Ready to meet one of Ireland’s most exciting bands? Enter Fruitz…

RECORD WEEKLY’S INTERVIEW WITH FRUITZ

Hello hello, how are we all?

James: Hey, I’m all good thanks.

Jacqueline: Great, thank you. Just enjoying the sun and looking forward to our next single from the EP to drop.

Adam: What’s the story? I’m great as well thanks!

Good stuff all round. So, how and when did you form Fruitz?

James: I think, officially, it was late 2017 at some stage — probably around this time in 2017, actually.

Adam: Yeah, as James said, back in 2017. But before then, we’d been practising and playing music together but not taking it seriously.

Jacqueline: Then I joined the lads about two years ago. They asked me along for a lil jam session and I just had so much fun playing music with them that I haven’t left since.

Ah excellent! What have been your biggest accolades to date since that point then?

James: I think releasing new music always feels like an achievement. The new EP will be massive for us, but for me, it’s all about the live scene. Selling out shows at home and in Liverpool have been the biggest accolades.

Jacqueline: Recording the EP and having Gareth Halliday on board for our artwork are pretty special for me.

Adam: Definitely. Though I’d also say recording in Windmill Lane Studios and supporting Louis Berry were also two great experiences!

If you could collaborate with any three other artists, who would they be?

James: I’d really like to work with Noel Gallagher; I reckon our writing styles would complement each other. But also Jake Bugg for the same reason. CamelPhat have done some cool stuff with Noel and Jake, so I’d like a bit of that, too.

Jacqueline: I’d say James Vincent McMorrow, Blossoms and Pillow Queens.

Adam: For me, Eminem, Nick Cave and Dolores O’Riordan (may she rest in peace).

A nice mix! How have you fared during the past year or so, since the pandemic broke out?

James: It’s not been great, has it? I’m not one to moan about it though, as everyone’s in the same storm. We’re in a better position than some people, so I guess we’re just grateful that we were gigging right up to lockdown — and for the fact we’ve been able to record an EP. Without the live scene stopping, I’m not sure if we’d have had the time or the chance to do it.

Jacqueline: Yeah, it’s been tough, but we’re very lucky that we were able to create throughout.

Adam: It’s been hard, yeah, but we’ve stayed motivated and busy as best we could and it worked out well. I actually feel the struggle at the beginning of lockdown made us closer as a band.

Tell us about your latest single, ‘Be Like This’.

James: I’d actually fought for this song to be released, against Adam and Jacko, for over a year and a half. It fell down in the pecking order for a while, but once we played it live and it had the effect on people that I knew it would, they came round to it going out. It’s my favorite song to play and I can’t wait to do it again.

Adam: ‘Be Like This’ is an exciting little ditty that is very enjoyable to play live, so I echo James now. The crowd really vibe with it. It has everything a great song should; a catchy chorus, infectious guitar sounds, gritty drum and bass. As it was also recorded in Windmill Lane studios in Dublin, we couldn’t have been happier with how it turned out.

Jacqueline: Yeah, I’m really enjoying the reaction to it so far. It’s one of those songs that just puts you in a good mood, I think. Loved making it and still love listening to it, so I can’t wait to play it live now that it’s out there.

What’s next in the plan for 2021?

James: The EP will be out soon and, until there’s a clearer picture of when we can play live again, it’s just gonna be back down to Fruitz HQ to cook up the next batch of releases. We’ve got so many more great songs to bring out.

Jacqueline: Keep churning out new music — that’s the key right now.

Adam: Yeah, our brand-new EP, ‘The Pits and The Glamour’, is what’s coming next. It’s very exciting for me and I can’t wait to hopefully play gigs before the end of the year. I miss the live scene so much and look forward to its return.

Lots in the pipeline then!

In the meantime, you can follow the band to keep up with all the latest over on Instagram, Facebook and Spotify now.