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| Rainbow Maniac Photo: Elijah Thomas |
Hailing from the Welsh capital four piece indie rock 'n' rollers Rainbow Manic were recently described as one of the "best live bands in Cardiff right now". They just completed a number of UK summer festivals including the likes of Tramlines and Welshfest and some photos of the band are featured at photographer Elijah Thomas' acclaimed current exhibition A Scene Within A Scene at Campfa. It's All Indie caught the band's frontman Conor Latcham to get the latest on the band's plans and achievements.
What is new and current in Rainbow Maniac’s world?
"We have a bunch of new songs, a refined live show and we are working on a
super cool music video."
Rainbow Maniac are featured in Elijah Thomas’ photo exhibition A Scene
Within A Scene, how significant do you feel that is?
"I have been friends with Eli since I was 16. Ever since he started getting
into photography we have wanted him to be involved with what we have been doing
and he covered so much of our career, he is almost a fifth member. And now he
has taken so many good photos of nearly every decent band in Cardiff and he has
decided to put on an exhibition of his best work. It is a raging success and he
couldn’t deserve it more. It is certainly nice to be a part of. It is like a
milestone in how far we have all come as bands, photographers and friends."
Are the band writing new material at the moment? How many songs do you have?
"I have got a bit of a ballad on the go which I am quite excited about. I
didn’t write anything for a few months because I was a bit depressed and
pessimistic but not enough to write a banger about depression and pessimism.
Also it is sort of difficult for me to write when there is not necessarily a
need for it. Like we have over two albums worth of stuff. But yes we are
currently working on a couple of anthems and I look forward to playing them
live one day. Rainbow Maniac have about thirty and I have probably written about 150
songs. Many of the earlier songs were probably were not as good as I wanted
them to be but every new song turns out to be a bit of a banger. Maybe I am getting
better."
So how does the songwriting tend to work when you are feeling inspired to
write?
"My method or writing is to write nothing for a couple of months until I
feel really bad about myself. In this time I usually get inspired by a
particular song or album and at this point I usually pull myself together and bash out one to three hits across a week or two."
What song are you most proud of and why? Tell us about writing it, is there a theme or a story?
"I would probably have to say our unreleased tune, it is called All
inclusive trip to the sunset. It is a lot of people's favourite and one
that gets sung back to us a lot at our live shows. It was very easy to write,
every verse is great lyrically and melodically, it is quite meaningful and
poignant. It is like it was always meant to be a song and we are the only band
that could have made it, if that makes sense."
"It was written when me and my girlfriend had broken up and she was
seemingly sailing off into the sunset with someone else. The chords aren’t very
original, but the vibes and lyrics feel very
authentically Rainbow Maniac. I think it really encapsulates what we are
all about… sort of the combination of comedy and tragedy, pessimism and
optimism, classic, pithy, hooky and melodic songwriting."
Do Rainbow Maniac work with a producer?
"The only producer we have ever done bits of work with is Charlie Francis.
He is a good guy and I respect him quite a lot. He has given us a few tips on
our composition but not to the point where he gets a songwriting credit
(laughs). He did tell me us one thing which has resonated in my head ever since
and sort of helped me redirect my focus in songwriting, I am paraphrasing but
it was basically 'Don’t be a silly student trying to squeeze time
signature and tempo changes into every song, just look at the rolling stones
and how they rinse the riff in Satisfaction for the entire three minutes
of the song, that is all you need.'. I have no idea what his original words
were but it is a remarkable bit of advice."
If you could work with any producer who would it be? What is your favourite record label?
"I have read about the libertines recording with Mick Jones from The Clash
and it sounded amazing. I think that would be great for Rainbow Maniac,
although I don’t know if Mick would be interested to be honest. I think we would sign with any label if it meant we could quit our day jobs.
But we have had our eye on a few, aside from the obvious Heavenly and Domino,
we love Witchita, Rough Trade and Deltasonic but it all depends on who likes us
at the end of the day."
What bands do you listen to just now?
"I generally don’t listen to music as a result of depression and jealousy,
but I have been getting really into Cat Stevens and the album Tea for
the Tillerman and also Miles Kane’s single Loaded. The rest of the
new singles have not been very good but Loaded is a really amazing track in my
opinion."
Who are Rainbow Maniac’s biggest influences?
"I think our sound stems from my interest in Alex Turner’s lyrics and
Louis’s interest in Keith Richards’s guitar playing. But aside from that I am
just into a lot of different music such as Noel Gallagher, John Lennon, indie rock,
70s disco, gangster rap and just generally great songwriters like the Eagles
and Don Mclean. It is probably why we have had a bit of an identity crisis with
our sound, but we don’t really care too much anymore."
You recently played Welshfest, what was your experience like?
"It was actually really good. Only about 50-100 people were there but it was
loads of fun. Everyone in the crowd was really drunk and really enjoyed
themselves. Also, I finally achieved a lifelong dream by smoking on stage. The
woman running it came on stage mid set and started kicking off, we probably won’t
get asked back but they didn’t pay us, and they introduced us by the wrong
name."
How was the studio session you did for Louise Schofield of Unique Lullaby?
"It was really good thanks, we filmed it at a place called Morgan’s Bar in Tonypandy. They only had Guinness in cans, but it was a really good atmosphere and we really enjoyed playing our songs that way."
"It was really good thanks, we filmed it at a place called Morgan’s Bar in Tonypandy. They only had Guinness in cans, but it was a really good atmosphere and we really enjoyed playing our songs that way."
What gigs have you enjoyed most to date?
"It has got to be our RMEP1 release party in Moon Club. I think we
had Buzzard and My Name Is Ian as support. We had Rainbow Maniac
face-painting on the door, I had a half pink face like William Wallace at gay
pride, an luminous pink Adidas t-shirt, rose tinted sunglasses and everyone
was just absolutely having it."
How many gigs have Rainbow Maniac played outside Wales? Where are you hoping to
play in the future?
"We have had a few Sofar Sounds gigs in London which we love and a few gigs
in Sheffield and Manchester. I think we have got a good connection with the
working class north because of our influences like Arctic Monkeys, Pulp, Oasis,
Beatles etc., we always have a great reception. I would love to play at the Cardiff
university great hall. I have seen a lot of my favorite bands there like The
Cribs, Babyshambles and Father John Misty. It is small enough for
us to get a good atmosphere going. Obviously the Motorpoint arena and Hyde Park
would be nice also."
How do you see the music scene in Cardiff? What other Welsh bands do
you admire?
"There is a good strong scene and sense of community. I genuinely feel like
we helped start it with bands like Tibet, kicks, buzzard, Boy Azooga and Sock.
And now it is carrying on with young bands like CVC, Al Moses,
Rotanas and Carolines. I am not patriotic at all but there is
definitely a lot of buzz around the Cardiff scene what with the Save Womanby
Street campaign, HUB fest, Swn Fest and bands like us around."
"I am a fan of Tom Jones and Shirley Bassey and I also like the
Stereophonics. A lot of people think they are a bit lame and cliché but they
have amazing songs like Since I Told You It’s Over and Everyday I
think of Money and loads more. Obviously we super admire Boy Azooga, they
are friends of ours, their album is really great, it probably holds its own
among classic albums and they have proved that it is not impossible to get signed
and play on Jools Holland and all that stuff."
What else do Rainbow Maniac want to achieve?
"We are going to put out a couple of singles and get ourselves into a
position where it is very easy for listeners and record labels to see that we
are a really amazing rock ‘n’ roll band."
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| Photo: Elijah Thomas |