The Shires are set to release their forthcoming album – 10 Year Plan – on the 11th March. Here, we interview The Shires about the meaning of the record, their sonic evolution and the inspiration behind a selection of the tracks on the record.
Pre-save/pre-order the album here.
Hi, how are you guys? Good to see you guys again – congratulations on ‘I See Stars’ and all its success. It’s only a month out from the release of the full album, I know even though it’s been a decade, it must feel very different with every release?
Ben: Gosh, yeah 10 years sounds like less than a decade. We’re mega excited. You know, it feels like we’re kind of starting again,I don’t know what it is – the pandemic or just us, I’ve no idea. We’re genuinely and actually people are just really excited about it.
In some ways it must be nice to feel the nerves and excitement every time. I know you guys worked with Lindsay Rimes again on the production and in a lot of ways the sound does feel bolder and fresh on this record. Obviously you’ve released so many records, but was that a very conscious move to push to do something different?
Ben: Yeah, I think a lot of it was because I did a lot of it myself. I’ve always been okay doing demos, but I think that in the pandemic I really honed in and tried to be better. So it was that coupled with just letting go with the songwriting. I just wrote songs, I had this time to just write that I hadn’t had before. It wasn’t like the album needed to be done by a certain time, soI just wrote and wrote and then I really honed in on the demos. The difference between Crissie and I is I can really hear a song, where it’s going to go – she can’t always hear that which is not a criticism but just the difference. Lindsay obviously takes the sound to the next level and he makes it sound incredible, but the nuts and bolts, all the parts are there. I think maybe that kind of sound comes from me maybe not being technically as good as Lindsay. I’m not sure.
I just feel like there’s something so fresh about the record, like on ‘Wild Hearts’ and the groove on ‘Forever Tonight.’ It’s still you guys but with a twist.
Ben: Thank you. Yeah, my kids like ‘Wild Hearts.’
Children are sometimes the most critical, when they love a song you know you’re onto something.
Yeah definitely.
I know you wrote ‘I See Stars’ with the wonderful Jeff Cohen, can you talk a little bit about that? Was that a remote write and did you have to grapple with the wonders of Zoom co writing during the pandemic and navigating that?
Ben: Yeah, it was, usually writing is a crazy way to re-charge me. I did one Zoom session with a writer in Nashville and one in the UK. It was just the weirdest thing, I started playing on the piano and then, all of a sudden, they were much better piano players than me and then I couldn’t play it as well and sing it at the same time.
With that one with Jeff, I was sat right here. My studio is really high up in Hertfordshire, you can see all of the stars. I can’t remember who came up with the title, it felt like writers were holding on to hope, especially in the darkest days. I think with Zoom writing and with math session with Jeff, you have to be a bit more academic about it and you have to listen to each other as well. I love writing with Jeff and I was really excited that it was the first single because it’s a really uplifting song.
I guess the important thing is that you have both really invested in those relationships with people out in Nashville and that’s paid off now, you can revert to those relationships for your Zoom writes.
Ben: Yeah, definitely. Eric Pasley is supporting us on tour – I’m a huge fan of his – but I co-wrote ‘Bar Without You’ with him and Jennifer Wayne. I think, as Crissie said, we wouldn’t have had all the opportunities we’ve had before the pandemic, Eric and Jennifer and some of those guys would have been out on the road or we’d have had to go to Nashville.
Crissie: We knew Lindsay as we’d worked with him so many times in the past that we just completely trusted him. I mean I didn’t really get involved in the production side of it. I know Ben and Lindsay were talking on the phone most days, but he know how we wanted it to sound, we had that absolute trust knowing that he would deliver exactly what we love and we know that he gets us completely – it was a weight off.
It would definitely be harder to micro-manage over the internet too…
Exactly, we did the vocal here and I think it was a lot more relaxed. It wasn’t as time pressured to get them nailed in three weeks. We just decided to do certain songs, on Crissie’s vocal on ‘Forever Tonight,’ the production side was actually quite messy because I had the setting wrong at the time. When I listen to it, I can hear all the background noise and stuff and it’s all my fault, but actually that adds a bit of energy in a way.
You probably wouldn’t be able to hear it, it’s just noisier than it should be. On our third record though, I remember Lindsay had a tiny room at the time – he hadn’t had the huge success that he’s had now – and there’s a bit when there’s loads of fan noise, I think on ‘Stay The Night’ his family’s computer kept on going because it’s such a small room and so hot – you can only get so much removed from it, but that kind of makes the record.
It gives it character, like on all those old records back in the day… I was going to ask about ‘Plot Twist’ which is an easy stand-out from the record, can you talk about the creation of that song.
Ben: Yeah I wrote that with Beth McCarthy who’s a pop artist. I’ve known her for years, she was on The Voice. When she was 16 we did some shows with her, festivals and stuff, so we both know her. I’m so impatient, normally I chase an idea myself, I had ‘Plot Twist’ and had that chorus, instead of just trying to finish that one, I thought about who was the best person that I could finish the song with, giving the energy that it needs. Beth is younger and – to put this politely – a bit more emotionally driven maybe, than I am. I am emotionally dead now. (laughs) I’m so tired with the kids, but she really brought that lyric out. Vocally, she has this really intimate vocal and Crissie is great at embodying that energy and taking it to the next level.
Crissie: Yeah, she had the coolest vocal out there. I remember saying to Ben, I can imitate most people – that’s how I learned to do my singing, by learning off different artists, sort of copying them in a way. I can’t stop myself trying to pick up their traits, it’s just something that I do. I couldn’t really imitate her, it was so amazing what she did. Equally, it wouldn’t be me trying to copy somebody else completely. We still have that version that we can hear and she did an amazing vocal on it.
Ben: I was inspired at the time by the Miley Cyrus song ‘Angels,’ where the guitar is really scratchy and rubbish and Radiohead, of course. I don’t think I nailed it in terms of the same song, but that was the inspiration.
Well congratulations on the project, it’s something special, so we’re really excited for it to be unleashed on the world!
