People often say that rock music is dead nowadays, but that’s clearly not true with bands like Rogue Angels sparking up the independent rock scene within the UK. The Welsh five-piece have recently emerged with their debut EP, Right Side of Midnight, showing a band with an undeniable rock and roll attitude, boundless energy and a fresh batch of anthemic rock songs, proving that Rogue Angels mean serious business. Find out more about the band below in our exclusive interview.
By Jane Howkins
How has your year been so far? Has anything particularly special happened for you as a band that you’d like to talk about?
It’s been really good, thank you. As for anything special, we’re close to finishing a full set of original material and we’ve finally produced our first EP, so it’s been really busy. The current line-up came together at the end of last year, and we were hoping for a great mix of creative characters. It’s turned out even better than we hoped, as we’ve developed such a strong friendship between us all. It’s fantastic.
Then, in January, we headed down to The Bedford in Balham, London, as we were nominated in the Best Band category at the annual Radio Wigwam Awards. We had an amazing time and it was a great experience for all of us.
You have a brand new EP out titled Right Side of Midnight. What can you tell us about the record?
It leans heavily into our classic rock and ’80s influences, although it was a bit of hard work to finish!
We wanted all the final band members to contribute to the EP. Ian and I initially decided to lay the tracks down using programmed drums and other parts, then we recorded the new band members as they came together. In hindsight, that just created more work than was necessary, as everyone was effectively retrofitting their parts to songs that had already been recorded.
They all did a great job, but it did make the mixing and mastering stage a little confusing at times. That said, it’s a great snapshot of where we are now, and all five tracks have become cracking live songs.
How has the reception been so far? All good I hope? It’s a cracking record!
Thank you so much! It’s doing really well for us so far.
It’s been featured regularly on local radio. Seven Year Itch won Rock Single of the Month on Wrexham City FM and was also one of the Singles of the Week on Chester’s Circl8 Radio. More importantly, it’s already helping us get gigs.
People are turning up to shows and singing along because they know the songs, and that’s a real buzz. It’s still early days, but we’re gaining confidence from the feedback every day.
Are there any plans to release any singles anytime soon?
We’ve released singles in the past under our previous name, Gung Ho, but we see You Talk Too Much, which we released a few months ago, as the lead single from this EP.
Right now, our focus is on getting out and playing live while promoting the EP as a complete body of work.
You’re from Wrexham in North Wales. What’s the local music scene like, and are there any local acts you’d recommend?
Wrexham is a really vibrant place at the moment. The football club, the documentary and the Hollywood connection have certainly put the town firmly in the spotlight.
One of the highlights of the year is Focus Wales, which brings together new and emerging artists from across the UK and beyond. We’re applying for next year because it’s become such an important event for discovering new music. Later in the year, we have Wrexfest, where venues across the town come together to host live music over an entire weekend. Both festivals create an incredible atmosphere and really showcase the creativity that’s thriving in the area.
As for local acts, we’d definitely recommend checking out The Royston Club, whose profile continues to grow. Also Gallops, whose sound is completely mesmerising; and Neck Deep, whose rise to international success has been inspiring for so many local musicians.
We’d also recommend our friends Orion Pax, as well as the punk bands Two Tonne Machete and Kicked In The Teeth. There are plenty of other artists across every genre pushing boundaries and creating something unique, and we’re proud to be a small part of that scene.
Who are your main musical influences as a band, and what have you been listening to recently?
We all bring different influences to the table, which is probably one of our biggest strengths.
Mike, our vocalist, has gone back to his early Foo Fighters albums. Daz, our drummer, is listening to Opeth and King’s X. Ian has Five Finger Death Punch on his MiniDisc player, Joe will have Metallica on, and Dom will have anything from Theatre of Tragedy to Mozart… I haven’t heard his new one, though!
As a band, our influences range from classic rock through to metal, so our playlists are always pretty varied.
Your song Liza earned you a nomination at Radio Wigwam’s 9th Annual Awards in London. How did that feel?
It was a brilliant experience. Unfortunately, our drummer Daz couldn’t make it, but the rest of us travelled down to London for the ceremony at The Bedford in Balham.
We met some fantastic bands, watched some great live performances and were genuinely honoured to be nominated in the Best Band category. The whole event gave us a huge confidence boost and reinforced our belief that our original music deserves to be heard.
There was also a nice local connection, as Two Tonne Machete, who won our category, have links to Mold, where we rehearse. One of the highlights of the evening was watching Scared of My Brother, a cracking band from Scotland, collect their award. Their reaction was so genuine and enthusiastic that everyone in the room was delighted for them.
Do you have anything exciting coming up this year?
Absolutely. We’re gradually building our live schedule while staying fairly local for now, but we’re genuinely excited about every show we’ve got lined up.
We’ll be appearing at the Up to 11 all-day event at the Late Lounge in Rhyl on 22nd August, followed by a show at G21 Bar in Chester on 26th September. We’ll also be supporting our good friends Orion Pax at the newly opened Deutsch’s Bar in Rhyl.
One date we’re particularly excited about is our support slot at the legendary Tivoli Venue. Bands such as Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Oasis have all played there, so stepping onto that stage will be a real buzz for us.
Do you perform live, and do you have any plans to tour the UK?
We’re definitely focusing on live performances now and we’re keeping things fairly local while we establish ourselves.
If our audience continues to grow, who knows where it might lead? At the moment, we’re simply enjoying the creative process, building our live reputation and looking forward to these first shows. Our sound has also evolved since Daz joined the band. His arrival has pushed us towards a heavier, more modern rock and metal sound that really suits us, and we’re excited to see where that takes us.
Any last words for the fans?
We’re incredibly excited for people to hear these songs in a live setting.
We’ve spent a long time writing, recording and rehearsing in the practice room, and while our rehearsal space owner, Bij, has created a fantastic atmosphere for us at his studio and rehearsal space at One Foot Studios in Mold, every band ultimately wants to get out in front of an audience.
We can’t wait to meet people, chat after the shows and finally share what we’ve been working on.
We’re ready, and it’s taken some hard work to get here, so we’re going to enjoy it!
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