Pop punk quartet The Young & Restless are all set to release their brand new single release Family Values. For fans of New Found Glory and The Wonder Years, the band’s sound echos a lot of different influences both old and new.
Digging deep with their new material The Young & Restless definitely get to know their emotional side with this new release but the music is still full throttle right from the get go. So if you like music your music to be about feelings, combined with punchy beats and harmonic guitar licks, then The Young & Restless are definitely for you. We caught up with the band as they talked about their upcoming single and more!
So how pumped are you for Family Values?
We are pretty frickin’ stoked! It definitely emphasises the progression of the band, despite the fact that unfortunately our front man Sam left the band a short while ago, he had a big part to play in making the new song what it is – so Sam if you’re reading this now, thank you! But this is only the start of even more newer, exciting things to come!
Can you tell us something about the single that no one else knows?
For those that haven’t heard it yet, it’s pretty much full throttle right from the beginning to end, both lyrically and musically, it’s about the trials and tribulations of a typical broken home all wrapped up into about 3 and a half minutes, this may sound cliché but it’s without a doubt one of the best songs we’ve ever done.
Will you be releasing another an EP/Album this year?
We’re actually in talks about planning our debut album – you heard it firsthand straight from the horses mouth! We already have 2 EPs out, we’re constantly writing at the moment, we practice every week and every time one of us brings something new to the table, it’s really exciting! We’ll probably release another single later this year which will follow with the debut album, so yeah…keep your eyes peeled!
If you could work with any band on a new song, who would it be and why?
“Who Saves The Hero?” – a Welsh based pop punk band, we toured with these guys back in March and they were an absolute pleasure and honour to work with, some of the nicest, most talented guys you’ll ever meet, their music is so fast paced, melodic and catchy, we definitely feel that we’d bounce off each other with ideas if we were to ever work together.
Will you be touring at all this year?
We have some shows and some little weekenders booked for this summer, we’re also in the process of sorting out some more shows up and down the country, so if you’re from or live near, be sure to catch us on any of the following dates:
Sun 24th June – The Slaughtered Lamb, London
Fri 6th Jul – Mulberry Bar & Venue, Sheffield
Sat 7th Jul – The Shed, Leicester
Fri 3rd Aug – The Hyst, Swansea
Sat 4th Aug – The Grapes, Hereford
Sun 5th Aug – The King Billy, Northampton
What was the first gig you ever went to?
Ali – The first gig I ever went to was Killswitch Engage at the Carling Academy (now O2 Academy) in Birmingham, this was around the time I was mad into Metal music – and still am! Such an amazing, solid and flawless band live, the key highlight was when they first came on stage, Adam one the guitarists came on in a pink sparkly cowboy hat and denim hot pants, it was both interesting and very humorous!
Adam – The first gig I went to was a band called heavens basement at the vault in rugby. Great venue shame that it’s shut down now but great for the kind of venue it was.
Hardy – I was such a nerdy emo kid back in the day and I begged my brother to take me to see Bullet For My Valentine at Cambridge Corn Exchange. The show was awesome and I was singing my little 12 year old heart out while my brother and his fiends watched like normal people.
What got you into music in the first place?
Ali – While I was growing up I was very influenced by what my dad, my brothers and my sisters would listen to, they all had an extensive collection of CDs and records, from Motown, to 50s/60s rock n roll, old school heavy metal, hip hop, rap, R&B, garage…pretty much anything! They all had an open mind when it came to music.
I often would rummage through each of their collections, but one day, I found one particular CD that stood out the most, it was the single for blink-182 – All The Small Things, gave it a spin, absolutely blew my mind…I would spin that on repeat day in day out, it was the beginning of wanting to start something similar…
So I got into playing the drums! Then I thought I’d broaden my horizons and start to learn guitar, never went back to the drums ever since, if I did I’d be even shitter than I did to start with, a drunk octopus would be a better drummer than me!
Adam – Simply going along to gigs and watching the chemistry between bands on stage and taking into account the talent and the way how musicians play their instrument/s. I was heavily inspired!!
Hardy – My dad has always been a big fan of people like Paul Simon and Prince and he always encouraged me to sing along with him. That’s when I started to love music. Friends of mine would start playing instruments and I wanted to learn too. My brother started playing bass and I was amazed but at the same time annoyed because he would always tease me saying he was so cool because he played bass. So I did one better and picked up the guitar, best decision I ever made! I practiced and practiced and here I am now!
What do you get up to in your spare time when not working on music?
Ali – Simply just chilling with my family and friends, seeing my girlfriend Samii – of whom has been so incredibly supportive of our band, given us shows as she’s a promoter too, and genuinely keeping my head straight, I wouldn’t know what I’d do without her.
Adam – Anything I do is practically something to do with music whether it’s jamming on the drums by coming up with new ideas if not probably writing riffs on the guitar. In addition, probably spend time doing some travelling and getting competitive over video games.
Hardy – I’m still that nerdy kid dude! I play video games, read comics and sleep. I don’t think I’ll ever grow up!