforming to a perceived norm, and the new E.P further forms their identity as a band taking their own creative path. We got the band to tells us more about Dinner at Derek's track-by-track.

-----------------------------------

1) Dinner at Derek’s

Our title track captured a bit of our producer Josh on piano and some improvised background conversations that got a bit freaky. Why did we put it in the EP? Can’t tell you. But I'm glad it’s featured, it wouldn’t be Spin Class without some strange in it. This is the sort of stuff that we’re doing in between tracking and recording, we thought it’d be nice to have that snippet of that immortalised on the EP.

2) Bagel Bagel Bagel

The song name 'Bagel Bagel Bagel' actually came first. We were shouting “Bagel!” at each other randomly during a rehearsal, and that chaotic energy stuck. Slater (vocalist) wanted to challenge himself by creating lyrics built around that vague title. The line “Ain’t the mix that makes the bread” and the idea of “the hole in the bagel” came early on, and the rest grew from personal experiences, blending bad mental health with dark comedy.

A flagship track of the EP, this one just hit different from our first E.P Wednesday. It really shaped the direction of Dinner at Derek’s. We wanted to punch you. We wanted something faster, rawer, dancey, and angry. It all started with a demo Sonny had cooked up. That punky direction and intense, busier energy got bottled quick, so we started dropping it into our live sets. We debuted it in Camden, straight after a set from a former Eurovision contestant, the contrast and crowd reaction were priceless. Adding in those Sabbathy elements made it feel exactly like a Spin Class song but roided up. Max  (the band's manager / father) pushed hard for us to capture that chaos in a video, so we shot it at the curbside skatepark. A perfect set opener, it sets the mood instantly and gets the crowd moving off the jump.

3) Calamari Canteen

The song follows a cryptic narrative that reflects a shift in Slater’s songwriting. It comes from a new perspective, intentionally abstract, but grounded in raw emotion. Choppy riffs slicing into each other, building into this chaotic explosion... yeah it had to be one of Slater’s ideas. The attitude in this track hit us all in the face during rehearsals. The aftermath leaves the listener drenched in chaos and discomfort, then BOOF! - the chorus brings in this soaring clarity just before it all unravels again. Just when you think you're out of the woods, we hit you with probably the filthiest breakdown on the entire EP. It's like a switch flips, and we all just go fully feral. One of our absolute live favourites. Peak Spin Class chaos.

4) Mr Toys Flying Wok Noodle Bar

 

With 'Mr Toys Flying Wok Noodle Bar', the lyrics focus on the feeling of something bubbling up until it explodes. There’s a steady build that keeps the listener on edge, leading to a final release that hits hard. The brightness of the instrumental gave the lyrics the right contrast. It's intense but still playful.

This one was such a joy to write. It started with a riff we came up with while messing around on drum pads and small amps and ended up fleshed out in bassist Savidges’ bedroom. The song found its own path, it's organic, jammy, everyone’s parts falling into place naturally. On the last EP, we didn’t really have the luxury of writing together in a room like this, so this felt like a guilty pleasure. It's the kind of track we’d been craving to make in the year leading up to Harry moving to Bristol. The mellow vibes getting hijacked by the big, crashy chorus and the funky outro gave it this playful momentum.

 

5) Cake

We always write our instrumentals first, and Louis builds lyrics around them so they flow naturally. That’s especially true across this EP there was a real intention to write from different emotional and narrative angles, and that’s what makes this project feel more dynamic and personal.

With 'Cake', we just wanted to make a high-octane banger with a straight-up structure to get heads banging. Sonny showed up to the studio one day with a demo and a ton of energy. We were all instantly on board. It actually became the last track we wrote for the EP, and its stripped-back formula became a kind of reminder: it doesn’t have to be complex to hit hard. It was also our first go at something bordering on a pop song, which was new ground. Letting Slater’s vocals carry it and really flex his range made it something special. A proper adrenaline rush.

You can follow and find out more about Spin Class by following or subscribing to them on Instagram, Tik Tok, Youtube