Ruins are: Lloyd Rock (vocals & drums) and Nik Kavanagh (bass & synth).
Existing somewhere between dream and memory, the lyrically enchanting songs of Ruins present a melodic honesty, as joyous and melancholic as the human heart.
Recorded in Liverpool’s Crosstown Studios, the duo’s intimate storytelling takes the listener on an ethereal reminiscence through an emotive landscape of lives past and futuristic nostalgia. Atmospheric noisescapes centre around minimal synth and drum machine arrangements, underpinned by brooding basslines.
The duo at the core of these sonic snapshots are the soaring falsetto vocals of Lloyd Rock, with songwriter Nik Kavanagh – formerly bassist with John Peel session regulars Ella Guru – providing the musical foundation for the band’s moody sound.
Nik says: “I became weary of creating songs in the acoustic singer-songwriter format and wanted to try something different with these songs. Having been inspired by The Durutti Column and The Cure I essentially set about creating and recording textured instrumentals with some rough sketches for melody lines. I’d then pass these recordings to Lloyd who would then come back to me with these stunning melodies.”
Lloyd says: “A drunken conversation here, the passing of time there, but when Nik was ready and showed me his demos, I became instantly inspired. Lyrical and melodic ideas that had been waiting in my notebook had found a voice…and I liked it. Where ever there is mood, I’m soon to follow.”
Ernest and poetic, Ruins deliver emotive landscapes contained in an existential chrysalis. Featuring themes of love, loss and hope, these tunes are a joyous earful from start to finish. Clocking in at 29 mins, Ruins’ debut release ‘Sample Size’ is here.
For fans of: The Cure, Suede and Young Marble Giants.
Twitter @HouseOfBanality
