5 Minutes with Roo Panes
Hi Andrew! Lovely to chat with you today! You’ve got two shows back-to-back coming up very soon at Union Chapel, what are you most looking forward to about the shows?
“I think for me it's going to be really nice to play to fans in person, and bypass the digital world for a second. It's been a fragmented few years, and I'm looking forward to feeling that connection, and hoping it will be a warm, friendly, musical reunion! I love the venue too and always wanted to play there with my friends and the bigger instrumental setup, as I previously played there solo.”
Your latest album ‘The Summer Isles’ came out earlier this year which is your fourth studio album! Was there something particular that inspired you when putting this album together?
“I think with each album you're working with different inspirations. That period of time might have delivered new life experiences - for instance getting married, different musical tastes, a new chapter of emotions and life circumstances - such as the unique stretch of time we've all endured of late. No stretch of time is ever the same, so this album touches on those new themes, and is quite centered on the quest for finding beautiful things in the ordinary. I found myself revisiting the idea of childhood quite a bit on this record.”
Do you have a structured approach when it comes to song-writing, or do you find that when you’re inspired you just start writing?
“I think I'm much more the latter of the two. Sometimes I wish iIcould be more structured about it, but the truth is that i feel i like to wait until a number of things combine, until something meaningful comes to mind, or a melody comes along, or hopefully a number of these come together and you a get a sense there's a new cluster of stars to pull together into the constellation of a song. For me that's where I feel I get the real stuff, whereas when I'm trying to be too structured I often feel like I'm reaching for something, and often not relaxing into being myself as a writer. Sometimes I pick up an instrument to see if something wants to come.
Who’s your dream song collaborator and why?
“I've always loved Bob Marley's approach to songwriting, and wondered what his songwriting process was like. So that'd be an interesting one!”
If you could take any band or artist on tour with you, whether they’re still going or not, who would it be and why?
“On tour there's a lot of travelling, and waiting time, so I'd probably have to choose someone I'd find interesting to chat with, and there's loads of them!” Today I'm thinking Leonard Cohen would have been a fascinating tour companion
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