of different people doing it really. It's great when we meet them backstage though and they tell us that we are one of their major influences, or we're the reason they started a band, it's really humbling! It's crazy to hear, especially when you know exactly what they're thinking; I was there once too you know? As long as people are enjoying themselves, it doesn't really piss me off, they aren't really ripping us off, ha ha. Most bands these days are very quick to settle for the middle of the road sound, seeing a band they like and try to copy them in every way they can. We were very lucky to get into this at an age where we had a whole range of influences; we were very open and had a really wide spectrum, that's the important part. BATO: Transcending genres, however, isn't really the only Enter Shikari motif; in a lot of your songs you take a really political stance. What's motivated you to speak out on all these socioeconomic and anthropologic topics? Rou: I think it's just a natural progression for us really. We first had our run with authority when we were 18. Back when Enter Shikari was just kicking off and we were promoting our own shows locally, our local council would just stunt ant growth, they'd stop us putting on shows for no reason, and literally they had no argument. This happened really early on and it gave us a real disrespect