Fresh from winning the Scottish Alternative Music Award 2014, this new EP titled ‘Watching The Sun’ is a real statement of intent from Jack Rowberry, following on from his 2013 EP ‘Ladybird’.

‘Watching The Sun’ is a three track EP that gives a real insight into the talent this young man, as well as his band,  harbour. They produce exquisite music with blossoming sounds, and etched into Jack’s tunes are a combination of ingredients which make this more than just a blues record…

The first song, ‘The Way it Goes’, starts with a sluggish bluesy vibe which slows to a halt before bursting in a sudden rush of noise before simmering down to create a wonderful array of sounds that run parallel with soulful vocals.

‘Two Strangers’ is the second track and it’s an upbeat one. The powerful vocals slip into an alluring blues tune with speckles of rock ‘n’ roll running through the beat. With guitar solos and sumptuous riffs, the laid back feel continues from ‘The Way it Goes’. But the cherry on the cake is the beautiful outro guitar riff that will instantly compel your head to nod.

The final track of the EP, ‘Learn to fly’, is a simple yet effective tune. With a blues beat and a calming feeling, it has well-crafted chords and sweetly tuned vocals.

‘Watching The Sun’ is a free-flowing EP with a combination of charming elements which, against all the odds, work. This is a classic example of Jack’s style, who prides himself on the freedom of his music; however, now the big question is whether or not Jack can take his work a step forward into composing his debut LP?

 

We considered this, and other questions, as we caught up with Jack to talk influences, musical freedom and being banned from banks…

 

 You’ve now released two fantastic EPs, what’s next for you?

Well the second EP ‘Watching The Sun’ has just been released recently so my band and I are still touring that. Next we will be looking to move towards laying down an album – I’ve got plenty of songs written, just tricky getting time to do it amongst playing so many shows. But we will!  I may also be dabbling in a few side projects – got a rootsy thing on the go and also some delta blues ideas; I like it busy!

 You say you are a ‘blues guitarist at heart’, and that you don’t want to be associated with a certain kind of genre. Where did the inspiration come from to implement the rock ‘n’ roll esque guitar solo at the end of the first song on the EP?

Well, it’s always a tricky thing when it comes to press interviews etc – everyone needs you to pigeon hole your sound, which is fine but it’s never spot on with a style like mine; so, when I’m writing I try not to do that.  I never write to a style, it’s just what comes out.  I’m 100% a blues guitarist, the tattoo of the late Robert Johnston on my arm is there to remind me always. However, as so many of my guitar heroes have done, I have added my own tastes, styles and flare to it. It’s all in the pursuit of something new.  I would say my song-writing is pop and my arrangements have a hint of Rock And Roll: that’s why I felt the guitar lick you mention works, because without it we were missing something.

You mention there is a lot of freedom in music and that’s certainly expressed in what you create: so, what ideas do you have for your debut LP?

Thanks you very much – it’s really nice to have freedom within a song.  I will probably want to get my 12 string guitar out to play, and also some bottleneck style guitar. And we’re also dabbling with the idea of even more female backing vocals.

When creating your music, do you enter the studio with a fixed idea of how you want a record to sound, or do you find yourself having a jam and creating something from that?

I always have a structure in mind by the time we reach a studio.  But it’s never 100% finished – I do that on purpose.  So, often when working on a record, we improvise over something and a little bit of magic comes out of nowhere.  You can’t prepare for that but I like to think I write with a platform to allow it to happen.

There were acoustic aspects only evident in the first track on the LP; would you say you are more interested in working with electric guitar to create that more alternative sound?

Evenly matched I’d say.  I have a few beautiful old acoustic guitars that are impossible to ignore, I just love that rootsy element they can bring to a track; but I don’t always think we need the amp at 11… The second EP is actually a Live EP so I just didn’t have enough arms to play all the parts required, however I’d be amazed if an acoustic influence didn’t make the album.

And now for some quick fire questions:

Who would be in your ideal Supergroup line up?

Josh Homme on vocals, John Mayer on guitar, Steve Jordan on Drums,  Flea on Bass and Q Tip chipping in and out.  That would be hard to keep up with…

 What would you desert island album be? 

Ah thats tricky, can I have two…? Q Tip – Amplified or John Mayer – Where The Light Is.

What song do you wish you had written? – Queens Of The Stone Age // No One Knows and Buddy Guy // It Feels Like Rain and Arctic Monkeys // Do I Wanna Know

What’s the weirdest/most rock-star story you’ve been involved in?

Unfortunately, I don’t have the funding to be wrecking stuff yet. None of that can happen but a few years ago another band mate and I were supposed to be laying down some demos with a well-known producer- Owen Morris…  We arrived in the afternoon and immediately went for lunch; a few hours and some beverages later, we got thrown out of a few different places.  This is all on a week day around early afternoon.  So we went back to the studio and made some Margaritas instead.  We eventually got the tracks done but they couldn’t be used!  There is probably other stuff as well but we better not…

 Tell us your best joke?

Here are two interesting things you should know about me!

1) My penis is the same length as two of those pens you get in the bank when held together.

2) I’m not allowed in the bank anymore.

 

Interesting indeed… Thanks Jack!

 

Sam Lightle

@SamLightle