The Cherished Times
Kev Scott discusses the evolution of The Cherished Times, the release of their debut album Battle, their upcoming record, and the creative vision driving the band forward.
1. The Cherished Times began as Kev Scott’s studio collaborators before evolving into a full band in 2023. How did this transformation come about, and what changed creatively when you started performing together?
Well the transformation came because I felt, for a long time that my songs should be heard by a live audience, not just with me and an acoustic guitar, more so with a live band, the drums, the big vocals?
Once the band got a grip on the material, they put their own stamp on things, I would never dictate that they needed to play what’s on the studio versions, it was important to have them put themselves into the music, its a band, not a singer with a backing band.
2. Kev had already released five self-produced albums before The Cherished Times became a live band. How has working with experienced musicians influenced the original material and the band’s overall sound?
As I said earlier, it was important they put their own stamp on things and they definitely did that, it wasn’t a case of working with inexperienced musicians before, the players on the previous albums are amazing and well experienced, it wasn’t like jumping from people who could hardly play to people that could.
3. Your debut album, Battle, was released in August 2026. What was the main inspiration behind the album, and what did you want listeners to take away from it?
To be honest, Battle was a process that went on longer than it should have, the songs were there and well-rehearsed, there was crosswires re-recording with our drummer at the time, things weren’t working out so we changed drummers, Graham came in and we started recording quite soon after that, which wasn’t really fair on him and in hindsight we could have made a better album if we’d waited but the process had been going on so long that I admittedly just wanted to get it over with, we already had another albums worth of stuff ready!
I think people who listen to Battle, especially those that have seen us live will remember the songs on their own, there isn’t really a vibe to the album as a whole, it’s more a collection of songs put together, ‘Emergency Man’, ‘For those who bring us rainbows’, ‘Bird in a cage’, they all stand on their own and all get their own adulation, I think.
4. In January 2026, you released an EP featuring re-recorded versions of some of your live set favourites. What motivated you to revisit these songs, and how did the new arrangements differ from the original recordings?
Well, obviously these songs were already out there but Keith quite often mentioned re-recording our set, these guys didn’t play on any of the original recordings, we’d never even met and they transformed the songs into what you’d hear now if you came to see us. From a songwriter pov it was nice to have new versions of them, I barely recognise the originals.
5. Your upcoming album, What Can’t Love, Can’t Heal, is due in December. What can you tell us about its themes and musical direction, and how does it represent the band’s evolution since Battle?
There’s defiantly a more consistent band sound on this album, we worked these songs to death, some of them even before ‘Battle’ was recorded. We started playing them live early on too so they’ve become second nature.
The theme of the album is a guy that’s struggling with himself and all his misgivings in life, he knows he must learn to love and love himself before he can heal from the life traumas, he’s had going on and that concept can be taken on by literally anyone, especially in these times where mental health awareness is a growing issue.
6. With a growing catalogue and a full band now established, what are your ambitions for The Cherished Times over the next few years, particularly regarding live performances, new music, and reaching a wider audience?
This is a difficult question at the moment, once the new album is released, our bass player Jim and lead guitarist Keith are to depart the band, so I do plan to rebuild the band, its an ongoing thing, how long it will take? I don’t know but I head back to my original idea of The Cherished Times being a vessel for my music and so that will continue and people will come and go. I will continue to try to reach a wider audience and will begin making another album next year, I have a huge amount of material ready.