The Razz & The Rose On Their New Gig Film and The Falmouth Grassroots Scene

Seth White

Drummer first and foremost, but will happily give an opinion on anything rock, indie and punk related.

Following the release of their new gig film, we caught up with The Razz & The Rose about their process and the Falmouth scene

The weather may be dull here at the minute, but I can assure you the venues of Falmouth are a warm safe-haven from the harsh climate, offering quality performances from an array of acts, almost every night of the week. One of these fabled groups, The Razz & The Rose, are no strangers to the scene.

I recently caught up with lead singer and keyboard player, Noah Rose, about the launch of their Cornish Bank headliner gig film and the Falmouth music scene in general, in order to provide you with a peek into this lively scene of up and coming musicians.

Your Halloween headliner gig video is out in full for the world to see! From my understanding, this gig was fully organised by yourselves, which is quite an achievement. Can you elaborate on the sheer amount of work it took to get all of this together?

We were very intent on orchestrating the event independently, especially considering it was our first headliner. I have experience as an event coordinator, and we collectively have a very clear aesthetic and vision for our projects.

I love the logistics of it all, from the concept to realizing it. It was a huge amount of work pulling all the strings together: from The Bank administration to the bands, the film crew to the audio team. It was so satisfying seeing our hard work turn into a night that brought genuine fun and enjoyment to everyone involved.

You put on the gig with local comrades Ducks, Redrø, and The Dollies – can you give us some insight on the overall vibe of the night and what it’s like being able to work alongside these guys?

We knew early on who we wanted to play with; a variety of compelling sounds that would complement our stylistic diversity. A few of us had just seen Ducks perform at The Bank and agreed it was the best show we’d seen in Falmouth. Their raw, unkempt energy mixed with the precision and tightness of their playing is truly otherworldly.

We met Redrø when we were their support act at Kings, and instantly became obsessed with their music. They have such powerful writing, and we knew their indie rock vibe would get the audience in the right headspace for the night. And lastly, The Dollies were a band that we had watched grow in the scene pretty rapidly, and were super glad to have them join in.

That combination of Indie Rock, Punk, Jazz, Funk, and Theatre created an electric energy the whole night. It was by far our best gig and the perfect headliner to start with. We really owe it to the incredible bands supporting us and the audience that could keep up with it all!

You guys were all sporting some brilliant outfits for the Halloween theme… now I want the exclusive scoop, who was the best dressed? Both out of the bands and in the audience!

We were shocked to see how far people went. They did NOT disappoint. We saw some incredible looks; The Joker, mimes, plenty of cowboys (near and dear to our hearts), and Borat! Pretty sure the winner was a girl dressed as a Pierrot clown and she absolutely killed it. The bands went all out as well!

Tesco Batman was a favorite, along with a few breaking bad costumes. From The Razz, we had three-ish Cowboys (Me, Jude, & Dylan), although I always wears some outlandish stuff, so I’m not sure that counts. Max looked badass in his Matrix look, and Jemma was stunning in her ‘Queen of Hearts’ rendition. We did however make a choice to not go TOO wild with our looks, as we wanted the music to really take center stage. It was definitely a blast to see everyone fully decked out though!

You’re beginning to make quite the name for yourselves in the Falmouth scene, could you guys give us some insight into the experience of being active in a creative space like Falmouth?

Falmouth has been such an incredible community and scene. We have really been welcomed into it, especially by other local bands. We all support each other; going to everyone’s gigs and I’ve had countless great conversations with members from Petra, Ducks, hedrott, you name it.

There really is a sense of neighbourly love between the musicians in all of these local bands, and we’re all so fortunate to share that. It’s pointless when bands get dramatic and damage the beauty of the art form. I’ve loved getting to see how differently musicians approach their craft, and all the unspoken dynamics between band members.

It’s an art, a business and psychology, and it’s truly fascinating. We’ve done quite a few ‘breakdown videos’ and interviews on our own YouTube channel, to try to express that hidden world that is live performance, and it was awesome to see how, even within our band, we view the music and the experience differently.

The Cornish Bank was your venue of choice for this gig, a community arts space that offers itself as a hub for artistic activity in Falmouth. Can you shed some light on how important grassroots venues are for promoting new artists?

The Cornish Bank was the setting for our first gig AND first headliner, and we’ve played there 5 times now. It, and other grassroots venues, are the reason we’ve been able to get our stuff out there. It is so vital that venues like that are kept around, infusing new and exciting life into the music industry. Our song ‘Tension’ is an anthem for grassroots venues, and trying to get people back out into the live music scene.

As a band who’s heavily inspired by the 70’s, we feel a true desire for experiencing music together in a way that streaming music can’t replicate. The live element of our band is what makes it so compelling, and we hope to get more people to go to these beautiful venues; to see us and see others.

Your set infuses everything from jazz, musical theatre, rock, and cowboy, which is a testament to your skills for one. What exactly is the process involved in you guys writing, practicing, and finalising your fusion ballads?

Our musical diversity is thanks to the range of backgrounds we all have. From Prince to Billy Joel, Vulfpeck to Roni Kaspi, we like a lot. As the band’s writer and composer, my keys-led writing style and personal flair provide the band with a very unique flavor. But the ‘sound’ of the band is 100% the combination of individual personalities and approaches of each member.

Jude’s rhythmic magic, Max’s mind-melting bass, and Dylan’s expressive guitar parts create the ‘Razz’ that makes us, while I view myself as gluing them together to form the ‘Rose’. And of course, the incredible ‘Bouquet’ members bring their personal spin to the songs. Our music blends individuality with collectivity, highlighting the personalities of everyone on stage, while also being intrinsically together.

A typical writing process starts in my flat, creating a skeleton for a new song: the chords, the basic rhythm, the lyrics, etc. Then, when it’s ready, it’s brought to the rehearsal space and the band bolsters it, rephrases it, and adapts, collectively, until it’s fully fleshed out. We are all improvisational artists, and that definitely gives it an ever-evolving energy. We don’t play it the same every night, which keeps us on our toes.

We used to call our genre ‘Con-fusion’; a play on the confusing fusion of sounds. And although our new genre of ‘theatrical fusion’ is a better description, we still love the confusing nature of our stuff. We embrace the initial hesitation of new listeners, and live for the moment they cave and lose themselves in the groove. We hope to see more diverse sounds get the spotlight, and generally inspire more ‘strangeness’ into the world.

The gig video is absolutely top-notch in terms of quality, both sonically and visually. How was the process of editing and pouring through all the footage you guys Collected?

We really appreciate that! When we spoke with Izzy Chedzey, of Topographic Live, we knew immediately that it was the right combination. Her approach to filming and dedication to doing it right spoke volumes throughout the process.

In terms of the audio, we knew Callie Jackson was the lady for the job. We had done some test recordings and set-ups with her, in-studio, and had a good plan of approach for the night. Obviously, with any live performance, there were hiccups and hurdles to jump, but we are incredibly thankful for her work. We can’t wait to share our music further.

As a final note, what’s next on the horizon for The Razz & The Rose, what can we expect and where can we expect to see it? If you don’t mind sharing of course…

Well, we’ve got an exciting schedule ahead of us! We’re crafting a line of gigs in Falmouth (and around Cornwall), are working on some secret projects, starting to record our first album, and… we’re going to give you a CLUNK Magazine exclusive 😉

We’re excited to announce that we’re working on our second-ever headliner, to celebrate our first anniversary! We’ll have plenty more information about it all in the coming weeks (on Instagram and our website), but we can let y’all know that it’s happening in late February. We’re incredibly excited about it.

Watch the live video below: