We recently had the pleasure of chatting with a great band we think you guys would love. A talented group of guys from the U.K., Ste McNally, Paul Garrett, Johno, Stevie B, and Craig Smith make up 10 Reasons To Live. They're a pop/rock band that's received international acclaim and gained the love of fans all over the world. About to release their new album, the guys talk about their past with BBMAK, their hopes for an upcoming tour, and what fans can expect from them next.
Check out the interview here:
PopCityLife: Hey guys! First off, thank you for taking the time to answer some questions for us.
How did you guys come together as a band?
10 Reasons To Live: It was quite a long process but quite natural. We've all known each other for years. Paul and John joined forces first, both from rival bands, and we actually stole Ste b from another band as he was so good. Craig stepped in one day when our old drummer broke his leg and fitted in so much he's still around and Ste Mak ...well we actually both auditioned for the same manager years and years ago but we turned it down haha. That band turned out to be BBMAK. We've been friends ever since. It's really nice the way everything's gone full circle. Couldn't ask for a better bunch of lads.
PCL: How did you come up with the name?
10RTL: We never actually..it was our old producer Ste Erickson. It was suggested as the name of our first album. We did use it as our album title but liked it so much we used it for the band name as well.
PCL: For someone who hasn't heard your music before, how would you describe your sound?
10RTL: We've gone through a lot of different phases in our lives and I'd say our music reflects that. Our music describes us. Come see us live you'll see what I mean.
PCL: What was the process for your first album CityLife like?
10RTL: The album was basically writing itself for years. We were playing quite a lot of the songs live so it was quite an easy process to record. We spent a lot of time on production as we're all perfectionists. We did every bit ourselves apart from mastering. Hard work, lots of fun, and many many arguments.
PCL: How's the new album coming along? Would you say it differs in sound or direction at all from CityLife?
10RTL: Yeah we're really close to finishing now, just at the perfectionist stage haha so god knows how long that will take. I'd say its a big change in direction, there's not much rock, it's certainly a lot lighter. Again I'd say its a reflection of our lives right now.
PCL: What can you tell us about the new album?
10RTL: Well the title is still up for grabs. We have a few to choose from. There's 10 tracks as usual and a few guest musicians also.
We will also be releasing on iTunes this time around.
PCL: We love your Christmas single Christmastime. What made you want to release holiday music as well?
10RTL: We were fed up of hearing dance remixes and big X Factor ballads at Christmas time. We wanted someone to release a good old fashioned Christmas song and no one did so we decided to give it a go. We didn't want to be clever just traditional.
PCL: How has the fan support been since you guys started out?
10RTL: We've had great support from the day we began and we really appreciate that. We watched a lot of our fans grow up and have families etc. and that's a great experience to share. A lot of the old BBMAK fans have been very supportive as well.
PCL: Do you have any plans to tour? I've seen a bunch of messages from fans hoping for one.
10RTL: We would love to tour but it's just hard to make it happen. I think it would have to be a support tour of some sort as we've played every toilet and hell hole in Britain twice and don't fancy that kind of tour again haha. Although it did make us a far better band, I mean we couldn't play drunk before J.
PCL: What else can fans look forward to from you? What else are you guys working on?
10RTL: At the moment everything is revolving around the new album. A new website will follow as well as pictures and a video for the first single from the album. We've already started writing for the next album, but before we start that one we want to get out and play some shows.
We want to thank the band for taking the time to answer some questions for us. We really appreciate it!
If you haven't already, be sure to check out their website here
You can also follow them on Twitter and Facebook
If fans would like to see the guys on tour, let them know! Maybe a Kickstarter is a good place to start.
Interview by: Noelle Gruber and Stephanie Coffey
