Music is widely acknowledged to reduce stress and anxiety for people suffering with drug or alcohol addiction. However, conventional music scenes can present challenges and triggers for people in drug and alcohol recovery. That’s why one not-for-profit music organisation is going to greater lengths to help addicts use music to enjoy a life free of addiction.
Not Saints is the only record label and promotions company working exclusively with musicians in recovery from alcoholism and drug addiction. The company, founded in October 2018 by Chris De Banks, was established as a not-for-profit, so the revenue it makes is split between the artists it works with and supporting other musicians to rediscover their creativity in a way that puts their recovery first.
On the process of starting Not Saints, Chris told us: “I’d been sober for about a year and a half at this point, and I’d been working as a booking agent. This is when I saw for the first time how interwoven into the fabric of music and culture drink and drugs are. I’d met dozens of musicians in recovery who were just struggling to find their place and it seemed so obvious to try and set something up that put sobriety, creativity, and recovery above profits, points, and streams.
“Everyone thought I was insane at first. I mean, come on, starting a record label at a time when there’s no money in recorded music is one thing. But to work with a bunch of unruly alcoholics and drug addicts? That said, I think the recovery community was quite excited by it. It was something new and the support was fantastic. We did our launch upstairs in a café in Brighton and the capacity was 50, about 90 people showed up and the atmosphere was electric.”
That said, people across the music industry didn’t initially grasp what Not Saints was trying to achieve. As Chris explains: “I don’t know if that’s a symptom of the widespread lack of education around recovery and addiction or if we were just so radical that they weren’t sure what we were. It was very much a case of ‘Wow, what a great idea. Well, good luck with that.’ Things have changed slightly, we still bang a very big drum, but attitudes are changing, and we have some good friends and supporters in the wider industry.”
Chris tells us that he initially thought the project would “maybe last six months to a year” and they’d maybe put out three or four singles. They started off with a Crowdfunder, which Chris describes as “the single most stressful thing I’ve ever done,” before relying on grants as they seek out a more sustainable model, which was given a hit by the pandemic. But the company is still going strong, and celebrated its 7th anniversary last month.
Not Saints artists’ addiction challenges
Perhaps the biggest challenge facing the artists that Not Saints works with is very much a societal issue. From personal experience, I don’t remember too many gigs that I’ve been to with friends, and particularly as a gig reviewer, on my own, and not had a couple of pints before the gig and a couple more while watching the first two bands perform. And I’ve never been to a gig that wasn’t serving alcohol.
As Chris explains: “I guess the challenges are fairly obvious, but many people perhaps don’t even see them. The biggest issue, especially for anyone with new recovery, is the business model for most venues. They make the lion’s share of their running costs through alcohol sales, and ticket prices barely cover anything. For the artists we work with, I’d say those in their first few years, bars and pubs are a huge trigger and present a significant risk of relapse.
“There’s also the audience. I call it the 21:30 effect, when you go to a gig or show as a sober person and everything is cool then the mood changes at 21:30, people start to get a bit p*ssed, drinks are spilled, people start to wobble, the bumping into people begins. That’s quite an uncomfortable time for people who are sober and those in recovery.”
“The other challenge is financial for musicians in recovery. If you are in, let’s call it a conventional band, you’ll start out getting paid in beers or not at all, then when you start making a few quid you might get some t-shirts, then you make a few more quid, then you use that to go in the studio and make a record, then you do more gigs to promote the record and make a few more quid, and so it goes on. That’s the idea anyway. The challenge musicians in recovery face is potential triggers every time they set foot in a licensed venue, so most will just choose not to, so that potential for career growth is inhibited.”
A new approach to helping artists in recovery
It’s important to clarify that Not Saints is a record label and promotions company that works with people in recovery – it doesn’t provide a clinical service. That said, it does have access to counsellors and can signpost people to therapy and treatment services. Not Saints works by providing a platform for freedom and creative and artistic expression.
As Chris explains: “Dame Carol Black conducted an independent review of drugs in the UK in 2021, and one of her key findings was that creativity alongside a program of structured treatment will provide a greater chance of long-term recovery. This is something we already knew at Not Saints and something we have seen benefit people again and again, so it’s good to see it from the government.
“By providing a safe space for musicians to write, record, release and perform their music, we’re allowing them to just be musicians without the direct exposure to drugs and alcohol that could destroy their lives again or in the worst case, kill them.
At the time of this interview, Not Saints was working with nine acts, which was 23 musicians in total. And in the last six years, it’s worked with 67 musicians. That includes our most recent New Band of the Week Self-Torque, which offers up a lively punk rock sound, and alternative rockers Hana Piranha, who we introduced you to in February.
On the latter, Chris said: “Probably our biggest act now is Hana Piranha, we’ve just released their album Wingspan and the singles Lorelei and I Wanna Leave. That band is just amazing, they’ve been going for about 10 years and Hana approached us when she got sober and asked if she could sign up. That was a no-brainer for us to have such a well-established artist in the family. If you don’t know Hana Piranha you should check them out, it’s dark alt-rock at its finest and the production is off the scale.”
And there’s more to come from the Not Saints family, including hip-hop artist Milky, who offers up deeply personal, extremely raw lyrics. Milky released his debut album through the label a few years ago and should have more new music coming soon. Check out Milky’s music, including the excellent I Miss You Mum and Monkey On My Shoulder, on Spotify.
Helping people in recovery through music
The music scene can be a toxic place for people struggling with drug and alcohol issues. But Not Saints provides a place for creatives to express themselves away from the challenges of the mainstream, providing sober events alongside its record label services.
And Chris has a clear message for any musicians (and non-musicians) who are struggling, telling us: “The message is pretty simple really: if someone has said to you that you are drinking/using too much, or if you find that your drinking or using is affecting your playing, your relationships, finances, or mental health then please, Google your local drug and alcohol services and just go and have a chat. You don’t have to go to an expensive rehab and things won’t improve by doing nothing. We all love to think we’re in control, but addiction is an evil mistress and, if you have a problem, you need a solution that isn’t you.”
Not Saints has an active GoFundMe page that directly helps musicians. As Chris tells us: “We had a bit of a financial setback at the start of 2024; we were expecting some funding that didn’t happen and it put our future in jeopardy. We set up the GoFundMe just to keep the lights on. Things have improved now, but if anyone feels like helping us out we’ve got some very exclusive enamel badges just for supporters. So if you want one of those, that’s the only place to get them.
And he adds: “Buy merch, buy records, buy everything, even if you don’t own a CD or vinyl player, they’re just nice fucking things to have. If you just stream music the artists get next to nothing. I discovered Bob Vylain’s new album the other day. I listened to it on repeat about 10 times. That’s about 7p that goes to Bob Vylain. I bought the CD for £11.99, they are independent and a lot more of that £11.99 goes to them. The more they make, the more they’ll have to invest in their careers. Support artists, buy stuff!”
If you want to get involved with Not Saints or want to find out more, use the Contact Us form on their website or get in touch via Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And you can support NotSaints and their artists on GoFundMe.
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