'5 Questions With': RHUMBA CLUB
"'Video Game' was born out of a difficult but kind of funny conversation with Mikko. About one quarter of the way working through this record, he pleaded with me to ‘forget the politics for a bit’ and just ‘write some songs about love, sex and dancing’."
Meet Rhumba Club - aka Tom Falle. The Jersey-born, London-based artist has been busy composing music for fashion giants Hermes and Fendi and touring the UK supporting Molchat Doma, all whilst working on his sophomore album. Now, ahead of his album release later this year, he is back with synth-pop banger ‘Video Game’, produced by Grammy-nominated producer Mikko.
Equate caught up with them for our quick fire ‘5 Questions With’ profile.
EQ: Hey, thank you for your time! How did you find your signature sound?
RC: My initial ambition was to combine an 80’s pop aesthetic with very English, sardonic lyrics. Pairing synth brass licks with brutal takes on our culture was the (admittedly ambitious) goal. My track ‘Normativity’ kind of epitomised this.
I’ve moved on from that now - it was fun but started to feel a bit culty. So today, for my upcoming record, the lyrics are a bit more universal, whereas the music element embraces more offbeat influences. For instance, I’ve really leaned into early new wave artists on this record - Talking Heads, late 70s Bowie, Yellow Magic Orchestra. Less camp, more grit. But the tunes have fairly big, simple choruses, concerned with your standard pop topics. That was Mikko’s influence (executive producer). He encouraged me to push the soundscape, and relax the lyrics.
EQ: You’ve got a headline show at The Lower Third soon, what can your fans expect from a Rhumba Club gig?
RC: I’ve always felt a show should be primarily about the audience. So I endeavour to entertain, first and foremost. But I will only play a few ‘greatest hits’ from the past this time - and will be unashamedly leaning in to the new record. Yes, there will still be a saxophone and synthesisers, but I’ve wanted a shake up for some time, and now is the moment! We’ve added some live bass guitar, some live percussion etc. A more organic feel. Style has changed too. Less shorts, less all-white combos, more suiting. Think three Bryan Ferry’s and an agogo.
EQ: Can you talk us through your recent single ‘Video Game’?
RC: ‘Video Game’ was born out of a difficult but kind of funny conversation with Mikko. About one quarter of the way working through this record, he pleaded with me to ‘forget the politics for a bit’ and just ‘write some songs about love, sex and dancing’. So, whilst listening to a lot of Herbie Hancock, I searched around for the best video game-based innuendos I could find. I ended up touching upon slightly dark ideas concerning virtual reality-based relationships, but ultimately it’s just a song about good old-fashioned sexual desire.
I tried to create a really disciplined late-70s palette. Juno’s & Prophets, congas and bongos, dry snares (we avoided gated reverb at all costs) and a really persistent bass groove. Then I layered the groove with lots of miniature pentatonic riffs, on different keyboards, Herbie-style. We have a Rhodes here, we have a Minimoog Model D there…gentle bits of audio-candy that gradually build until our ‘orgasm’ section in the middle. Yes, we went there.
Originally the track had a more contrasting chorus hook, but Mikko encouraged me to relax and stick with the same riff throughout. So, I did.
EQ: It comes with a great music video too, what sparked the idea and how involved are you with the creative direction overall ?
RC: Thanks for watching! I’m obsessed with Athens. It has a unique combination of some the most beautiful architecture in the world, and Soviet-era industrial blocks. It has a kind of grubby romance which I thought was a good representation of the record - songs about love that are a bit off-kilter. It also has an interesting, growing queer scene. So I rang up the videographer (Charlie Pryor) and said, right lets go RyanAir for £60 on the 5am from Stansted - pack your camera. The ‘Video Game’ video was suitably set outside the now defunct Athens Pinball Museum. I did my research.
The ideas were mine, but they were executed by Charlie. On the day I just left him to direct me and focussed on the state of my hair. I don’t like to be a backseat driver on set and wanted to make the most out of his creativity. He killed it.
EQ: What else have you got going on this year?
RC: I have 2 more singles before album drops in June. The singles get gradually more poppy - I think? And I have a headline on 24th March at The Lower Third in London. Come down!
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