With their none-more-confrontational frontwoman Alex, The Violets are south London’s most unstable post-punk heroes. Guitarist Joe (who’s currently suffering from a broken foot after dropping an amp on it) and drummer Andrew complete the unstable trio. We talked to them about horrors, hookers and old ladies.

You’ve said you don’t take your inspiration from music – where do you take it from?

Alex: We’re about cinema, theatre and mime; dramatics. I make films as well, and one day I plan to make the ultimate film for our music to be the soundtrack to. I love Dario Argento, and I make films with a darkness to them, something beyond and beneath the surface. They’re full of sailors, hookers and dark alleys…

Talking of hookers, is it true you once got mistaken for one at a gig in Italy?

Alex: We played in southern Italy, and because of the way I was dressed, they really thought I was a prostitute. I’m quite androgynous now, but then I was going through a phase of wearing fishnet tights and 5in stilettos. They liked it, though.

What about your audiences back home?

Andrew: There’s usually a weird stand-off between us and the audience, where we’ll get two people coming up when it’s over and telling us it’s the best thing they’ve ever seen; everyone else will just think we’re a bunch of fucking weirdos.

Joe: We’ve had to leave venues with people trying to kick in our van while we were driving away – all because we didn’t want to be friends with certain people.

Alex: We once played this village outside Stockport and this girl thought I wanted to fuck her boyfriend just because I was singing. Once the show ended she started insulting me. This happened a few weeks ago as well, so I beat the fuck out of three people. I had two pints poured over me and there was lots of hard slapping.

Joe and Alex – you live together. What’s that like?

Joe: Our house is full of antiques that were my great-grandmother’s – well, we’re not actually related, she was my great-grandmother by association. She didn’t have children and didn’t like her family and I was sole heir to her will, as she liked me when I was a kid. I ended up with all of her possessions. I’ve got a nice clock, a massive 50-piece set of crockery – though we have smashed most of it, Edwardian fish knives, and an old brass Bedknobs And Broomsticks bed. There was a taxidermied white owl, but I sold it. It is slightly odd when you come into our house – it’s like an 80-year-old woman’s house. But with posters of the Cocteau Twins on the walls.

Where are you found if you’re not gigging?

Alex: I’ve started hanging out at this brothel. There’s a guy there who hangs around in black leather and he asked me once if he could lick clean my boots. I said no, but I was there recently and my boots were bloody muddy, so I said, “Listen, you cunt, come here and clean my boots.” There are a few people there who like to take off all their clothes as well. Why is it always the people with the most disgusting cocks who get naked?