SICKY | Matt Connarton Unleashed

0:00 Speaker 1: That is so catchy. Bubblegum Party. And the artist is Siki, who we're going to be speaking with in just a moment. But welcome, everybody. We have entered our number two numero dos of Matt Connerton Unleashed. And we are live from the studios of WMNH 95.3 FM in glorious Manchester, New Hampshire. And of course, you can stream the show from anywhere. Go to mattconnertonunleashed.com and click listen live for all of your live streaming options live. social media links, contact info, show archives, et cetera, et cetera.

0:30 Speaker 1: Today is Saturday, October 10, 2026. We've got, uh, I thought I heard something, uh, Mick Butler, uh, stick, uh, sticky. I almost said sticky. Sticky is on the line with us. I think. Oh, there he is. Hey, welcome Mick.

0:43 Speaker 2: Hello. Can you actually hear me? Yes. Yes.

0:46 Speaker 1: I can hear you.

0:46 Speaker 2: Yeah.

0:46 Speaker 1: I guess you were, uh, I guess you were muted before. So, uh, yeah.

0:50 Speaker 2: So I've got a microphone, a microphone plugged in. That's, um, I've done it wrong, basically, so I do apologize.

0:58 Speaker 1: Oh, I got you. No, no, these things happen. So, yeah, tell us about that song. So we did play Bubblegum Party to open the segment, of course, from the upcoming album Redland, which is going to be out November 20th. And can you tell us about that song? Because it seems like, you know, it's very catchy and poppy, but it's got kind of a dark theme underneath it.

1:23 Speaker 2: Yeah, well, first of all, thank you for playing it. Um, it's,

1:28 Speaker 2: it's a story basically, um, about a character who gets her own back on somebody who's, um, been basically bullying and treating and mistreating her. So it's, it's a story, but I think we all know characters like this. And in this story, the guy gets the elbow. So, um, but she does it at a party and the bubble gum bit is just, it's, it's a real childlike expression. If you picture somebody blowing a bubble in somebody's face.

2:04 Speaker 1: Right.

2:04 Speaker 2: And it's basically, it's basically saying stuff you, you know, get out of here basically. So yeah, it's totally made up. It's totally made up, but I think we all know somebody like that or along the way we've met somebody like that. So yeah, but on the album, that's one of the ones that's just complete fiction to be honest.

2:22 Speaker 1: So, I gotcha.

2:24 Speaker 2: It gets a little bit more darker. The rest of the album can go off on tangents and is a bit darker in places, but that is literally just a cheeky bit of pop, I would call that, really.

2:36 Speaker 1: Okay, okay. The other songs on the album, and again, Redland comes out November 20th. Is there kind of a similar approach where you've got kind of a poppy vibe, but some sort of darker subject matter underneath? Yeah.

2:53 Speaker 2: Yeah, I kind of can't help that. I love pop songs or just great songs. I love hooks, earworms and stuff like that. But there are times on the album where,

3:10 Speaker 2: because I'm not a piano player, but I bought a piano and I decided to try and write some stuff on the piano. So inevitably lead you in certain directions, but I didn't want to go, too maudlin because the piano can do that.

3:26 Speaker 1: So, yeah, absolutely.

3:27 Speaker 2: So it's just, I just learned enough to be able to just get some little ideas and yeah, I think, I think it's still, um, dark, but catchy, I think hopefully, and a bit of fun, but, um, there isn't, there is an undercurrent as a lot of truth in a lot of the stories that are on the album, real life stuff that either happened to me or friends and, and the actual Redland, the title is, is, is an area where I grew up with all my mates. Um, I was a village boy in the Midlands in England. Yeah. And, uh, it was just this derelict factory that was just our play, our play place.

4:10 Speaker 2: It was dangerous. Um, people got hurt.

4:14 Speaker 1: Yeah.

4:14 Speaker 2: Yeah. When you're youth, you just do it. You just do it. Don't you? So that's, that's the backbone of the album is it's, it's that memory of, of us misbehaving and just learning life in this, um, dangerous playground, really, I suppose. Okay.

4:32 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

4:34 Speaker 2: And a lot, a lot of the characters that were there growing, I've been growing up with some of them are sadly no longer with us, but, um, some of the songs feature little elements of, of their story and stuff without being too dark and too, you know, Oh God, hopefully.

4:50 Speaker 1: So, Understood, understood.

4:53 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, yeah, that's me. That's just, that's the way I do it. But I would normally write stuff on a guitar. So this is different to what I've done before, hopefully. So I think I subconsciously did that on purpose, to be honest. Bought a piano so I didn't write stuff on a guitar. So, yeah.

5:11 Speaker 1: There you go. So the obvious question, of course, where does the name come from, Siki?

5:18 Speaker 2: Okay, well, Siki is a nickname given to me by a former bandmate of mine. It used to be in a band called Papa Mantra. We were releasing stuff in the early 2000s, so we've been around a bit. And we were in a studio, and he just didn't sit with him, calling me Mick. And the producer we were working with kept calling me Mickey Boy, because he was a cockney. And he just morphed that into Sickie, and that's as simple as that. I'm not sick. It's just... our bass player just couldn't call me Mickey to save his life.

5:54 Speaker 2: And I don't blame him.

5:55 Speaker 1: To be honest.

5:56 Speaker 2: Yeah. Just stuck from there, man. And I still love him to bits, bless him, Dan. And I'm still in touch with him now. So it's his fault. Daniel Raven, it's your fault.

6:08 Speaker 1: Okay. Okay. And then, uh, do you plan to name him?

6:11 Speaker 2: There you go.

6:12 Speaker 1: There you go. Um, do you plan to, uh, Redland? I mean, do you plan to tour with the album? Are you going to bring that to the stage? And, and, and, and is that a challenge because you know, the songs are not, you know, simple, you know, guitar, bass, drums, you know?

6:28 Speaker 2: Yeah, it is a challenge and I'm taking on that challenge. Um, I would love to play. It's so difficult to get, um, gigs basically they're few and far between i don't know whether it's like what it's like over there but it's pretty tough to get on a i mean i would love to do a support with somebody to and cover the country and and get this out there but i just i just think i've just sussed how to play these buggers um i've never had a pedal board in my life being a guitarist that's shocking really but I've built myself a little pedal board, which enables me to do some of the piano parts.

7:08 Speaker 1: Yeah.

7:09 Speaker 2: Using a loop pedal and just three or four other effects. But I'm not looping it Ed Sheeran style where it takes you a week to get going. I'm just using it as elements within the songs. So it doesn't take like five minutes to do a two minute song.

7:25 Speaker 1: Right.

7:26 Speaker 2: So I've been learning how to do that. You know what I mean? Cause I mean, I've seen people, I don't want to offend anybody, but I've seen people at gigs where it's just like, start the song already, please start the song. Yeah.

7:40 Speaker 1: I've, I've, I've seen that too.

7:44 Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah. So I think I'm getting there and I've done a couple of little live things and I've got something to go with the album launch, um, in a beautiful little venue called clap trap, which is in, um, place called Stourbridge, which is the birthplace of people like the wonder stuff, um, pop elite itself, that kind of scene that was, and it's still very musical. So I'm playing there. So I better get it right before then. So we'll keep rehearsing, see where it goes.

8:12 Speaker 1: Absolutely. Absolutely. So the, the album's out November, uh, 20th. And then what's, do you have plans for the next single? Yeah.

8:21 Speaker 2: Just before that, uh, we've got a Halloween single coming out. Oh, and that is Mort. Mort. which is the first one on the album, isn't it? I think. Yeah. So more is, uh, coming out October the 20th, I think just in time for Halloween. Okay. Because it's about death. Oh, um, and it's very tongue. It's very tongue in cheek to be fair. And this is quite poppy as well. Okay. Um, and we've just done a video for it, which has been fun. Um, Oh, cool. Where, uh, yeah, where we've got, um, my other half's oldest daughter dressed as death.

8:59 Speaker 1: Okay.

9:00 Speaker 2: In various locations or various locations around whereby I live in bridge North. So she's like doing the shopping and in co-op dressed as death and nobody is taking any notice. And we haven't got permission.

9:12 Speaker 1: We just, right.

9:13 Speaker 2: But it's turned out really, really, really fun. So that'll come out on the 20th.

9:17 Speaker 1: Okay.

9:18 Speaker 2: October.

9:19 Speaker 1: Okay.

9:19 Speaker 2: And we'll give it the big push for Halloween. See how it goes.

9:22 Speaker 1: Wonderful. Wonderful.

9:24 Speaker 2: I think we, we got big on halloween thanks to you guys i think you guys started it didn't you over.

9:29 Speaker 1: There well we'll take credit we don't mind i think so we'll take credit for it we'll take a treat.

9:35 Speaker 2: Is not on english that's not an english thing i don't believe right.

9:40 Speaker 1: Um i love it well good well part of why too i wanted to ask about the next single is what i would like to do mick if you don't i've kind of put you on the spot here but since you do have another single coming out, we'd love to play it here. And I'm thinking if we can schedule... We'll do this offline, but if we can schedule a time for you to come back... and we'll talk about the new single because you know because unfortunately because of the problem with the mic you know we don't have as much time as I'd like to have with you So, um, no worries, mate.

10:09 Speaker 2: No worries. Yeah.

10:10 Speaker 1: These things happen, but, um, but yeah, let's, let's, we'll, we'll, we'll email offline. We'll figure it out. We'll get Sean in on it and we'll, we'll figure out a date and, uh, and we'll feature the new single and talk to you all about it. And, uh, I think that'll be great. Brilliant.

10:25 Speaker 2: That's a bonus.

10:26 Speaker 1: All right.

10:27 Speaker 2: I cocked it up on purpose.

10:29 Speaker 1: There you go. There you go. Um, before you go, however, uh, where should people go online to keep, to keep track with everything that you're doing and learn more about the album and, uh, everything, all things sicky, if you will.

10:43 Speaker 2: All things sicky. One place sicky b.com.

10:47 Speaker 1: That's easy.

10:47 Speaker 2: Everything's there.

10:48 Speaker 1: Oh, that's very easy.

10:49 Speaker 2: That links you to everything else without me listing off loads of stuff. Sicky b.com. All the other stuff's on there.

10:57 Speaker 1: So, Outstanding.

10:59 Speaker 2: That's where you'll find it.

11:00 Speaker 1: Perfect. Perfect. Perfect. All right. Mick Butler. Sorry. I'm struggling a little. I'm just kidding. Don't go by many names.

11:06 Speaker 2: That's fine.

11:08 Speaker 1: That's not the problem.

11:09 Speaker 2: No.

11:10 Speaker 1: My mouth is very dry because I've been sick. So I keep tripping over my words. So I just need to slow down a little bit. But Mick Butler, a.k.a. Sickie, thank you so much for joining us today. And we'll figure it out. We'll talk again very soon.

11:24 Speaker 2: Cool. Thank you, Matt. That's brilliant. Cheers. All right.

11:27 Speaker 1: Thanks, my friend. Take care.