7 minute read
Rudimental
Rudimental’s musical journey has been an extraordinary one. It was their 2012 single, Feel the Love, featuring John Newman, that first caused sparks to fly – it topped the UK Singles Chart, and the following year, their debut album, Home, landed a BRIT Award and a MOBO Award for Best Album, as well as a Mercury Prize nomination. Two years later, their second album, We the Generation, went to number one in the UK; and they also helped pen the Ed Sheeran hit, Bloodstream, from his uber-successful record, X. Now, this talented quartet are back with album number three, Toast to Our Differences, which is their most focused studio project yet.
I have been here 10 years, then the boys joined me here in 2011,” explains Amir Amor, as we take a seat at mix position in Rudimental’s London studio. Piers Agget and Kesi Dryden are also here; we’re just missing DJ Locksmith, who is otherwise engaged today.
“We’ve seen Shoreditch boom in that time,” says Agget. “There have been some amazing raves, and we’ve played shows around the corner at Village Underground a few times; we’re not far from Fabric, too, so it’s a perfect location, really.”
Amor was making his way as a producer when he joined forces with the Rudimental boys, and they’ve been a foursome ever since, each contributing to every track they’re creating. It was in the summer of 2012 when the current line-up took the bull by the horns, Agget reflects:
“When we made Feel the Love, and got the record deal – that was what gave us a license to make a record together, and the opportunity to become a live act; but we’ve known each other for years, so being that close definitely helps.”
The creative process for this third album has been a little different to the first two – and that’s been a good thing, according to the band; unlike their first two albums, Toast to Our Differences was put together without any interruptions.
“What’s been interesting about this album is that we stopped touring, took it back to living at home, going to the studio, and writing – it’s quite focused, and has been recorded in the way bands tend to make an album,” Agget says. “The last two albums weren’t done like that; they were really manic – and I wouldn’t change them for the world, as we’re really proud of them – but the second one was done all on the road, whereas the bulk of this album has been done while at home, which has been really nice for various reasons. There was a level of calmness, and normality; and we got to digest all of the things we were doing as we went.”
“It all starts in here with a jam: we run around the room playing parts, all chiping in loads of ideas,” adds Amor. “It’s refining it all that takes a long time, and some of us have strength in that area, too, so we’ll spend a lot of time on honing sounds; it goes through so many stages before it becomes a song.”
Agget explains that originally, Amor was brought in as a kind of producer/finisher, to polish their body of work now, it’s very much a case of writing and finishing the songs as a group:
“And then we pass the songs around; Amir might work on it for a month, and then it may be me working on it for a few months in a hotel room – that’s what takes the longest. In 2018, we had our third number one, and it took about a year and a half to make – we had it for years. That can be for various reasons: changing vocalists, production techniques, and sometimes we can spend months on a loop or a snare sound! As the years have gone on, I have learned a lot from Amir, and he has learned a lot from us; and we’ve found a way of working it.”
SHAPING THE SOUNDS
In terms of the overall sound, what can we expect from the new record?
“It’s always hard for us to say, as it just happens, but I feel this one is a lot more about the songs - and we’re better at that now: we write better material; we are more comfortable with the process of making a song idea into a completed track,” Amor explains. “It’s definitely soulful, it’s funky in places, and it’s live instrumentation with electronic elements. And it’s still got our roots in it: the rave culture we grew up with, the pirate radio, the jungle and garage influence, the strong reggae influence; all of those things are part of the soup that makes up Rudimental.”
“There is a bit more of an african influence in there, too, having worked with people like Mr Eazi - and we also toured in South Africa a bit, and Malawi, where we did some charity work,” adds Agget.
“Yeah, it’s kind of the sound of where we are at the moment,” suggests Kesi Dryden.
Many of the Rudimental releases are upbeat, with a positive message. Is that a conscious decision?
“A lot of our singles are like that, but you do get more of a dynamic on our albums; but generally, it’s upbeat, and what we want to portray is a positive message,” Amor explains. “There isn’t much of a hopeful voice out there in music and culture, and we are inclusive; our band is completely mixed in every sense: our culture is, our crowd is, and our music is.” According to Nina Simone, an artist’s duty is to reflect the times - and watching the video to title track, Toast to
Our Differences, and the lyrical content, it seems that’s exactly what Rudimental are trying to say: accept each other for who we are. “That’s it, exactly,” Amor declares. “What we represent is a sense of unity; it’s what we grew up with, so it naturally comes through,” says Agget.
Collaborating with other artists is a big part of what Rudimental do: every artist has their own story, and the band often bring several different creatives into each track they create.
“We’ll write something, and make something with a vocalist, and then we might add another person onto a track, or change the production a little,” says Amor. “sometimes you need to change keys, which means reworking the instrumentation; it’s often a crazy process of layering, and taking away some layers, so all the elements are complementing each other.”
All of the guys’ respective musical journeys have been pretty similar, and date back to their school days. They also all grew up close by.
“My first foray into music was at youth club; I had no computer at home, so accessing that there, as well as instruments, was key to getting me interested,”Amor continues. “I also did youth worker teaching courses in the summer, and the boys were doing that as well, even though I didn’t know them – I was teaching music, and then I also got into pirate radio.”
“For me, it was my dad getting me my PC, and being a musician himself. I used to play in his wedding bands playing rock and roll, and blues covers, so that must have had an effect on me; I took his dream, and lived it,” laughs Agget “But he inspired me to play piano, and the minute I recorded my first beat [when I was 15], I knew it was what I always wanted to do.”
“My mum took me to piano lessons when I was six years old, then I got into production at school, and enjoyed making beats,” says Dryden. “I went to school with Labrinth; I remember playing him a beat on the bus on the way to school, and by the time we got there, we had the whole thing written, and laid it down! I have a CD of some of that stuff; it’s actually snapped, but somehow it still works!”
STOP, COLLABORATE & LISTEN
Is there a favourite track from the new album?
“For me, it’s a track called They Don’t Care About Us with Maverick Saber and YEBBA - it’s a wicked vibe, which started with a jam in here,” recalls Agget. “That track was done on the Korg Prophet and the Moog Sub 37 – they are probably the most used instruments on this album. We used the [Dave Smith] OB6 synth a little bit, but mainly the Prophet, and a bit of the Nord Lead, as well. I think it’s one of the most amazing songs with a bit of sentiment, and the ending is like an orgasm – boom!”
“I would probably pick A Toast to Our Differences,” states Dryden. “It has three very different artists and singers on there: Shungudzo, who is an amazing singer and songwriter, and has been writing hits for people all over the place, so it’s about time she comes through and takes the limelight a bit, as she definitely deserves it; then there’s Protoje, who is doing massive things in the reggae world; and Hak Baker, an artist from East London with an EP called Misfits, my most listened to EP this summer. There is no-one like him, and his songs are bangers. All three artists on that track creates such a moment for me.”
Conversation turns to the band’s record label, named after their recording studio, Major Tom’s.
“We set up the label called after the first album, and then we signed Anne-Marie, who was originally our live singer, and has now become a huge artist; she sung a lot with us, but now is her own superstar, and that is a model for us really, as a platform: we look at it like the school of Rudimental, and on the new album, there is a lot of unsigned talent that you probably won’t have heard of before, but will probably be out on Major Tom’s at some point - and you might see them on the tour with us. So our business model we created on the road, and thought of after album one, and that has worked very well for our first act,” explains Agget.
“Yeah, it came about after our first album, which featured Ella Eyre, Jon Newman, and Sinead Harnett - they all got their own deals, which was lovely to see, but also made us think that maybe we should create a label ourselves, and keep them part of the family. They are all still family, of course, but the label idea made sense to us,” explains Dryden.
And since we spoke, the guys have added Ella Henderson to the Major Tom’s roster – another big step forward. Before we leave them to create their next mega-hit, what about some advice for any budding producers/creatives out there who are trying to make their way in the biz today?
“Surround yourself with talented or good people who can bring the best out of you,” insists Agget. “Don’t be afraid to network to find those people; if you don’t think it’s going anywhere, make a change; and don’t be afraid to collaborate with new people. Connecting with your team is key.”
“And although it might sound like an obvious one, keep working hard,” concludes Dryden. “We don’t have many days off! [smiles] And if you have a bit of success, keep going. If it’s something you love, it’s all fun, and it never really feels like work.”
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