Hiya folks thanks for joining us in the virtual RGM lounge today, grab a brew and take a seat.
What made you decide to start the band / become a soloist?
Basically, we were involved in multiple projects around Eiger Studios in Leeds and our combined paths kept crossing. Me and Si (guitars, vox) were already doing some writing and we needed a drummer. Dom’s not really a drummer by trade but he’s a dab hand at all musical stuff so as soon as he started playing I said to Si. “Yeah, that’s what we need!” He just lifted the sound and knew exactly what to do for the tracks. As luck would have it, we all get on so from then the band was born!
Introduce us all to the members and your musical history?
Hi, I’m Rhys Anderton, bass and vocals.
I’m Simon, and I’m on guitar and vox.
My name’s Dom, I’m on drums and vox.
(Rhys) I guess like a lot of people my music history starts from very young and being surrounded by lots of music playing, my parents liked to soundtrack their life! I remember listening to a lot of Birmingham based bands on the record player in the dining room with my Dad. Loads of different styles – YES, Traffic, John Mayall, Led Zepplin, E.L.O, Black Sabbath and a personal fave, Prince. Contrast to that, I was getting lots of Magic 828 (the radio station) on our morning school runs which introduced me to a lot of the soul, Motown and R&B. I’m so glad that I was shown such a range so young! In recent history, after graduating from Leeds College of Art I spent a couple of years in the industry and soon found myself in a band called ‘Skinny Living’. We spent a fruitful few years making acoustic soul indie pop (yes, 4 genres – that was always the best way I could describe it).
That was a wild time – we went from posting a few videos on Facebook to fairly quickly building an impressive fan base of some 15k plus and toured all over Europe independently, before being picked up by RCA where we enjoyed success and some mega tours which I’m very grateful for. I decided to leave the band in 2018 – long story short, I was in need of a serious life reorganisation, both physically and mentally. It was a tough decision at the time but one I’m very glad I made. Not long after leaving the band I met Simon through my girlfriend, we started just writing and getting creative. It wasn’t entirely clear at the time what project we were writing for but fast forward a couple of years and we started playing through the tunes. They were better than we thought but we were missing the rhythm.
In walks Dom Richmond, who’s a brilliant producer at Eiger Studios in Leeds, where we were rehearsing. We knew he was pretty handy at anything musical but to be honest, in the nicest way, we weren’t sure he’d want to be a drummer. But he said yes surprisingly… a couple of weeks later we shot the video for ‘Confessions’ and the band was born…
Did you buy anything you don’t need in the pandemic?
I can’t tell you how much garden furniture I have in the back garden that has never found a home – think I need Charlie Dimmock round to help me out.
Do you sign up to any conspiracy theories?
That Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston are getting back together?!
If you could choose, would you prefer to time travel to the past or go forward in time? And why?
That’s a tough one. There’s definitely pros and cons to both but I’d have to say go forward in time – best to see where you’re going than dwell in the past.
If you had to describe your band to an alien how would you describe them?
It’s perfectly normal don’t worry. The swooshing of hair is cool and impressionable on this planet. We’re making that much noise on purpose, so give it a few songs and you might like it. If you don’t, please don’t zap us.
Which one of the band is the most unpredictable and why?
Dom (The Drummer) – I’ve not seen him snap yet but he’s just too calm…
Which one of the band is the biggest nightmare? (Just a bit of fun)
Me (Rhys), hands down, I can be a bit vacant sometimes, probably late the most and I tell terrible jokes. And I can sometimes turn into an emotional wreck.
You have one phone call and you have been locked up for a crime you didn’t commit? Which member would you call first?
Simon here now. I’d get them both on speaker. We’re a band. We do everything as one.
Name a four piece band made up of legends – who would be in it? (drummer, bass, lead singer etc)
Grohl (drums), Kim Deal, Graham Coxon, William Shatner
If you could play any music festival which would it be?
Glasto right? Or one of those mad tribute ones. There’s a great Status Quo tribute band called Status Quid. I’d join them for the name alone.
Best gig you’ve been to that you weren’t playing?
Pulp, 1996. Warrington.
What advice would you give someone going into the music industry?
Enjoy everything you do. Whether that be clanging about with ideas in the bedroom or developing social media. Try and enjoy everything for what it is and not what it might be.
What’s your biggest achievement as a band?
Track on an album that went to number one in over 50 countries. Kind by K-Pop legends ShinEE. Best pop album of 2021. Take that Justin Timberlake. (I immediately regret that. I love JT. My sincerest apologies.)
I hear you have a new single brewing, what can you tell us about it?
Confessions is about every office party you’ve ever been to where you’ve opened up a little bit too much. Then you fantasise about what might happen next. We’ve all had a co-worker we’ve been secretly in love with. Love might be a bit strong actually. But you end up spending more time with them than you do with your own family because, you know, jobs. Then you find yourself creating and engineering opportunities to spend more time with them. This does not end well. I thought this might be something that resonates with everyone…but maybe it’s just us…
Video by the wonderful Moose Lorals. They have made us look between 12% and 46% more attractive than we are in real life.
I’ve really mixed up my tenses in this response. Apologies.
What was the recording process like?
Long and protracted. Great mix by the mighty Brent March though.
What was the biggest learning curve in writing the single/album?
Get the right producer sooner.
Would you change anything now it’s finished?
Nah. It’s very much what it always wanted to be.
What are your plans for the year ahead?
More singles for the inevitable rabid fans.
Is there anything else you would like to share with the world?
Did you know that the numbers on a toaster refer to actual minutes and not simply the amount of “toastiness”? Blew my mind that.
PRE SAVE CONFESSIONS HERE