HOT Water Music have never had a hit single or been featured on MTV, but instead they have done something far more impressive: they have been together since the early 90s and stayed true to their roots and themselves. Here bassist Jason Black talks to Victoria MacFarlaine, ahead of the band’s Reading Festival show this month, about their famous friends, their unique sound, and how they wouldn’t be suited to super-stardom.

ASK Hot Water Music what their dreams are and they won’t tell you it’s to be plastered over billboards or to have hit singles. No, the group say their dreams have already come true at this point – it’s longevity over being a quick flash in the pan.

The four-piece who have been together since 1993 have released seven full-length albums, countless singles and toured or played with the likes of big hitters Frank Turner and Flogging Molly. They also hang-out with The Gaslight Anthem guys – a group they get compared with.

Bassist Jason Black says: “Well I think we are both punky dudes that listen to a lot of rock ‘n’ roll – maybe they are little bit less aggressive than we are (laughs) but no, for sure, we get lumped into the same kind of thing.”

He adds: “Frank Turner is playing mainstage at Reading this year. That will be cool.

“He is doing insanely well over there. He’s starting to pick up over here too [America], it’s very exciting.”

Hot Water Music have been keen to stay true to their roots and themselves in the face of countless fads.

Jason, in response to not being featured on music channels like MTV or having hit singles, said “I think if that happened to us we probably wouldn’t be a band anymore. We are much more suited to not having that sort of thing. I don’t know if we’d handle it very well (laughs). Not because it wouldn’t be exciting or whatever, it is not really what we are looking to do.”

Also, not having to cater for the masses?

“Absolutely. You get stuck in that cycle. You end up doing things in a totally different way. Writing an album knowing that a lot of people’s jobs depend on how well you write an album, isn’t really anything I’m interested in doing.”

The band – which is also made up of singer/guitarist Chris Woollard, drummer George Rebelo and guitarist/vocalist Chuck Ragan, all in their 30s – took a hiatus in 2006 as a couple of members pursued solo careers, but after two years they reconvened.

The members, who live in Florida, Atlanta and California, are planning a single before getting a new album together, much to the delight of their army of fans, who the band describe as a ‘pretty broad’ bunch. (“Generally they are security guys in plaid shirts who drink a lot of beer. Maybe that is a generalisation.”)

This could also be down to the band’s genre: an eclectic mix of punk, jazz and post-hardcore.

Jason adds: “I mean we really do listen to tonnes and tonnes of stuff and we try not to, I don’t know… I mean when we are making a record there is nothing that wouldn’t make the cut because of style, it would be because it is no good. And I think that is our general rule of thumb. And by no good, it could be because we are inept at playing whatever style (laughs).”

He also reveals it isn’t easy to decide on which bands to support on a tour - despite it appearing like a perk of the job.

He said: “I just think we are so excited to get the new record out and just going and doing even our own tours at this point. I mean, support tours, I think the thing with support tours is that it is hard to know how helpful they are.

“They are a lot of fun and you get to play to a lot of new people but at the same time… The first answer for me would be the Foo Fighters, but no one that comes to see the Foo Fighters cares about anyone that plays before them.

“It’s a good time. It might not hurt… But doing them over the years we are real careful about getting into that sort of thing because it is never a bad experience but it gets to the point where some of the bands have such an inbuilt hardcore following… That is why it becomes more of a selfish thing where you just want to watch a band every night.”

But if Dave Grohl called you and asked you to join him?

“I would be there in two seconds! I would drop everything. There is no question about it. I would say it would be a lot of fun.

“I actually have [seen the Foo Fighters] and it was great. I have been at the side of the stage at the bigger venue, some of the bigger stuff they have been doing. That was actually in Florida. I have a couple of friends that work for him, so maybe two degrees of separation, rather than six, something like that.”

Hot Water Music haven’t played Reading Festival before and are excited at the line up – so do they have any on-stage antics planned?

“Oh, I don’t know. Hopefully just not blowing it as much as possible (laughs). That is the main plan for us. Luckily for us Reading is the last show of our tour. When we get there we will be good and warmed up and ready to go.”

But the bassist adds they won’t be going crazy with rock n’ roll drinks like Jack Daniels and shots. “No, the hangover is too bad these days. There was a time, and I’m sure there will be another time, when it happens, but it will be completely accidental.”

Hot Water Music will be playing the Lock Up Stage at Reading Festival on Sunday, August 28.