Brave Rival Talk New Album ‘Fight Or Flight’

British blues-rock band Brave Rival will release their second album ‘Fight Or Flight’ on 16th August 2024. We decided to talk to them about the release in this detailed conversation:

You will release your second album ‘Fight Or Flight’ in Summer 2024. How did you want to approach the making of the album?

LINDSEY: For this album we were able to approach it in a totally different way to our first album, Life’s Machine. Where we were previously locked down due to the pandemic and only able to write remotely. This time we were able to write together in the same room and on the road. Our shared experiences and influences came through even more this time around. 

What is the background/story behind the album title?

CHLOE:

We know the second album is always seen as the tricky one to get right, especially when the first album had such a great response, so we wanted to stay true to our name and be brave. We’re really proud of this album and we knew the name Fight Or Flight represented the fact we’re coming back fighting. It’s one of the lyrics from our song Sink Or Swim which just stood out to us. 

Where did you record the album and who produced it?

BILLY: We recorded at two locations this time around. Firstly, at the Mayfair Studio in Churt. It was here that we recorded the Guitars, Bass and Vocals. For the Drums and Strings we wanted a bigger sound which naturally required a bigger room, so we headed to Western Super Mare to record at 13 Sound Studios. We were also fortunate enough to record 3 bonus tracks live at Vada Studios, Worcester. We enlisted the mega talents again from our Producer, Tarrant Shepherd. He was amazing to work with on our first album so naturally wanted to keep that collaboration going. 

Who plays on the album with you?

ED – For this Album we re-enlisted the amazing talents of Johnny Henderson on Keys and Hammond. We also, thanks to the efforts of our Kickstarter backers, have the incredible Vulcan String Quartet on 4 tracks. Lastly, we brought in Will Wilde for our track Stand Up on Harmonica.

What formats will the album be available on?

DONNA: Fight Or Flight will be available on CD and vinyl which will be available from our online store and at our gigs. The album is also available on streaming and digital download sites. Pre Orders on our online store are open now!

You have released the first single from the new album ‘Five Years On’. What is the story/inspiration behind the track?

LINDSEY – This one is a celebration of the first 5 years of the band. Now going into our 5th year, how excited and determined we are about the next 5 years. 

 You are given the opportunity to write the score for a film adaptation of a novel that you enjoy. Which novel is it and why?

CHLOE:

Ooh good question! It would be The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. It’s one of my favourite novels. It’s about all of the other directions your life could have gone in so I think writing music for this would be really interesting and diverse. The book starts with a lot of darkness, and you all know that we can write a sad song! The process is about appreciating the little things in life. I recently bought a piece of art from an artist that I love called Alan A Art because it reminded me of The Midnight Library. Perhaps this will be inspiration for album 3!

 What is your earliest musical memory?

LINDSEY: Dancing around the living room rug with my mum to Michael Jackson.

CHLOE: I’m aware it sounds terribly twee, but I have fond memories of being in our green VW camper van when I was young, singing with my four siblings. We can all sing and harmonise naturally, so singing in harmony has always felt like home to me.

BILLY: I have vivid memories of being terrified of Bohemian Rhapsody as a toddler. As well as playing my dad’s Fantasia and Thriller albums on Vinyl to death!

ED: Watching my uncle play Guilfest. He is a local radio DJ so has introduced me to a lot of music in my formative years
DONNA: My parents mixtape being played in the car whenever we went anywhere. It was full of rock songs like Queen, T-Rex, Deep Purple, Fleetwood Mac, etc. I loved it.

Did you use any specific instruments, pedals, effects, recording equipment on the album? 

ED: How long you got? Most of the album was recorded with my trusty Strat, Sally. Strymon Riverside and my Victory V40 deluxe. We tracked the guitars at Mayfair and there was a ton of experimentation to get the sound we wanted for each track. 

As for other instruments we somehow managed to get an empty beer keg on the album. We did loads of crazy percussion for this album. 

 Did you have a specific selection process for deciding which tracks to include on the album?

CHLOE:

This is always a tough process because each of us are emotionally attached to certain songs. When choosing the songs, we had to take into account our own connection and making sure it’s something we love, what we feel our fans would like, which songs sounded good together as a body of work and how they’d work touring. We had around 30 songs that we then gradually cut down to under 20. We all voted for our favourite 12 songs, including our producer Tarrant. There were a few that we then discussed about which would make it. We’re really happy with the choices we made, the album feels right. 

 Do you have any interesting, funny or memorable stories from the album recording sessions?

DONNA: Yes, me saying a keg being hit by something hard would sound amazing here, and Chloe and Linz disappearing. They came back with one from the local pub! It was so funny seeing them walk into the studio with it. I’ll never forget that. 

 Do you have any plans for live shows in Europe/UK in 2024?

BILLY – We have big plans for an Autumn UK tour to support the launch of Fight or Flight. We love hitting the road and playing our music live so expect to see us popping up all over the country. Later this year we also have shows booked in Romania and Germany. We recently did a two-week tour of Czechia, Poland and Slovakia which was amazing!

Who created/designed the album artwork? 

LINDSEY: That would be the incredible Alice Armstrong. Once we had the Tarot Card idea it was a match made in heaven to work with Alice as Art Nouveau is one of our favourites. 

 Which of your new album tracks hear you at your a) happiest, b) angriest and c) most reflective?

CHLOE:

I’m loving your questions! Hmmm, well we don’t really write happy songs in this band. Magnetic is one of our bonus tracks which will be released later down the line and that celebrates the love I have for my husband. But on the album, itself, I would probably say Sink or Swim because when I perform it with the band, I look around at them on stage and feel really ‘in it’ and in my happy place, I often get goosebumps! Angriest song would be Stars Upon My Scars, just in the way I sing it. I really got into the story of that song and tried to give it the angst and pain it needed. Insane is my most reflective song. It’s about a time I was in a dark place suffering with depression and feeling like I was going insane. Singing this one in the studio broke me. Every time I perform it, I go to that dark place in my mind. 

Was it a difficult album to write?

LINDSEY: We had so many ideas for this album!

CHLOE: 

The writing part, no. I write off the cuff whenever an idea comes to me, so this album has been building up over the last few years. That’s the fun, easy bit to me! Choosing which ones made the cut and analysing the songs to be the best they can be was the hard bit. I love writing and I can’t wait to write some more!