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It’s been a hell of some years for Between You & Me.
For the reason that launch of their explosive 2021 album ‘Armageddon’, the Aussie pop-punkers have launched into a month-long US run with State Champs, sold-out a hometown present in Melbourne, and racked up over 15 million international streams. Driving an ever-growing wave of momentum, the five-piece have additionally kickstarted their 2024 on the highway – an setting that now appears like their second house – smashing their first ever headline runs in each the UK and the States.
With such a packed-out schedule, it’s been some time since we’ve heard new music from Between You & Me, however their current whirlwind of chaos is captured in type on model new EP, ‘SH!T YEAH’. The band’s first impartial launch since 2016, throughout six high-energy songs guided by a newfound freedom they’re serving up a euphoric reminder to embrace enjoyable, it doesn’t matter what weights might attempt to drag you down.
At first of their vibrant new chapter, Rock Sound caught up with vocalist Jake Wilson and bassist James Karagiozis to speak about the way forward for Between You & Me…
ROCK SOUND: You’ve had an enormous begin to the yr together with your debut UK headline tour, in addition to your first headline run within the US. How are you holding up?
JAMES: “We’re close to the tip of this two-month run now, and we’re feeling a bit dishevelled, but in addition very fulfilled. We have been a bit scared at first of the yr, particularly coming into the US tour straight after the UK run. The UK exhibits have been insane, and we didn’t anticipate them to go in addition to they did. After that, we didn’t know the way the US was going to look, however each present right here has been insane too. It’s been a enjoyable time.”
JAKE: “We’ve been away for 2 months although, and I’m excited to be again in my very own mattress. I can’t wait to be again in our personal nation the place the bread isn’t stuffed with sugar, and we don’t have to fret about worldwide transaction charges and conversion charges.”
JAMES: “I swear that we’re very stoked to be a touring band although!”
RS: It’s been just a few years since ‘Armageddon’, and loads has modified for this band since then. Your upcoming EP ‘SH!T YEAH’ is your first impartial launch since 2016…
JAMES: “I’m fearful of everybody else having their palms on our stuff, and we don’t belief anybody anymore. We principally mentioned, ‘Fuck everybody else, we’re going to do it ourselves’. If we go down in flames, so be it.”
JAKE: “There was a little bit of a public feud happening for a bit the place we acquired a status of hating document labels. That’s not true, some labels are good. We all know that they’re simply doing their job, we simply didn’t notably just like the one which we have been with. It’s completely previously, and enterprise is enterprise. We are able to maintain crying about it, or we are able to simply attempt to be higher. Why not simply launch music ourselves and see what occurs?”
JAMES: “It appears to be the way in which of the world now. Quite a lot of bands are impartial, and loads are holding their masters for themselves and making some huge cash from it. It appears like we’ve been an impartial band the entire time, to be trustworthy. Nobody ever instructed us what we would have liked to do, or what we are able to and may’t do. Now, the danger is a bit larger, however the rewards are fruitful.”
RS: Is it more durable to get that motivation going while you haven’t acquired somebody telling you what to do?
JAKE: “Oh yeah. We began recording this EP in March 2023, and I didn’t end the vocals till November.”
RS: Did that play into the choice to concentrate on placing out an EP reasonably than setting your sights on album three?
JAKE: “We’ve been busy, and everybody has been doing their very own factor. We would have liked to place out some music, so we simply acquired collectively to see what occurred as an alternative of absolutely committing to a 3rd document.”
JAMES: “We went into the writing of this EP with the concept there’s nothing that we shouldn’t attempt to do. No matter concept we had within the studio, that’s what we ended up placing down on the songs. We noticed it as an experiment to see the place it might go into the longer term. We’ve acquired these six tracks, and throughout them is just a little little bit of every little thing. There was a hell of a number of creativity that went into it.”
You labored with Sam Guaiana once more on these songs, who produced ‘Armageddon’ too…
JAKE: “I’ll be trustworthy, I don’t actually care who we work with so long as I like spending time with them.”
JAMES: “We had blocked out a little bit of time to put in writing collectively, and it simply labored out that we might fly Sam to Australia on the identical time. The staff that we had on ‘Armageddon’ actually helped form that document, so it was cool to get again within the studio along with them. We recorded in a home that we’d rented out, and it was only a case of hanging out and seeing what occurred.”
JAKE: “We booked this time to put in writing and document, however it was extra like just a little therapeutic vacation.”
JAMES: “It was a really enjoyable time. We weren’t placing any stress on ourselves; we have been simply taking part in golf and being lazy as fuck!”
So, it was only a case of taking it simple, spending time with each other, and letting the inventive juices circulate every time they got here…
JAKE: “Once we acquired to the home, we picked the room that appeared like the very best to arrange our music gear in. As soon as that was finished, we knew the place we have been going to document once we have been prepared, however we headed straight to the golf course. That’s what we centered on, so there was no strain.”
JAMES: “A lot of our writing course of is catered round how a lot enjoyable we are able to have, however the writing occurs finally.”
JAKE: “Musically, these concepts got here fairly shortly, however the strain was on me to put in writing lyrics. I used to be feeling lazy and uninspired.”
JAMES: “We recorded all of the music, then gave Jake six months to complete the lyrics. To be trustworthy, going into the method we have been all fairly empty of concepts. We had one or two items that we wished to work on, so we simply went from there. The vocals have been left as much as no matter popped into Jake’s thoughts, or whoever’s life he wished to reside vicariously by means of on the time. I really feel like individuals may need to take some that means from this EP, however we simply wished to have enjoyable with it.”
RS: ’SH!T YEAH’ is clearly a continuation of the band you have been on ‘Armageddon’, however it additionally appears like the beginning of one thing fully new. You’ve acquired that pop-punk sound down now, however these songs dive into sonic territories you’ve by no means had an opportunity to discover earlier than…
JAKE: “Musically, now we are able to do no matter sound feels proper on the day. Once we’ve recorded stuff earlier than, we have been inspired to be extra pop-punk. Now although, pop-punk might be the very last thing we’d all take heed to in our spare time. This EP steers away from that, and I believe that’s the route document three and document 4 will take too.”
JAMES: “We’re nonetheless going to play pop-punk songs, however we need to combine it in with another stuff. We wish our reside present to be as a lot of a journey as potential, and sticking in a single lane isn’t going to assist us obtain that. All of us love several types of music, so we determined to take the danger on this one and put in some bizarre stuff. It’s completely different from what we’ve put out earlier than, however it’s nonetheless fucking rock and roll.”
That freedom has led to 6 of the most important songs you’ve ever written. How did it really feel to hear again to the mixes for the primary time?
JAKE: “Wonderful, as a result of we all know what we do greatest now. We’re at our peak once we’re writing songs like ‘Nevermind’ which are stuffed with enjoyable and vitality, and we love writing stuff like that. We write songs with our reside present in thoughts, and each time we’re engaged on a monitor, we’re centered on making it sound as large as potential.”
JAMES: “We’re all album individuals, however doing an EP was attention-grabbing. We weren’t going into this course of making an attempt to beat ‘Armageddon’, and that helped us. I didn’t assume we’d ever return to EPs, however it’s given us a brand new lease to maneuver in any route going ahead. We examined every little thing out, and now we are able to go and write a document that takes us wherever we would like.”
RS: Knuckle Puck’s Joe Taylor additionally makes a visitor look on ‘Kill My Vibe’. You guys toured collectively final yr, so did that really feel like a pure collaboration?
JAMES: “We’ve talked about doing options on earlier releases, however everybody we considered we didn’t actually know. From the second we clicked with Joe, we knew we wished to get him on a tune. As quickly as we had ‘Kill My Vibe’, we despatched him a DM and he was down.”
JAKE: “It’s good, as a result of usually in music individuals will conform to do options as your mates, however then behind the scenes they’ll expect $20,000.”
JAMES: “One factor that we’ve seen while touring is that some musicians are on this as a result of they actually love music, however some are fakes. We clicked with Knuckle Puck immediately as a result of they’re right here to have enjoyable, and that’s what music is for us too. In fact, you need to earn money so that you could maintain doing it, however in the end we’re right here as a result of we love music. We don’t put a number of emphasis on something besides us having an excellent time.”
RS: Having had the possibility to embrace completely different influences and push the boundaries of Between You & Me’s sound, are you popping out of this EP as a extra assured band?
JAKE: “Once we performed ‘In The Center’ at our London present, it was insane how many individuals have been singing alongside. It took me 9 months to complete that tune however realizing that folks find it irresistible makes all of it price it. We all know what we’re good at now, and we all know what individuals like to listen to from us. It’s acquired me occupied with document three, and I’m feeling so impressed after watching reside music daily for 2 months. I’m prepared for an album now, so possibly subsequent yr.”
JAMES: “Hopefully subsequent yr, however I hope that everybody enjoys this EP within the meantime. We’re very a lot an upbeat social gathering vibe band, and we’ve achieved that on these songs higher than we ever have earlier than.”
‘SH!T YEAH’ is out now.
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