Smith & Liddle Talk Debut Album, Their Voices And More

Sep 16, 2025 | Interviews

Words by Glenn Sargeant

Feature Image Photo Credit: Supplied By Lisa Davies Promotions

Smith & Liddle’s second single ‘Minute Ago’ is taken from their upcoming debut album, ‘Songs For The Desert’ released on Friday 31st October 2025. They sat down with us to tell us more:

Who is in Smith and Liddle how did you meet and what do you play?

Billy: “Smith & Liddle is myself (Billy) Smith and Elizabeth Liddle. We met in 2020 when I was looking for a vocalist for my old band and then we joined forces in 2024 to start this project. I play guitar and Elizabeth plays piano and we both sing duet most of the time!”

What is your earliest musical memory?

Elizabeth: “My earliest musical memory was my mam singing along to the 60s/70s Pinups CD in the car which featured a lot of Paul McCartney, The Monkees and The Everly Brothers. Billy’s earliest memory was again in the car when his grandad would play him Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac CD on the way to guitar lessons. The car still remains the greatest place to listen to music”

When did you begin songwriting?

Billy: “Both of us started writing songs from the early of 11-12. Elizabeth told me she would record her songs onto the old IPod, whereas I had an old tape recorder to use. There’s probably hundreds of songs in old books lying around in the loft.”

You have your debut album ‘Songs For The Desert’ which is released on 31st October 2025. How did you want to approach the making of the album?

Elizabeth: “We wanted to approach the album musically like our favourite 60s artists would but have a modern flavour on the production side. Everything you hear on the album is real instruments and even the synths are all analog. We just wanted to have fun with it and create something special to us. ‘Songs For The Desert’ has a collection of songs that we are so proud of.”

Where did you record the album and who produced it?

Billy: “Mostly, the album was recorded at Blank Studios in Newcastle, however we recorded different parts in other places like our bedrooms and garages. We produced this album with Josh Ingledew, whom we had many similarities to when it came to music. We spoke a lot about Todd Rundgren & The Beach Boys.”

Do you have any interesting, funny or memorable stories from the recording sessions?

Elizabeth: “In every studio session, Billy and Josh would have what I call “silly hour” where they would go off on a tangent and experiment with weird sounds that were 95% of the time never used. However, we did create the backwards guitars in ‘Piece Of You’ that sounded like seagulls and that was kept in the master track!”

Did you use any particular instruments, microphones, recording equipment to help you get a particular sound/tone for the record?

Billy: “One instrument that turned things around a lot was the Danelectro 12-string that I bought near the backend of recording. It added loads of thickness in the guitar tracks. In songs like ‘Down The Hole Again’, we took inspiration from ‘Pet Sounds’ and used lots of percussion like sleigh bells and cabasa to get that Beach Boys sound and we layered lots of vocal harmonies around a ribbon mic. I think we used the R84. In the west coasty tracks like New Day, the fender Rhodes with a phaser and the Juno were undeniable as always”

Which of your new album tracks hear you at your a) happiest, b) angriest and c) most reflective?

Elizabeth: “‘No Place’ is the last track of the album and is our happiest because its a track about where we picture ourselves in the future and the reason why we made this album in the first place. Angriest, we’ll say ‘In A Haze’, only because when we were writing the lyrics, I’d just had a tooth filling and in a lot of pain! ‘Eyes On You’ is the most reflective because it’s the first song we ever wrote together and lyrically is about reflecting.”

Was it a difficult album to write?

Billy: “Actually, not at all. We had a lot of freedom and creativity and we had loads of songs lying around that we could use. Even when we had an albums worth, we would still come in the studio with new songs that we thought were better. The most difficult was choosing a track order! Most of the songs were wrote in under an hour as we feel these were our strongest. If a song was taking too long to complete, we’d usually leave them to come back to.”  

Who designed the album artwork?

Elizabeth: “The photograph was taken by our drummers brother Eddy Maynard and all the vintage props were lent to us by the ‘Flea Circus’ which is a flea market next door to the studio. Then we sent it to Chicago based designers ‘Stereospectral’ who then designed the artwork. We gave them some artwork influences like ‘Sunflower – The Beach Boys’ and ‘Pieces Of The Sky – Emmylou Harris’ and they smashed it out of the park. The peacock chair is also a nod to Christine Perfects debut album!.”

Does the album title have any significance/special meaning?

Billy: “Our drummer, Robb Maynard, would come in every studio session forgetting the song titles and would label them as “The Camel Song” or “The Deserty One” which in fact inspired the entire album, it’s promo and a lot of the lyrics. So thank you Robb for as always forgetting what our songs are called. We decided to name the album ‘Songs For The Desert’”.

You have also released the single ‘Minute Ago’. What was the story/inspiration behind the track?

Elizabeth: “‘Minute Ago’ was an idea that I had kept coming back to over a few months. I was just playing two chords for the entire song and felt it needed something else. One late night, Billy came round and we completed the track together. Recording the song, we took a lot of inspiration from the West Coast/AOR sound like Michael McDonald and Fleetwood Mac. It features a lengthy guitar solo and a long fade out which are two things that we absolutely love!”

The single is accompanied by an official music video. What was the thought process behind the video and who directed it?

Billy: “We love watching shows like The Old Grey Whistle Test and The Midnight Special and a lot of people said this track sounds like it came out of 1976. So we decided to create our own TV show, ‘The Tammy Weston Show’ and do a performance in it. We had our friend Nell Millett play Tammy and our usual collaborator Rob Irish filmed it. We directed this ourselves and had lots of fun with it! We gave a little nod to England Dan & John Ford Coley who were next weeks guests.”

Where is your hometown and could you please describe it in five words?

Elizabeth: “I am from a small village in County Durham and Billy lives an hour down the road in Middlesbrough. I’ll describe my hometown as quiet, peaceful and very scenic. Billy describes his town as dark, rainy, full of life haha”

How do you look after your voices?

Billy: “In all honesty as much I’d like to say we vocal steam and warm up, we maybe should do this a lot more because it’s important.”

Do you have any live dates planned in the UK/Europe in 2025/2026?

Elizabeth: “Yesss! We have lots coming up. We are playing London November 1st and Newcastle November 9th as our album launch nights. We have just booked a German/Holland tour for January 2026. We are very excited to be headlining Paradiso in Amsterdam 21st January. Throughout this, we are also supporting some amazing acts like Young Gun Silver Fox.”

What two things do you hope to have achieved once you have left the stage?

Billy: “WE’LL NEVER STOP! No I’m joking, I think there’s definitely a time where a musician can hang up their boots but the likes of Paul McCartney who still makes us happy by touring his songs is amazing. We saw him last year and it was one of the best nights ever. So we just hope to have made some people happy with our music and hopefully it makes them feel certain ways. Also, to have a bit more cash than we do now, cause we’re living of scraps. Help us. I’m joking again. Or am I.”

Do you have any favoured stage instruments, effects, pedals, microphones etc?

Elizabeth: “I use a Nord Electro 6D, it’s been a lifesaver not just because of the amazing sounds, but how light it is. Billy has two main guitars in his arsenal. He’ll be using the Danelectro 12 string for most of the set but whips out his Jeff Beck signature Fender Stratocaster when he wants to let loose. Also, Billy’s a new lover of the Tri-Chorus effect that was used by the likes of Steve Lukather.”

You are given the opportunity to write the score for a film adaptation of a novel that you enjoy. Which novel is it and why?

Billy: “any book written by Middlesbrough legend ‘Bob Mortimer’. If you haven’t read his autobiography, it’s hilarious. He talks about a lot of places near my house so it’s nice to read what it was like back in the day.”

Who are some of your musical influences? Do you have any recommendations?

Elizabeth: “Let us just name a lot of cool acts you might not of heard of: Barbara & Ernie, Dane Donahue, Chi Coltrane, Little Feat, Delaney & Bonnie. We’re going through an ‘America’ phase at the minute. Gerry Beckley, we want to meet you!”

What makes Smith and Liddle happy and what makes you unhappy? 

Billy: “We love record shopping and Elizabeth certainly likes vintage clothes shopping. We love family and friends and we love food! What makes us unhappy is not doing music, we live and breathe it. And also, the English weather, one minute it’s tropical sun and the next minute it’s like Antarctica. Hence ‘Songs For The Desert’, get us there!”