Involving Music are pleased to introduce you to Machineries Of Joy.

Formed in Exeter, Devon, Machineries of Joy mix psych, alt-rock, indie and punk to create irregular music that should already exist. If you love your rock to be jagged and spiky but catchy and melodic with strange, poetic lyrics, then these are the boys for you.

Photo Credit: Machineries Of Joy
Photo Credit: Machineries Of Joy
Photo Credit: Machineries Of Joy
Photo Credit: Machineries Of Joy

Interview: Machineries Of Joy

Who is in the band?

Darren (vocals & guitar)

Mike (drums)

Rasjad (lead guitar)

Tomek (bass guitar)

Where are you from? / Where are you based now?

We all live in and around Exeter but come from locales as diverse as Sławno, Poland, and Hayling Island, Hampshire.

What are your musical influences?

Syd Barrett, The Doors, The Flaming Lips, Graham Coxon, Gomez, The Strokes, Velvet Underground, Bowie, BRMC, IDLES.

In your own words:

Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. We combine these two things with words that have intended and interpreted meanings to occupy a unique portion of spacetime. And it rocks.

Split-frame collage of four Machineries of Joy band members, each in their own panel, playing guitar, singing, smiling, and focused on instruments — Photo Credit: Machineries Of Joy

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Quick Fire Just For Fun

The absolute essential item for us on tour is…

The WAGs.

Our most challenging journey for the least payoff led us to…

Deepest, darkest Crediton.

Keeping fit on the road requires…

An old leather football, tobacco, books, music.

The coolest pit stop worldwide is…

Gloucester Services, baby!

A must-have in our tour survival kit is…

Vocalzone.

The weirdest gig we’ve ever played happened at…

A pub on Halloween. Halfway through our set a coffin was wheeled out and opened in front of us. Or, played in a graveyard full of winos under a too-small tarpaulin in the pissing rain. Gear got wet, so we finished the set after 6 songs. Didn’t even get paid.

The place with the best bathroom graffiti is..

Golden Lion, Bristol.

The best part of performing live is the feeling of…

Communion.

The silliest thing ever said onstage was…

“Whammo”.

How we prepare for a show…

Rehearse & drink a couple of beers.

Shout out to a local business in Exeter…

Tazma Studios – best rehearsal space in the South West!

What’s the best attraction/place to visit/hang out in Exeter?

UCZ, with smoke grenades and the Terminator theme playing through the PA. Or the RAMM.

Exeter’s Machineries of Joy blend psych, alt-rock, indie, and punk to craft jagged yet melodic music with poetic lyrics. Their sound combines sound and silence with layered meanings, creating a unique musical experience that’s both artful and rocking.

– Machineries Of Joy

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– Darren Branch

Darren Branch’s first love was Heavy Metal, sparked by seeing Iron Maiden live at the Cornwall Coliseum in 1984 at the age of 13. His passion for grassroots music grew after discovering the vibrant local scene around Daylight Recording Studios in Honiton during the late 1980s. Having lived in Honiton and Exeter, Darren now lives in South Somerset and enjoys spending time in South Carolina. He stays deeply connected to the Southwest’s emerging bands—often through families that keep the scene alive. Outside music, he builds websites, reads business books, and participates in English Premier League Fantasy Football.

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