When we caught wind of Ruby Haunt’s new album release accompanied by the news that they were coming through Europe to tour, it immediately made our ears perk up. It also made us question just how long it had really been since we’d spoken with the musical duo. It turns out quite a while.
The last time we’d had a proper conversation with Wyatt and Victor from RH we were heading to the printers with Volume V all the way back in 2019. With Volume XIII getting churned out as we speak it made us feel a little distant, and truth be told a little old. With the boys midway way through their global tour we somehow managed to pin them down for a few questions about their latest work and its current journey performing it across the world.
Can you give us an update on what you’ve both been up to since we last caught up with you guys for Volume V back in 2019? Has there been any big changes in your lives?
Wyatt: Since we last spoke we have put out three more albums and this new one we just released. Each album feels like a really good time stamp of where we were at the time and what we were inspired by. It’s always super nostalgic listening back to them. We’ve done a bit of touring on both coasts of the US. We are now playing as a five piece now and feel like we can really do the songs justice and it’s fun to see them take on a new life when we figure them out live. We have a really solid band and are excited to tour more.
This new album, ‘Between Heavens’, can you tell us how long you were working on it?
Victor: We started writing the album sometime in spring 2023. First song we got in the studio was ‘Cold Front’. Once we land on a demo that evokes some feeling in us, it opens the door for writing an album. I feel like the first song always sets the tone for the album sonically. The writing / mixing roughly took place from March 2023 – June 2023.
Did you approach writing this album differently to previous albums? Did you change up the process at all?
Victor: The process is always different for every album. Even mixing wise. We approach every album as experimental and of course we use some of the same techniques, but overall there’s no rule book. I think that adds a playful and unknown process that keeps us excited. For us, the biggest factor is really being in tune with how the song makes us feel. If it evokes something, we will try to finish it and put it out even if it’s not perfect.
Do you feel this new work sits nicely alongside your previous work?
Victor: If it does or doesn’t, that’s something we can’t control nor really want to. We do our best to write genuine music that makes us excited at our current stage of life. The fun part is, every album is going to be different sonically.
What’s the story behind the album title?
Wyatt: Finding a title is usually one of the hardest parts of the album process. We are always making a list of words and phrases that feel like they could be something but it’s getting even more difficult now that we have released almost 100 songs. I had this title set months before we started writing the album as a playlist title full of songs that had elements we wanted to tap in to. It felt really fitting since day one. A lot of the themes of the songs are about getting out of your little life and head and being reminded of how vast and beautiful the world around you is.
The new album artwork has a similar feel to that of ‘Blue Hour’ and “The Middle of Nowhere’ – Who shoots these and was this a conscious decision to keep it in keeping with the others.
Wyatt: Blue Hour and Middle of Nowhere were both shot by this amazing photographer Niklas Porter. We really love having album covers that are so cinematic they pull you into another world. it’s almost cheating because the album covers are so striking people might listen to it just because of the imagery. The Between Heavens cover was shot by a Canadian photographer Mark Webber. We had been workshopping a few other photos but when we found this one we were blown away. It has such a sublime and otherworldly feel to it.
You’re currently taking this album on tour across the world? Can you tell us the upcoming program?
Wyatt: We started in Los Angeles and New York and now going across the pond to London, Paris, a music festival in Belgium, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Hamburg, and Berlin. We will also be announcing a few more dates in the US soon. It’s super exciting for us and we are really thrilled to start touring more. We have put a lot of work into our live show and can’t wait to play for people that have had to wait a while to catch us live.
Any venues you’ve played at before which you’re really looking forward to returning and playing at? Any new places you’re really excited to play at?
Victor: This is our first time playing in Europe and we are very excited to hit all of the cities and we hope to be back and play more. Definitely been a bit of a dream for us to play our music in Europe.
You both have other skills and passions which are jobs… have you had time to explore those recently or has this music making thing been keeping you too busy?
Wyatt: Music has been slowly growing for us and we have been able to dedicate more time and energy into it recently. It’s gotten to a point where it’s starting to take precedent over our other careers. We honestly never expected anything but it’s been so cool to see it grow organically over the years. I think we both kinda keep waiting to be disappointed and for it to slow down but it keeps snowballing along. We both still work on a regular basis. Victor composes music for independent and commercial projects and I am an architect mostly working on historic homes in LA. It’s nice to have a balance of more straightforward work but we are super passionate about Ruby Haunt and excited to see where we can take it.
Your current tour brings you up to the end of 2023. What does your 2024 look like right now?
Victor: We have the ‘Between Heavens B-Sides EP’ coming out sometime in the new year. We may have some more shows in February and then excited to get back in the studio and write.
Before we let you go, for anyone reading this where’s the best place for people to get there hands on tickets for the shows?
www.rubyhaunt.com and our new album is wherever you find music.
