Q&A: Chug on Kublai Khan TX, pre-show Rituals and Fanta-themed shorts
Featured image and gallery: Abbi Draper
Gracing Bloodstock 2026‘s New Blood stage on Sunday, hardcore duo Chug brought a relentless dose of aggression to the festival. The two-piece are steadily carving out their place in the UK hardcore scene with their explosive live shows. With an album and seven EPs already under their belts, and another EP reportedly on the way, the duo show no signs of slowing down.
Following their New Blood set, we caught up with drummer and vocalist Doug Knight and guitarist Jacob Durrant to find out more about the band’s origins, how their sound has evolved, what goes on behind the scenes of their DIY approach, and, most importantly, what colour milk they drink.
So, tell me, where did the name Chug originate?
Jacob: We used to get the bus together – that’s how we met at school. We’d listen to tunes together, and I think we just were like, ‘Yeah, chug on the guitar…’
Doug: There were a few different names, but we wanted something short and snappy, like it would stick.
And you guys are a hardcore duo. Has it always been this way, or were there once upon a time more members?
D: It depends. We started at school, and there was sort of a Battle of the Bands, so we got a couple of our friends together.
J: There used to be four of us, but how we make music, our show now is the two of us. There used to be more people, but Chug is just us two.
Ah, so you weren’t always a duo. Did you always play hardcore? Or did that change alongside the lineup?
J: Originally, it was sort of more rocky, probably in the early days. But yeah, probably since 2023, we’ve been pushing for more power, more hardcore, more heavy stuff. I think, you know, it has definitely gotten heavier – and so have we.
How have you been received by the hardcore community?
J: Pretty good, I think. People have been coming to the shows and throwing down.
D: It’s been really nice! Jacob is way more into the hardcore community than I am. He’s a proper hardcore head. So, you know probably more than I do, but I think it’s going pretty well, right?
J: Yeah, it’s going really well! Everyone’s just, as Doug says, throwing down, crowdsurfing and moshing all over the place.
What would you say are your main influences? Like what gets you kicking?
D: At the moment, we’ve got Kublai Khan TX, Guilt Trip, Speed of my hardcore stuff.
J: A band called Gideon, which are basically Kublai Khan 2.0.
You guys have got one album, Insult to Injury and seven EPs. Are you independently produced? Do you do it yourselves?
D: We’ve done some different stuff. We have an album, which we did with a guy that was recorded and produced in his house. We were there for like a week and he wore this pair of shorts with the Fanta logo on them for the entire week.
J: It was rough.
D: But the more recent stuff, we’ve been recording at a place called The Chicken Shed. Shout out to the Beckford powerhouse – that is The Chicken Shed.
J: Yeah, we’ve been recording there and trying to up our game a bit production-wise. So, we’ve got an EP coming out hopefully later on this year!
Do you guys have any main pre-show rituals? Like anything that you stick to no matter what?
D: Just yelling at each other quite a lot. Yeah, sort of like shouting, in each other’s faces.
J: Vocal warm ups, but directed directly at each other.
D: And before we start the set properly, while we’re on stage, we have to fist bump – like, you know the heist movie where they all sync up their clocks? That’s like us. We have to do the business.
J: And I’ve got to stretch out because I’m the only one up front, so I’ll just be throwing my limbs everywhere. I’ve got to stretch and warm up.
And last but not least, what colour milk do you guys drink?
D: I’m fully skimmed because that’s how I was raised. But, if I’m getting a latte, I’ll go full fat.
J: I’m oat. I’m that kind of guy.
