Luke Rainsford is a solo acoustic artist from the midlands drawing from influences such as Aaron West & The Roaring Twenties, The Front Bottoms and Sorority Noise.
The acclaimed sophomore album I Feel At Home With You sold out five-hundred vinyl copies of vinyl across three variants, and now Rainsford is returning with the sensational new EP I Just Don’t Deserve To Be Loved.
I Just Don’t Deserve To Be Loved sees Rainsford outdo himself once again, blending new musical textures to form a record of remarkable depth. The six-track EP welcomes the listener back to the melody-rich soundscape enriched by Rainsford’s strikingly intimate lyricism.
Rainsford has played countless shows around the UK in support of his previous records, sharing the stage with artists like The Hotelier, The Gospel Youth and WSTR and developing a dedicated and welcoming fanbase.
I Just Don’t Deserve To Be Loved releases physically and digitally through Scylla Records on April 6th.
Check out Sweet Briar, from the upcoming EP below!
We managed to catch up with Luke as he talked about the upcoming EP and more!
So how pumped are you for the release of your EP ‘I Just Don’t Deserve To Be Loved’
I’m so excited, I’ve sat on these songs for a long time, so it’s going to be so satisfying to finally show people what I’ve worked so hard on!
Can you tell us a little bit more about the EP and how you came up with the name?
The EP is about my Mum passing away, but more specifically it is about how I coped with it. A lot of the EP is based around the months afterwards, where I was really struggling with my mental health whilst trying to balance a normal life around everything going on. The title stems from how I felt around the time my Mum passed, mostly because I was away and touring/recording a lot for the last couple of months of her life, so it’s an EP from a place of guilt, regret, and trying to feel better about my past and the person I was.
So your first single to be released on the EP is Sweet Briar, why did you choose to release this first?
This song is just super catchy, and I feel it’s the track most similar to my previous work. The rest of the EP I feel is pretty different, but this song is a nice transition between my two sounds. Also I just think it’s super catchy, and I’m hoping people enjoy the new vibe of it.
If you could work with any band or artist on a new song, who would it be and why?
I would love to work with Sam Little from The Gospel Youth, I’ve played a couple of shows with him and his voice is incredible, plus we get on really well. If I was choosing my dream artist it would have to be Dan Campbell from The Wonder Years, just because he’s pretty much the reason I starting writing my own songs.
Will you be touring at all in 2018 in support of the EP or any festivals planned?
Yes! I have a couple of tours being planned, and some really cool festivals bigger than anything I’ve ever played being worked out. I can’t say much yet but I’m so so excited for what this year is gonna bring me.
If you could play at any venue in the world where would it be and why?
I’d love to play Chain Reaction one day – I’d also love to play the Brixton Academy for obvious reasons. Honestly though I love playing smaller venues more than anything – small but busy no barrier shows make me happier than anything.
What was the first gig you went to as a kid?
My family was super broke when I was growing up, so I didn’t go to my first show until I was 16. It was Blink-182 in Birmingham, which at the time was mind blowing to me.
Were you ever in a band before or have you always wanted to be a solo artist?
I was and still am in a band called Layover! I started doing solo stuff just on the side, and then Layover broke up and my solo stuff started doing really well. Recently though Layover got back together and we’re releasing some new stuff over the next few months, so I’m really busy with my solo stuff and band stuff too, it’s a fun time!