Mini-Album: Take The Long Road Home
Artist: Seven Stories High
Release Date: 20th May 2016
First of all, this is Music Matters’ 100th article. Thank you all for your continued support! Today I would like to present you up and coming alternative pop punk band, (which I think is the most suitable band I can choose to celebrate the occasion) Welsh quintet Seven Stories High. Also I am really happy to present to you an interview with the band, which you can find below.
On 28th January 2015, Seven Stories High released their debut EP. I can’t remember exactly when, but I think it was sometime in December 2014 that I had a chance to access and listen to the EP, and their sound appealed to me instantly. I reviewed the EP just before its release, to which I have attached a direct link, farther down this page.
Seven Stories High are just about to release their mini-album “Take The Long Road Home”. It contains 6 tracks, with a small clip added in for a laugh(?!) as “Intro”.
The third track (without counting “Intro”) “Working For Wednesdays” was released on 20th March almost 14 months after their previous release and 2 months before “Take The Long Road Home”. This is the longest track on the mini-album, and is the most anthemic one. It begins with a slightly heavy guitar sound, and as soon as the other instruments join in, the tune becomes very uplifting. The melody is absolutely appealing with superb vocals, catchy riffs and is full of energy.
The first track “CTRL” gives you the chance to experience the whole of Seven Stories High’s world. This is a solid pop punk tune with fantastic harmonies. I also find that the drums are prominent throughout the track and are enjoyable. This track is a strong contender for their next single.
“That’s No Moon” is the second track, and they don’t slow down. This is another strong tune from the boys. I feel that the sound from this tune is more like what they showed us in their early days; with heavy riffs and an almost shouted chorus, you can really feel their energy. It is fun to listen to the guitars and bass playing off of each other, especially in the middle section.
After “Working For Wednesdays”, the fourth track is “Wait For It”. It begins quite dramatically, with this time a lot less of a pop punk feel. The mood of this track changes as it goes along. The track really shows us Seven Stories High’s style. In addition to that, the female vocals give an emotional atmosphere to the song, which are sung by Charlotte Gilpin, the lead singer of Dream State, a Welsh alt-rock/post hardcore band.
The fifth track is “Skin Me Alive”; an acoustic song with a rather minimal setup. It is a nice contrast to the other songs. After the excitement of the previous four tracks, this is the kind of song that gives you a chance to look back on your life.
The sixth and the final track of the mini-album “Take The Long Road Home” is “Fool’s Paradise”. It brings us back to their bouncy vibe. It is a tune with plenty of catchy riffs and chorus to close the mini-album.
With “Take The Long Road Home”, I find that Seven Stories High’s sound is largely polished while also keeping their originality. I’m totally thrilled with their achievement. This young band from Wales certainly shows great potential. If you listen to music like Kids in Glass Houses, A Day to Remember and All Time Low, “Take The Long Road Home” is one to check out. Keep your eyes and ears on the band!
Recently, I had a chance to interview Seven Stories High. I asked them about “Take The Long Road Home” and even about their mascot pineapple. Hope you enjoy!
Hello, Seven Stories High!
This is the second time for us to feature you. The first time was over a year ago, and today is our first interview. So, can you introduce yourselves? Your names and your roles in the band?
My name is Rhys. I am the lead vocalist and all round hunk of the band.
I’m Matt, I play guitar and like long walks on the beach.
I’m Charlie, I play the other guitar and Cheerleader for the band.
My name is Kallum, I play Bass and do some backing vocals too.
And I’m Dave, the designated Drummer.
Thank you. Dave, I thought you would say “Load of Sticks for the band” haha.
Could you tell us how you all met up and became a band?
(Rhys) Matt, Dave and I have been in bands together since we were 11. Originally I played drums and Dave played bass. However after years of not being able to find a singer who we worked well with, I decided that I wanted as much attention as possible. We mixed things up by moving Dave to drums and I moved to the front of the stage playing guitar and singing, along with a friend of ours Sam, on bass. We quickly realised that I am not good enough at guitar or singing to be able to do both at the same time. So we eventually moved Sam to guitar. After a long and thorough search, we found Charlie, to cover our open bass position. Unfortunately due to work and life issues, unfortunately Sam wasn’t able to continue with the band. So this had left us another empty space. Charlie introduced us to his friend Kallum, and whilst he was also gorgeous, it turns out he can play bass quite well too! Winner! Haha. So that was us. Since we have completed the line up, the music has come easily. We all work well together, and have a lot of fun doing what we do.
Great! How did you decide on Seven Stories High as your band name?
(Matt) It was originally a Lyric in our song CTRL. We were having our first writing session in Rhys’ flat which is on the 7th floor. See where this is going? Haha… and the lyric referred to the fact that, throughout all the bands we played in while we were younger, there have been 6, different versions of a band including Myself, Dave and Rhys, and this line up is the 7th. When we were looking for a name, none made more sense to us than that one.
Okay. Yeah, I thought it could be something to do with a building.
This one is an important question! What does a pineapple mean to you?
(Matt) The pineapple has become our unofficial mascot. We don’t know how, we don’t know why, but it seems to be here to stay. It also allows us engage with people who come to our shows, as anyone who has been to one will know, towards the end of the night they are surprised by Rhys walking around with a tray of pineapple slices, cut from the same pineapple that had been on stage that night.
Haha, I can’t wait to go to your show! Who are your influences? Does everyone listen to similar music and bands?
(Rhys) We take influences from everywhere, and we all have different tastes in music, but that makes it interesting when we come to write a song. Our influences range from music, to TV, comics and films, and there are so many, it’s hard to pinpoint a few
How do you go about writing your songs?
(Rhys) One of us will come up with a riff, or a part of a song, Usually Dave, and then the rest of us come together on the idea in a practice room. We run riff through different styles time signatures, to find something we like and just continue to build. Once the music is finished, Matt and myself will sit down and write the lyrics, and then bring it back to the boys for us all to have our input on it. It’s a hard stressful but overall fun process which we all get involved in.
How do you describe your brand new single “Working for Wednesdays”?
(Matt) The party song earth deserves, but not the one it needs right now.
(Charlie) It’s a fun track about drinking and going out on a student night, which where we are from, is on a Wednesday.
(Dave) It’s a nod to our friends who we grew up with, and we hope it captures the fun that we always have on nights out.
“Working For Wednesdays” was released about 14 months after your 3 track debut EP. And it is one of the tracks from your forthcoming EP. How are you feeling about the new release?
(Rhys) It’s been a long time coming. When we were making it we were very picky, and meticulous, and because of that it’s taken a lot longer than we hoped. We all wanted to be involved in every process from recording, to taking the picture for the cover. We all wanted to make sure we were happy with it, and it represented what we wanted it to.
Could you tell us about the new EP “Take the Long Road Home”?
(Rhys) The EP covers a lot of different areas, for example, CTRL is about the creation of the band, we have a love song on there, Wait for it, our newest written song, is a lot darker than the rest and covers anxiety and feelings of wanting to give up. There are songs on there we have played from the beginning of our live shows, and some we hardly play. But we wanted them on record. The songs mean so much to us that despite the length of time it took to make the record, we needed to put them on there, and hopefully anyone who buys it will enjoy them as much as we do.
I’m sure everyone will enjoy, certainly I am enjoying very much! Also I think the listeners will relate to a song or two. I suppose it can be called a mini album. Do you prefer to call it an EP?
(Rhys) We don’t really mind, it has got 7 tracks making it a little long for an EP, but that was just due to us not being able to pick a song to cut out, and decided to just work a little harder to make sure we could get all of them on the record.
Do you have a special show planned for the EP release?
(All) We do!
(Rhys) The day after the release our favourite venue in our Home town of Swansea is playing host to our release show. We have a great few bands coming to play with us, and we hope it’s going to be a super fun night. Must say, post gig pineapple slices are confirmed (smile).
It sounds awesome! Well, any plans for a tour?
(Rhys) We hope in 2016 we will be able to hit the road and visit some other places, and share the EP with other people, but at the moment there is nothing firm in place for a tour.
Yes, it’s still an early stage for you. Is there anything you would like to say?
(Rhys) Just a big thank you to everyone who has ever came to a show, bought a t-shirt, listened to a song. All the press who are talking to us including yourselves just a big massive thank you. It means a lot to us, and we are always grateful of any support. So follow us on twitter and come to a show!
Thank you for your time, and good luck!
“Take The Long Road Home” will be released on 20th May, which is when you can get your hands on it. For now, here is their debut EP you to enjoy;
Teri Morris
Check out our first review;
https://musicmattersgb.net/2015/01/27/new-release-seven-stories-high/
To find out more about Seven Stories High, visit their sites using the links below;
Facebook – Seven Stories High https://www.facebook.com/sevenstorieshigh
Twitter – @7storieshigh https://twitter.com/7storieshigh
Instagram – @sevenstorieshigh https://www.instagram.com/sevenstorieshigh/
SoundCloud – https://soundcloud.com/seven-stories-high
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