Sea Power have responded to some criticism they received after they announced they were dropping the word “British” from their name.
Since they made the announcement last week (August 9) and explained they were doing so to avoid any misinterpretations of jingoism, some fans have criticised the move on social media.
Now, in a new op-ed for the Guardian, the band have responded to those complaints. “We haven’t undertaken this name-change lightly,” they began. “It’s something we’ve been thinking about for years.”
Adding that their original name was meant to have a “kind of wry humour”, they continued to say they had been thinking more about the moniker “in relation to history” of late, noting it could be associated with the old British empire or with defeating the Nazis in World War II.
“If we were called British Motorcycle Club we wouldn’t be changing our name,” the band reasoned. “It was the combination of ‘British’ and ‘Power’ that no longer worked for us. We imagined a youngster at a European festival in the 21st century looking at the programme and seeing a band name including the word ‘Hungarian’ or ‘Russian’ alongside ‘Power’.
“It would likely send your mind in a certain direction – quite possibly to the isolationist, adversarial nationalism that has recently taken a hold around the world. We’ve always wanted to be an internationalist band – as heralded in our track ‘Waving Flags’, a song of pan-European idealism.”
Sea Power said they were “in no way disowning our past” and hoped that they could “dilute any sadness” some sections of their fanbase had expressed following last week’s announcement “by remaining the band they’ve so kindly invested their time and money in”.
“We really do love the British Isles – the physical beauty, our diversity, our people, our culture and much of our history,” they concluded. “But now we are just Sea Power – staring out at the wonderful waves, a pastime this island nation understands more than most.”
As well as announcing their new name last week, Sea Power also shared a new single ‘Two Fingers’ alongside news of a new album. ‘Everything Was Forever’ will be released in February 2022.
