Eve Ransom’s latest single has attracted more media attention than any of their previous three singles put together, but has so far garnered the least radio airplay of the lot. The new release, Alisha’s Room, was inspired by a true story of the abuse of a minor, a subject that is apparently still too delicate to go public, or at least to write a song about here in Malta.
Strangely enough, it’s perfectly fine to read about it, and unfortunately there are way too many reports of abuse in the papers these days, so why the taboo treatment? We all know that to solve a problem, one has to acknowledge there is one to begin with, and Alisha’s Room does exactly that by portraying the two sides of the situation.
“In line with the song’s theme, which concerns violent behaviour, the music bears a heavy, aggressive guitar sound. I guess this may have put off some radio stations,” says Brendan Jackson, Eve Ransom’s singer/guitarist. In reality, despite the ‘heavy guitar sound’, the song has a catchy chorus and adequate melody to qualify it for radio airplay.
What do the radio stations think? Bay Radio’s Terry Farrugia explained that all new songs go through a selective process involving a sample audience, and they base their verdicts on the feedback received for each song: “Alisha’s Room was deemed a bit heavy in general, but I find it lyrically interesting and will be resubmitting it.”
XFM’s music manager Nick Gatt, on the other hand, explained that since the station’s new music format only allows for six new tracks every fortnight, the available spots are limited, adding that “The station felt that on this occasion, the track was not what we were looking for.”
Other radio stations don’t seem to have found any problems at all with the song, and it has been included in several programmes. Meanwhile, Bay has also played the song a few times since Farrugia’s previous communication, and with a bit of support from the band’s fans, it may even get playlisted, as happened with each of Eve Ransom’s three previous singles.
The debate over Alisha’s Room wasn’t the only thing troubling Jackson. Earlier this year, Eve Ransom won the Celebrity XII band title, a TV show-cum-talent competition with a gig in London as its main prize.
“The date of the gig kept being pushed back throughout the summer, and to date we have been kept in the dark as to when we are going to get the chance to go abroad as was promised us, if at all. Two members of the band are students and we certainly cannot afford to fork out all the expenses involved.” That said, this hasn’t stopped the band exploring other options, and recognising that the German market is more inclined towards their kind of music, they have established some contacts there which they hope to develop further.
In the year that has elapsed since they released their debut single Souvenir, Eve Ransom have grown into one of Malta’s leading live acts, their radio presence eclipsed by the (largely teen) following they attract whenever they perform live. “We have grown from a garage band wanting to make as much noise as possible, into a more disciplined outfit with a more concrete idea of where we want to go with our music.
”They want to find the middle ground between radio-friendly rock and the more abrasive metal scene. As Brendan explains, “There is a vacuum in the middle. We believe Eve Ransom’s sound bridges that gap.” The last time I interviewed them, it was American alt-rock that inspired their grungy guitar sounds. “And it is still the same, except that we’ve discovered more and more bands that have had an influence on us, and thanks to our endorsement deal with (US company) Randall Amplifiers, we’ve been able to come up with a more powerful sound.”
He mentions Queens of the Stone Age (“the twins love them”), Foo Fighters and Breaking Benjamin (“I’m always playing their CD in my car”). What, no Nickelback? “Please,” he laments, “I absolutely loathe it when we’re compared to Nickelback.” Fair enough, but there’s no denying that Souvenir had several of the elements also present in Nickelback’s music. “Souvenir is our ballad. All our other songs are heavier. Nickelback are more Blues-inclined whereas we have stronger, heavier elements in our music. Just ask anyone who has been to our concerts.”
However, it is difficult to change the public’s perception once it’s sunk in. “The problem is people only compare us to Nickelback because that’s the closest thing to us that’s played regularly on the radio here. I would appreciate it more if people compared us to a genre rather than a specific band. We are more broadminded than that.”
Another area the band has progressed in is their song-writing. “In the beginning I would come to the garage with an idea for a song and we would need to work on it meticulously. Now, when I bring something to a rehearsal, all four of us seem to be tuned in to each other, making it much easier to develop that idea into a fully-fledged song. Believe me, we have loads of songs, but I can guarantee you most of them won’t make it to the radio, because they’ll be deemed too heavy.” ‘Heavy’ is an aspect that has also crept in slowly into every one of their singles so far, although all of them bear enough melodic qualities to retain a radio-friendly quality – yes, even Alisha’s Room.
So, where to from here? “After the reaction to Alisha’s Room, I think we may have to tone down some songs if they’re ever going to get on the radio.” This may be seen as conforming to the system. “The thing is,” he explains, “in Malta at least, when people hear you on the radio, they’ll be interested in coming to a gig, which is perhaps the ultimate goal within our restricted scene. Beyond that, our aim is to release an album, but this will most likely take some time – we hope to have it ready next year, but it will very probably be a download release not a CD album. The physical format involves more expenses and besides, the download has a more extensive reach.”
In the more immediate future, Eve Ransom will be playing a number of unplugged sets in Malta and Gozo in collaboration with Camilleri Wines, all in aid of a child abuse charity organisation. Negotiations and dates are still being sorted out but all details will be available very soon.
www.myspace.com/everansom
Source: The Sunday Times, October 12, 2008