The Robbie Boyd Band
The Robbie Boyd Band has been making quite a stir on the live circuit in the last year or so and now they are back with their new EP Autumn’s Flown.
I caught up with Robbie to talk about the new collection of track, busking on the streets of London as well as what lies ahead for him and the band this summer.
- You are about to release your new EP Autumn's Flown so what can fans of the band expect from the new collection of tracks?
On the new EP you have got lots of different instruments such as violins, mandolins, electric guitars, trumpets, saxophones the full works.
- You have mentioned all of the instruments on the record so why did you decide to include such a diverse selection of sounds?
I started off on my own playing at open mic gigs and I have just fathered musicians along the way who asked to join in with me.
I just saw the powerful impact of including different instruments in the sound and one you get in the studio it’s just amazing to see what you can do with a song with all the various instruments.
Sometimes there are seven or eight of us in the band and we all play a couple of instruments each.
- The EP has some folk elements with a pop sound but for anyone who is coming to your music for the first time with this new record how would you describe the sound?
I call it funky folk (laughs) but for people who don’t understand that I would say that it is singer/songwriter folk, pop, rock.
- You have been making a name for yourself on the live circuit so how have these new tracks been going down with the fans?
For us these tracks aren’t new at all they are about a year old or something like that - they are the songs that we play the tightest.
I have got loads of new songs that we are itching to go into studio and record the next batch of stuff. So we are going out with out strongest foot forward with this new EP Autumn’s Flown.
- Well you have touched on my next question really Autumn's Flown is just a taster of what you are all about so is there a full album in the pipeline? If so down which sort of path with you take the sound of the album?
We have got a fourteen track album called What Are You Waiting for that you can get on the website www.robbie-boyd.com and that is a compilation of my progress in the studio over the last three years.
So we are going to continue releasing EP’s, we are probably going to release the next one in September/October, and then hopefully there will be an album including all the new songs next year.
- What does this EP say about you as a band/artist?
Hmmm (laughs) I guess it is feel good stuff and honest and it should make the listener feel happy. It’s nice to listen to and dance to as well.
- I talk to plenty of musicians and many of them find the recording process quite a difficult one so how do you find getting in the studio?
I love it. I literally loved it because I feel at home there, same on stage as well because I love the whole process.
I just can’t wait to get back in there. You can plan certain things but then wonderfully unexpected things happen which is always great.
- You pen all of the tracks on the EP so what inspires you from a song-writing perspective?
The song-writers that inspire me are people like Bob Dylan, James Taylor, Paul Simon, Neil Young and more recent acts like Johnny Flynn, Noah and the Whale and Arcade Fire, there are just loads of people.
And then in terms of the arrangements the band all has their own different influences and that brings a different sound to the songs, which is really great.
- That is quite an eclectic mix?
Yeah definitely I just love music ever since day one and, to be honest, my enjoyment of music goes far beyond that as I have gone through different phases; I use to be into rap and hip hop and all sorts.
- And the likes of Tim Rice and Simon Cowell have voiced their support for the band so what do you think of comments such as ‘Never Never Land reminds me of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young?’
Yeah that is pretty amazing to hear that from Simon Cowell himself. It’s just brilliant as I just didn’t expect that at all Crosby, Stills, Nash and Neil Young separately are all huge heroes of mine so that is amazing.
I have never consciously tried to sound like anyone when I am writing a song or even in the studio or the arrangements we just feel what is best so it is just amazing to be compared to people like that.
And I have heard lots of other lovely comparisons as well (laughs) which has just been amazing and has really kept me doing what I am doing, if I didn’t have the positive reinforcement that I have had over the last three years then I would probably be in a different place.
But now there is no turning back and this is the only thing that I want to do with my life.
- So where did your love of music start and when did you make that decision to make it more than a hobby?
More than just a hobby was about three years ago but my love of music started when I was born basically. My parents use to take me to gigs as I went to see The Who so many time and James Taylor and people like that.
So I guess when I was seeing people like that I was always in the back of my mind wanting part of the action and wanting to play in front of thousands of people. But music has such a powerful effect of being able to lift people.
So I just started taking it seriously and playing a lot, I have been busking on the street of London for the last three years and that is how we have built most of our international fan base along with all the gigs that we have played.
I started taking it seriously three years ago as I lived with a co-writing partner of mine and it was just an amazing period as we just wrote so many songs together. It just made me want to do it forever.
- I was reading that you started out by singing some of your own songs on the streets of London so how did you find that experience and what did you learn from it?
It’s a really great thing to do, I usually busk my own songs but I do throw a cover in every now and then, but it’s a great way to build your confidence and not worry about what people think.
But it also gave me the instant feedback because when you have people crowding around you and giving you money and singing your songs back to you when they have never even heard them before is really encouraging.
It was just great to test out new songs and work out ways of getting the audience involved, now crowd participation is a big part of our live set and I learnt that on Portobello Road and other places that I have been busking.
- Finally what's coming up for you will we be seeing you play at any festivals this summer?
Yeah we are in the middle of our first UK tour so that has been very exciting as we have been playing in Ipswich and Edinburgh and then we are going to Newcastle and the rest of the UK. We have got a big gig to celebrate the release of our EP at the Borderline on Tuesday 26th June.
We are playing at a couple of festivals such as Lovestock, Wilderness and then we are going to German to play at a festival there before we start doing some stuff for the Olympics.
The Robbie Boyd Band - Autumn’s Flown EP is out now. Read our review of the EP here
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw