As bands develop and grow over time there will be changes. The biggest keys are to stay true to your craft and yourself. This authenticity will shine through and gather fans over time. Our recent discovery Room 201 has been doing it for years and now appears to be hitting their stride.
We caught up with the UK indie rock band to get a little deeper behind the scenes. Enjoy the interview:
First off, how did the name Room 201 come to be?
It’s to do with my first love, we spent a night together on my 18th birthday after a concert at a hotel in Manchester. I remembered the room number and post breakup it seemed like a fitting name. Nothing crazy or complicated. I don’t associate the band name with my previous partner now. Room 201 to me now is like a spectrum of emotions and a way for me to express myself creatively.
How did the band come together?
There were many members over the years. The lineup we have right now has been active for the past 8 months. After Charlie and Leon left to focus on other things it was just me left. I decided to join a side project called Coreless Tree as a vocalist with Bart and Sam from Liverpool. Shortly after that I had a university performance assessment and I asked the lads if they could session for me and play the material. It sounded so good we decided to focus on Room 201 instead. Shortly after Alex, Bart’s son joined us on bass and then Roman, Bart’s dad joined on keys. Hamish is my friend from way back in college and when Leon left we needed a fill-in guitarist for a gig so I asked Hamish and well he’s been with us ever since.
Which bands have had the biggest influence on Room 201?
It’s hard to say really. For me, I’ve listened to a lot of music over the years. The new stuff borrows from bands such as The1975. They’re my favourite band and I love the contrast of high energy and soft folky acoustic tunes. Vocally Ive been influenced over the years by artists such as Danny Worsnop, Oli Sykes, Matty Healy, SayWeCanFly. I love to show softness but at the same time I like to emphasize certain things with aggressive grit in my voice. Textures are very important in order to paint a picture. The rest of the band listens to all sorts of stuff. Alex is heavy into his old indie bands. Hamish is a metalhead through and through. Sam listens to some weird shit, you never expect what band he got a ticket for next.
What is your songwriting process? How does a song come together?
I graduated in production recently and have been songwriting for over a decade now. I write and record the demos and then bring it into practice sessions and send it into our group chat so the boys can add their own spin instrumentally on the music. It makes it a lot easier to keep the style I’ve developed present in every song. I’ll make a bunch of demos then the boys really just pick out what they want to work on. I try to make it so that everyone can get involved while staying true to the original vision I had when I started the band.
We hear the Room 201 live show is something to experience? Tell us about what goes into that.
Despite the depressing nature of the music. We keep the energy up. Every time we play some mad shit happens.
100 people screaming “fuck 201”, a venue owner using a money gun on us, bunch of bikers front stage pretending theyre riding a bike with me while holding broken bike parts. There’s always some fun stuff happening. Mainly because I always get a little drunk and just wanna do wild shit on stage.
What do you hope listeners will take away from your music?
In another interview I said “It’s music for people who feel like they belong everywhere but nowhere’. There isn’t really a message. My experiences and perspectives are presented in our music in a simplistic, straight to the point way. I just hope someone out there can relate to my words and share the same feelings. Live wise I just want everyone to have a good time and find the gig memorable. Like a theatrical performance. A story from start to finish. Some skinny emo kid whining about life.
Share some advice for other hard-working bands striving for success in the new music industry?
Personally I’d say let the snowball roll. Take every and any gig whether you get paid or not. If you can leave a positive experience, word spreads and opportunities come to you on their own. Music industry is oversaturated too so focus on developing a unique look aesthetically and style of music. Most importantly don’t force anything and be yourself.
What is next on the horizon for Room 201?
We are in the middle of a mini tour right now. As soon as we play our last gig at The Festival Of Life in August we’re going to step back for a little while and rest and focus on recording our debut album which is pretty much written now. Room 201 hasn’t released anything in almost 2 years so it’s about time we put out some content. We have now developed our sound, look and chemistry so it’s a perfect time to start recording. The music we have released on spotify sounds completely different from the stuff we play now. Next up we have a Lord Bishop Rocks support slot in Newcastle on the 26th July followed by a slot at the Glaston-Bury festival on the 26th August.
Keep up with Room 201 online:
https://www.instagram.com/inroom201
