Interview: Revolution Rabbit Deluxe (Written)
Revolution Rabbit Deluxe charge onwards with the release of their blistering new single and video, ‘Tim Gurner Says’, which is out now. In this interview we get to know the band a little better.
1. Hello! Thank you for taking the time to chat to us. First things first, tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started.
Rev Rabbit: Thank you, Carl, for asking us too. The band originated as a solo project but it expanded with members from an autism group that I was attending – I have Asperger’s. Those members have since departed but our musical journey led me to Max, our amazing lead guitarist and an awesome drummer Lee. Tim the bassist arrived through an ad on bandmix. We all share a love of alt rock and post punk influences such as the Pixies and Feeder to name a few. It is these that spark our endeavours.
Alternative lore says: We rescued Max (Lead Guitar) from a inflatable that had drifted from shore. She was singing “Where is my Mind?” by the Pixies at the time, so I begged her to learn lead guitar just to fit into the band. Lee (Drums), we found hitchhiking to 1940s London (long story) and Tim (Bass) we picked up on an eBay auction. I’m still waiting for my refund.
2. Someone comes to you and asks you to sum up what kind of music you play – what do you tell them?
Rev Rabbit: I’m a huge fan of melodic alternative rock and love the freedom it gives you to explore other forms and genres. I am generally a very angsty person, so the spikiness of our lyrics are generally complimented by the aggression and angularity of our music. Few bands are riding the line between political commentary and entertaining melodic hooks. We are a mish mash of all our influences plus our own unique interactions within the band. People should expect: Quirky, Shyness, and a healthy dose of angst from Rev Rabbit.
Max: I’ve always been into the whole alternative rock stuff since my high school days. I also have a love of metal, hardcore punk, a lot of really old-school blues/jazz, Motown, classical and folk, and all of these have melded into a weird combination of influences for the music I grew up learning to play and translate very differently into what I play these days. But alt-rock/post punk has always been the most effective means of creative expression for me. But in short: Alternative rock with a post-punk edge and cerebral, witty lyrics.
3. What’s currently going on in your camp? New releases? Tours? Etc.
Rev Rabbit: We are working on our sixth album. The first single from it is out now. This is the first time we’ve gone to an independent studio outside of The Warren and we’re super pleased with the results. It will be available on all streaming platforms and is called Tim Gurner Says. It is a response to the Aussie billionaire who told us we should all be on the dole so that we would appreciate work more. Nice one, Gurner!
Max: We also have the follow up single ready to roll out in the new year. With a new album out early 2025.
4. What has been the most positive experience of making music to date for you?
Rev Rabbit: The friends I’ve made in the band and outside the band. Getting to see a spark of an idea take on a life of its own.
Max: My best experiences so far have definitely been in RRD. I’ve been in plenty of bands before, but I’ve been able to do so many other things in this band that were never going to happen in any other one I’ve ever been in. In RRD I’ve played in lots of venues I’d never been to before, met lots of interesting people, contributed creative ideas that were actually taken seriously, and now we’re working on a studio recorded album. All new things to me.
5. Likewise, what has been some of the more challenging aspects and how have you overcome them?
Rev Rabbit: Stage fright and terminal shyness for me. It makes it difficult to give it your uninhibited all when you’re nervous. It is something that I am aware of and am taking steps to overcome it. Steps such as testing my patter at practices and trying it on the band.
Lee: Finding a suitable bass player. Personality and ability are key. It’s no good having a great player if he doesn’t gel.
Tim: Challenge has been getting up to speed with the rest of the band, but with patience and understanding from the others (and the odd cymbal case/ guitar cab being thrown at my head) I finally got there.
Max: For me, having been the drummer in most of my previous bands, and only having been a very basic rhythm guitarist before, switching to playing lead guitar for the first time has been a challenge. But I’ve learned a lot of things from doing so and it’s enabled me to become more creative with my style of playing.
6. How do you handle the modern expectations of being in a band? Always online, having to put out content constantly, your success measured in likes and follows?
Rev Rabbit: Luckily, I share the bulk of social interaction with Max. She is much better at it. The likes and follows are sometimes dispiriting. Music isn’t or shouldn’t be valued by popularity. All the world’s biggest bands began with zero followers.
Lee: I get Digital stress lol.
Tim: Sometimes it’s hard, knowing that, whatever you do, it’ll never be enough. The public will always want more, more I tell you! And when you give them more it only raises their expectations further. And then you’re locked into a death spiral of content creation and consumption that just leaves everyone bitter and jaded, and you’re reduced to a husk of the idealist that once set out with the pure and simple aim of creating music. But I think I handle the pressure quite well, all things considered.
Max: When I first started playing in bands, MySpace was a brand new thing. Bands went from gaining followers of fans via there but there was still more emphasis on creating newsletters, selling tapes and CDs at gigs and just flyposting every available surface you would find outside. Now there’s so much more pressure to spend all your time on social media every day and nobody wants to pay musicians for putting their music online. But every band has to be willing to move with the times or they get left behind.
7. What’s something that really ‘grinds your gears’ about the industry/business these days and what would you propose is done to combat it?
Rev Rabbit: Gatekeepers are my biggest gripe. I’m not good at socialising due to my Aspergers, so I flunk at making inroads with people who are busy and need you to tell them what you need/want immediately. Also the devaluation of original music as an artform. No other artform is expected to give away their art completely free. It’s a struggle to get a fiver off some people for an album that took over a year to rehearse, record and produce. It can be soul destroying at times. Sadly, I can’t see beyond those issues to a solution.
Tim: The struggle that live venues are facing. It’s really depressing to think that there is a very narrow sliver of venues that remain viable. Only 2 weeks ago a brilliant venue in Cardiff closed down, leaving only a handful left. There has to be a space for live music to thrive in our cities and towns.
Lee: Lack of audience at small gigs.
Max: There’s very little government funding being channeled into the grassroots music industry these days. Amazing venues are being shut down everywhere as they can’t afford to stay open, bands get almost nothing from streaming services and have to rely more on selling merch more than anything else. Music seems to be the least valued of all the art forms and that has to change. Pay musicians for the work they create and give to you!
8. Speaking directly to listeners – what would you ask they do to help support your music?
Rev Rabbit: Please, if you like us, buy a CD. Chat with us. We are very approachable. We thrive on contact.
Lee: Come to gigs. It’s our lifeblood.
Max: If you like what we do, go to the gigs, pay for the music, like our social media pages, share our posts. If you do see us play live, don’t be afraid to come over and say hi to us afterwards.
9. Outside of the music, what do you do to relax?
Rev Rabbit: Sadly, very little I do is outside of music. I’m either listening to it (Pixies, XTC, Beatles, Smashing Pumpkins) or writing it. But at a pinch, football. I’m a big Newport County fan. Sci-Fi films such as the Alien franchise and the awesome Peter Jackson’s Get Back documentary are also great distractions.
Lee: Gaming, sitting in my Hot Tub.
Max: I am a bit of a nerd and I like to chill and play games. Sometimes I read. And I like to listen to all sorts of music. The rest of the time I silently scream into the void.
10. Where can people find you?
Lee: Sitting on my bed gaming or outside in my Hot Tub lol.
Rev Rabbit: We are easy to find. Just follow these links.
LinkTree | Website | Bandcamp | Spotify | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube
