Sam Ryder joins The Independent for a candid interview, opening up about the heartbreak and raw emotion behind his latest music. He reflects on the “open, raw wounds” left by breakups and how songwriting became a form of release.
Catch Sam’s unforgettable Music Box session, where he delivers powerful, stripped-back performances of his latest releases, “OH OK” and “Armour” – available to watch on YouTube and Independent TV.
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the deepest misery you ever feel is like post breakup At the time of writing Armor it was really fresh and like the wounds were uh like open you know and raw And I was in the studio writing that um a few days after and it just sort of it came out at that point from uh from myself thinking that I was writing this to that person like saying if you could hear the song this is how I feel and this is what I think about you and I was singing this thing for the first time and I was like “Wow.” Like I didn’t realize the song was actually to me So it was really interesting moment I’ve never had that with a song before [Music] Sam thanks so much for doing music in box It was brilliant Smashed it So this is two new songs Um so you got Oh okay Yes Yeah So we talk about that one first Okay Let’s talk about that one It’s sort of about well it’s not sort of it’s completely about the uh what I call the postgame of a relationship that’s ended So um I kind of took uh I don’t know influence from being dumped in the past which has happened to a lot of us We can all um speak for yourself Yeah Many times just been booted to the side But that feeling right of when you’re kind of you’re both you’re so close and then all of a sudden you’re not anymore but both of you are so in each other’s heads that you’re trying to make each other jealous from afar And it’s kind of it is this uh real rush to be as blas as possible about the whole thing that used to mean so much Um but not just being blas and not caring to yourself in your own world You have to put that on show because otherwise how are they not going to like it’s like a competition and it’s like who’s winning more at life now when not to get there sort of thing Exactly So I like that you kind of worked in this quite like kind of petty nature because I don’t think that’s anything that people would associate you with Oh well petty So yeah like then you wrote this and this was based on like a real thing and then was it cathartic to write It was Yeah Yeah Um it was kind of I don’t know You never forget those moments right like no matter how long ago they happened and we’re going back like 13 plus years that this happened But I sort of I don’t know I find it fun to write I’ve never been dumped since Right I can’t say it’s like a karma Yeah Yeah Yeah So um but yeah like looking back um like I’m stoked to have been with my partner now for like 12 13 years basically Um but yeah drawing on memories before that has been interesting to write from Yeah Um it’s clearly been at the back of your mind for a while to get this out It stays with you because you see it in in other facets of your life They’re not romantic They’re like completely platonic Whether it’s like working relationships or um what we’ll talk about with the next song Arma like uh friendships or like working relationships breaking down you kind of still operate in that same manner Like it’s very much like I must let people know that I’m doing fine And not just people but that person has to know and they’re thinking the same thing And it’s it’s just a um this portion of humanity that all of us have I don’t think anyone transcended that No no no I think we’ve definitely all been there And I think also probably especially like in the internet age when you can post up to like you know the filtered Instagram No Problem like stalking is so easy these days Just lurking lurking in misery Exactly So anyway no it’s brilliant and again super relatable I think And it’s kind of Yeah I think it’s fun for fans I imagine to kind of see like a slightly different side of you Armor which is like the B side Yeah this is like super serious one you know Um no Armor is about resentment and yeah a lot more visceral and uh less maybe playful than Oh okay But then again okay still although it’s portrayed in a playful manner it’s not to say that those instances when you’re in them aren’t really painful Like when I I look back to those moments it’s like the the deepest misery you ever feel is like post breakup when when you you’ve been with someone that means a lot to you and um and just anything like that All of us can relate to that feeling So it’s not to sort of I don’t know minimize that but armor is um about resentment which is like something that you carry and it it’s a different kind of pain I think it’s and it’s a bit more it’s d more dangerous I think or can be it’s kind of like vengeful almost Yeah Because it can um like the sort of I don’t know falling out of love with someone or losing love before you wanted to lose it is is a sadness but it’s um you know it’s not as pointy or sharp as resentment and resentment like feeds on you way more So Amo is about a relationship that I had with someone in my life I won’t go into details because it wouldn’t be right but um that I no longer have but it was at the time of writing Armor it was really fresh and like the wounds were uh like open you know and raw And I was in the studio writing that um a few days after and it just sort of it came out at that point from uh from myself thinking that I was writing this to that person like saying if you could hear this song this is how I feel and this is what I think about you It’s like a song in my mind of pointing a finger You definitely get that vibe I think it’s like super direct you know And but it’s so interesting right Because when I was singing this thing for the first time and I was like “Wow like I didn’t realize the song was actually to me.” Because me pointing the finger and essentially how I felt when I was writing the song it wasn’t true All of those lyrics are about like my resentment and like essentially me taking poison and waiting for someone else to die Not literally but do you know what I mean But sort of like accusatory but then almost kind of like turning it inwards and like being yourself Me even putting the energy into this is a show of my resentment which that person isn’t car I don’t know what that person’s doing but presuming that they’re carrying this resentment when actually it’s completely me Like I’ve put the time in sat down written something got something off my chest which is basically just resentment manifest onto a page So um it was very interesting like mid song just going “Oh my god like this.” Yeah there must be a world like after you’ve written it and mid- performance where you’re suddenly like kind of Yeah And like just singing the line like um take off all that armor you can’t carry all that weight Like that was meant to be me saying it to this person but I’m like I this I can get rid of this if I want I don’t need this resentment I can’t like the burden or like anything Exactly So it’s really interesting moment Never had that with a song before and it was um it was quite magic actually just feeling that like cuz you know sometimes you can sing music and go through the motions and it’s like it’s the worst thing ever You know never want to reach that point as a singer like you always want to try and tap into the feeling and and be in flow with it But this seems to kind of reflect like a kind of wider period of creativity for you cuz you’re out in Nashville now You got your studio working on an album Yes Yeah All very exciting And then you just announced this big Wembley Arena show which is really exciting How are you feeling to that one I will and I promise like near the exit or the bar Please don’t do that to me But yeah just like message your publicist like tell me where machine’s sitting Yeah Yeah Yeah God bust for that Yeah Wembley Um I uh remember seeing my first ever show there My first ever time seeing a gig in my life was at Wembley Arena since some 41 Oh amazing Does this infected tour whipping out and um like I I remember picturing in my mind when I got the tickets as like I don’t know even how I would have got a it must have been like my parents would have got me tickets and probably put them in a birthday card or something like that you know Yeah I remember thinking oh what it’s going to be like and it was in my mind I’m not kidding It was like a living room but like a big living room where everyone would sit in a circle like a school assembly and they’d be there and you could talk to them or just like like say “Oh play this song.” So you disappointed when you were like when I turned up 20,000 people away from a little mouse in London for the first time just like what the like thinking I was so far back It’s kind of a world feeling that you’re now going to be like on that stage though and thinking like maybe there’s some people in the audience hopefully not thinking the same having gone to the gig like I thought Sam Ryder was going to be in my living room outraged but I’ve still got the um I like I framed the tickets like years ago cuz it was like to be honest all I was like a bit of an anorak that like I’d always keep all the tickets to shows and put them in little frames and I’ve still got that some 41 one and I’ve got the seat number that I was in so I’m going to leave something under that’s really sweet Yeah Nothing delicious just something nice under the chair So if you live in anywhere around the country and want to come and see us play that’s going to be our like our biggest show this year which I’m And if you’re in a certain seat well check under the seats Yeah check I mean like yeah be careful Something it wasn’t me left in there Um and then new music So what can you give an idea of like what fans can expect from Yes So um the the whole sort of genre and uh I guess color of the record is what I’m calling Frontier Soul which is um definitely not something kind of like inventing a new genre by any means It’s just combining things in my life that I love which is old westerns scores from like this certain era of Hollywood Um so we’re talking about kind of like the good the bad the ugly and kind of like that spaghetti western kind of thing as well So like yeah a lot of those westerns when they were filmed overseas as well like to save money which is such an interesting part of that history But um the way that they’re filmed the the color grading the scores the like even just me and my granddad watching them over and over again together like and still do is a real big part of my life and it’s a a like part I really look fondly on and enjoy and then mixing that with soul music which I’ve always enjoyed singing Um so it’s kind of like the frontier aspect isn’t just kind of this hangum high tarantino thing It’s like what does frontier mean And it’s so like a boundary line which you haven’t explored or crossed and and uh it’s like exploration really So I feel like music not to get too wafty about that stuff but you know what it is it you kind of you do have to push your boundaries and and make stuff that you um you know you feel connected to and I think that that is a certain way that you can explore as um was an artist like but cringe toes are curling in my shoes as I’m saying this but I know you you understand what I mean without making you know what you kind of have previously been doing I think you know fans would be I think totally understanding and not also not disappointed at all if you’ve been doing like a similar sound like maybe more into like the rock side of things but I think it’s really lovely that you are kind of pushing yourself into this new thing and also it just suits your voice so well like that kind of soulful kind of I’m so what I can do on the next record as well like I’m I’ve been listening to tons of bands that um I hadn’t dug back into for years like Propagandi like amazing Canadian punk band who I used to listen to tons they’ve just actually put a record out but in listening to it I’m like “Ah I remember making stuff like this like in 2014 and stuff like that just in my shed and it’d be cool one day to pick up the thread on that.” And like really the sky’s is the limit You just because you make like one album doesn’t mean like the first album like this album’s nothing like it But that’s freeing like to think that um we’re certainly living in an era of music creation where you you don’t have to be pigeonholed and you don’t have to pigeon hole yourself if you don’t want to 100% you can make a lot of different stuff So yeah buzzing about that So tickets for your tour on now Yes And Armor and Okay Also out now man You know absolutely 100% more than I do That’s right Well Sam it’s been really lovely catching up with you Thanks for coming on Thanks for music box Please rest it Peace
1 Comment
Such a lovely guy 👍