The Bite Magazine - Spring 2016 - Issue 15

New Single Releases bitenewmusic T hese days it seems that you no longer hear of groups combining different genres of music so it was refresh- ing to hear ‘Hard to See Her Soul’ by Family Ranks. This seven-piece collective fuses soul, hip-hop, electronica, reggae and future soul. It doesn’t seem to matter whether they’re in the studio or performing on stage, the group is known for taking their listeners on a journey through lush expansive compositions, dark hard-hitting grooves and euphoric festival anthems. Family Ranks is made up of James Gill and Ruby-Ann Patterson on vocals; Tom Barber-Redmore on vocals and acoustic guitar; Liam Morson on key- boards/synths; Jake Stentiford on electric guitar; BenWhitfield on bass; and Laurie Agnew on drums. The group formed in 2014 when session band House of Lords joined forces with two of Manchester’s sharpest song- writers Ruby-Ann Patterson and James Gill. Jake Stentiford revealed how the formation came together, “A few of us had been performing as a session band under the name House of Lords since 2011/2012. Originally we played as the house band for a Manchester music showcase called All About Good Music which did regular gigs at the famous jazz club Matt and Phreds. The aim of the night was to provide a platform for local soul, R&B and hip-hop artists to perform a selection of their music with a live band. It ran for several years and featured a few artists who have since gone on to big things such as Daley and Shakka. Through this night we first met and played with James Gill and also saw Ruby-Ann play for the first time.” Singer Ruby-Ann Patterson explained how the song-writing process goes: “I suppose that the stories behind our music reflect a lot of what is going on in our own lives. We tend to write collectively in the comfort of some- one’s living room, often Ben and Tom’s because we like his cat. I tend to bring stuff I’ve been working on, poetry and verses. Sometimes we will just write completely fresh. It all depends on the vibe of the day” while James Gill revealed the story behind the song:“’Hard to See Her Soul’ is about a girl I used to go out with who slept with a celebrity and the story ended up in the papers. She was emotionally scarred from the experience and had confidence issues which she concealed and tried to cover up with make-up and clothes. I wanted to help her be free from it all but I was battling my own demons as well at the time.” Family Ranks’ brand new EP Speak Up featuring the single was produced by Mark Lewis at Giant Wafer Studios in Wales and will be released worldwide on Matchbox Recordings with distribution from Universal Music Operations on 11 April 2016. FAMILY RANKS Hard To See Her Soul