The RVMES are proud to announce their first release as a band this year on the 1st of December. Their debut single Vibrant Pictures will hit all the popular platforms including Spotify, iTunes, Apple Music, YouTube, Shazam and many more.
Vibrant Pictures is the lead up to their EP which will be emerging mid-February 2019, followed by a tour to celebrate. The EP will cover various genres and flavours that the word has to offer from Gypsy Jazz to Psychedelic Blues.
With debut releases in the pipeline, Alex from muzic.net.nz had a chat with new Auckland group, The RVMES.
Where did the name ‘The RVMES’ come from?
It’s basically an infusion of a couple things of our favourite things.. Rum and Tunes. The ‘V’ came into play as an abstract visual idea giving the name a more interesting feel while at the same time making it extremely hard for radio DJ’s and the likes to pronounce it (laughs). It’s pronounced ‘The Rooms’
How did the four of you get together?
Well to start the tale off we take a seat at a poker table outside under the stars years ago where Edwin, Logan and a few other cool cats sat sipping whiskey and placing bets until pockets were looking pretty dry. That’s where the two of them met, and after a few hangs and chats after the poker game they began to work on Edwin’s solo project in 2017 with Logan on drums.
The other meeting was at a Dead Beat Boys punk gig where Miro was playing his guts out on stage. This cat was jumping all over the show like a madman along with the rest of them, bloody awesome it was! Rewind around 6 years before this at different schools Edwin and Miro had a mutual friend who named dropped us to each other saying we should have a jam and that both lads had some skills, but alas it never happened until much later following the Dead Beats gig! After that meeting they tee’d up a jam and hit it off nicely so they started a covers project and played some cool shows around Auckland. Then boom! They started sharing riffs and ideas for original music and away they went.
Edwin’s solo project came to an end and then soon after some quick organization, The RVMES was formed with the three let’s say Musketeers. There was just one spot to fill. Sam Bartells one of Edwin’s buddies flicked over a dude's number to get in touch with about a bassist. And low and behold it was Ronaldo! We sent him over a few tracks we had written and had a jam a few days after and he came along and slayed every part. Couple days after that we had our first little gig at the Kingslander and we knew that was it. The RVMES was born.
Is The RVMES the only project you guys are working on at the moment?
We all have a few different projects. Miro has the Dead Beat Boys, ‘12’ which is electronic house music with real instruments and also tinkers with his own solo stuff which is … different (Miro laughs inappropriately loud) Ronaldo is big into the Brazilian scene, being Brazilian and all it only makes sense. He plays classic covers from his country around the city. And then we have Blackbird which is our covers band that we play all around Auckland which consists of Edwin, Logan, Miro and when Ronaldo can make it he does. And of course, we always slide our originals in our sets. Who wouldn’t!
Covering genres from gypsy jazz to psychedelic blues, is the groups music very guitar-centric?
Our songs are very guitar-centric and with this question alone Miro is stirring in his seat because he loves diversity in his playing. The synthesiser is going to be pulled out in practise now and you have only have yourselves to blame! (laughs).
Are there any specific artists that have been a large influence on the direction that the band has decided to follow?
There's always a massive reggae/funk/ska/psychedelic/blues feel to what we do which is super cool and we really should mention the old gods like Bob Marley and Jimi Hendrix. Really though we think that they are just earth on which we grow, what we end up writing is often a mixture of that and what we hear around us today the inspires us. There are so many great artists around in today’s time that we feel are equally as critical to the band’s sound as those old ones.
Tell me about your hand-made tees. The design looks great!
We love the idea of handmade merchandise by the band, it’s more personal and sentimental to whoever wears our Tee’s! We made all the stencils and designs ourselves and did the bleaching as well ever so carefully. But trust us there was a few mistakes and trial runs in the process but now it’s pretty under control and consistent.
Your debut EP set for release mid-February. How easy was the writing process?
It’s amazing how quickly this band can pump out a song. One small idea at a rehearsal turns into a three-hour long idea trading circle, and damn it’s a beautiful thing to see. Nobody is afraid to put something on the table to try. We’re just guys who love music and writing it, but also have the ability not to clash over our ideas but work with them and even meet halfway to make a sound we like. We don’t know whether other people find our songs good, but if we like them that’s got to be worth something right? Before that though, you have your debut single being released on December 1st. What made you decide to pick ‘Vibrant Pictures’ for the debut release? - It’s just such a tight song with a vibe that matches hand in hand with Summer and sunshine. Give that baby a listen and you’ll see what we mean!
Where can people check out the band?
On all your classic platforms! Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and when the single is released you can find it on Spotify, iTunes, Google Play, Amazon and many more through our friends at DRM!
The RVMES (pronounced 'The Rooms') are a fiercely independent alternative rock band from Auckland known for their energetic live shows and slight boundary issues when it comes to genre.