Enemy Within: The Truth About Bed Of Lies

When we first heard ‘Bed of Lies’ - the awesome debut single from Brighton rock band Enemy Within - we immediately added it to our playlist. 

It seems we weren't the only ones to do so. 'Bed of Lies' has blown up, getting plenty of airplay and featuring on Alyx Holcombe's rock show on BBC Radio 1. It's an impressive, dynamic and exciting first showing from Enemy Within.

We love the track's lo-fi intro, showcasing guitar, drums and lead singer Howard Kaye's savage vocal delivery. As the chorus hits, the band unleashes its fire and fury, giving a satisfying punch in the face at the perfect moment.

If that wasn’t enough to tickle our collective pickles, the anthemic chorus leaves a lasting impression. It’s an earworm more infectious than Covid.

The band - comprising guitarist Lewie Bonner, bassist Rob Bensusan, drummer Chris ‘Creeda’ Kirkham, and vocalist Howard Kaye - was formed a year ago. The boys have been gigging and working on material ever since.

‘Bed of Lies’ is the first cab off their musical rank, with a follow-up single due next month. We wanted to know more about Enemy Within. We got in touch.

Taking a break from promoting and planning a packed autumn gig schedule, singer Howard spoke with us about the band, the new track and which Spice Girl he’d wannabe. Read on for the truth about 'Bed of Lies'.

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Hello Howard. Please introduce us to Enemy Within.

HOWARD KAYE - We’re four Brighton boys. We make rock music: hard rock. We aren’t trying to be anything we’re not. There are no tricks or clever marketing stunts.

We make music that we like and we want to listen to. We’re just four guys that grew up listening to rock music and love what we do. Cheesy right?

Not cheesy, just honest. Describe your bandmates for us? 

If we were the Spice Girls, Rob would be Sarcastic Spice. Lewie would be Ginger Spice. Creeda would be Number Spice because he loves maths and has just finished a degree in it.

I’d be Hairy Spice.

That's quite a mental image! Who came up with the band name?

The hardest thing in the world is naming a band, so we got someone else to name us. Our good friend Chris Garvey - aka the absolutely insane drum and bass producer Circadian - has a list on his phone of a load of band names he’s thought up over the years. He kindly gave us Enemy Within. 

Lovely work, Chris. We found you because ‘Bed of Lies’ is so good. Tell us a bit about how you came to write and record it.

We wrote ‘Bed of Lies’ around a year ago in our studio in Brighton. We don’t really have a set writing process and this track literally came from all of us just jamming.

We recorded it with our incredible producer Pete Hutchings up in Hereford. He is the genius behind the last couple of Royal Blood albums and we are still in shock that we get to work with him on our music.

The recording process was really old school. No tricks to it. We wanted to capture the raw energy of the track, so it was pretty much all live takes. We're so happy with the outcome.

'Bed of Lies’ has very raw lyrics. Are you an angry man, Howard?

Not really, but I always write about stories and situations that have happened to me. A lot of our tracks convey my anger towards certain individuals.

Let’s not think of it as anger, just passionate annoyance. ‘Bed of Lies’ has been very well received. Does anything standout as a particular highlight?

Having Alyx Holcombe play it on the Radio 1 rock show was absolutely mental. We never expected anything like that to happen so early on.

Success well deserved. Have you always been into music?

It’s the only thing I have ever really been interested in, to be honest. It’s the only class I ever turned up to at school.

Music has been the only constant throughout my life. It’s my release, my therapy. It’s so important for my mental health and keeps me motivated and hungry to keep going. 

What's the best advice you've heard about a life in music?

The best advice I have ever received is just to make music that you enjoy. Forget about anyone else. Forget about how you think the public will perceive it.

Make music you want to blast out in your car. It sounds simple but it took me years to figure out.

The last band I was in, before Enemy Within, was an alternative R&B band. It was really fun and we did a ton of cool shit, but as a vocalist and performer it was never quite right for me.

Enemy Within is the first project I’ve been in where it all just clicked and feels right.

What’s your favourite Enemy Within song to perform?

It has to be our second single - 'Rag Doll' - coming out on September 1st. 

Who are your musical heroes?

That’s a hard one. There are so many, from Slipknot to Stevie Wonder, Incubus to Deftones, Radiohead to John Mayer, Bring Me The Horizon to LimpBizkit.  

Let’s make it harder, if you’ll pardon the expression. Give us three albums everyone should own.

Stevie Wonder - ‘Songs in the Key of Life’. Led Zeppelin - ‘I’. And Limp Bizkit - ‘Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water.’ Don’t judge, you know it’s a monster.

It is. if you could be in any band, not including Enemy Within, now or at any time, which would it be?

Has to be Slipknot, just for the mask.

What other interests do you have? How do you relax?

I’m big into my fitness, so I love going to the gym, playing football, staying as active as I can. It’s great for the mind. I also have a bit of an obsession with Fifa.

And what’s next for Enemy Within?

Gigs! We spent the last year writing, recording, rehearsing, shooting videos. Now we’re super excited to announce that we’ve been taken on by the live agents at Marshall Records, so expect gig announcements very soon.

Getting to play our music in front of a load of people every single night is unbeatable!

When the time’s right, we would absolutely love to record an album. It’s always been a dream, so hopefully one day we can make it reality.

No doubt about it. Please come back and tell us all when you do.

For sure. There are not many brands out there doing what you guys do. We’re big fans. Your designs are sick.

I’m loving this Wave Tee and the Tape Long Sleeve. Can’t wait to represent the brand at our shows.

Cheers, dude, you have great taste. Your ordeal is over. Thanks again. Any final thoughts?

Thank you so much for all the support. We’re a new band and we can’t get over the amount of love and support we’ve had.

Our new single is out on the 1st September and we can’t wait for you to hear it.

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► ‘Bed of Lies’ by Enemy Within is streaming now on Spotify, Apple Music and elsewhere.

► Photography by James Hole