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Exclusive interview with Ryan and Nick from PURE and an exclusive stream of brand new track 'LOVE//LIES'.


(Zach, Nick, Ryan and Dan)

It's been just under a year now since Ryan Williams decided to call it a day on old band Misery Loves Company is search of a new venture. The first thing he done was call up his old friends, whom he played with back in high-school. Luckily for him, Zach Marshall, Nick Cohen and Dan Howser all agreed to a jamming session. The rest is becoming history.
Many called for Williams' head, including his manager who couldn't believe that he decided to end the band, despite there worldwide acclaim and success. If it was money Williams was after, he has certainly chosen the wrong path.
Williams moved out of his Los Angeles pad and moved to Brooklyn, where he and and drummer Cohen share a "worn out" flat. Bassist Marshall and guitarist Howser live together a couple blocks away.

Much has been made of PURE's burst onto the indie rock scene this year, with many expecting them to feature at award shows and TV appearances, but that is completely against there thinking. After Williams had a torrid time with record labels during his MLC days, he's vowed he will not be signing any sort of document regarding the band, without a good long think about it. "It was awful last time. We were signed to Studio60, who were basically the Apple of the music industry, but our contract had technically ran out after our second record was released and we had no interaction or signals at all from them, to suggest they were going to renew it. Then North Hill Records contacted us, offering a very healthy deal. We were young and naive at the time, so we signed it without thinking or telling anyone. Pretty soon it got out in the news and we were receiving all sorts of scrutiny." At the time magazines and newspapers alike criticized the band for "selling out" to a much more lucrative offer, in a deal that left their previous record label very unhappy. "Studio60 weren't happy at all, understandably. In many ways that situation started the downfall of the band, we never released a single record at North Hill." Williams added.



Williams and drummer Nick Cohen are considered as the two main songwriters for PURE, with Cohen's producing skills are particular trait the band take advantage of. "Nick is amazing. I mean, without disrespecting Dan and Zach, me and Nick write the songs in our room then we'll lay them down and Nick will toy about producing them. I wouldn't touch the producers table, I wouldn't know what to do."
Cohen added that rather than the tradiontal band method of writing songs on guitars, the band choose a different option and write them with a keyboard - which is a testament to their sound. "Yeah we write our songs in a real ambient style, which is probably the main reason behind our atmospheric kinda sound, y'know?" Williams continued to add that ambient god, Brian Eno, is one of the band's biggest inspirations.

The album was expected to be released at the start of Summer, but the band have had some complications in getting it out however just two days ago, they announced on Twitter that the debut album, 'Weekend Lovers' will be released on September 3rd. "There was so much problems. Well, not really problems. The problem was, we had written and recorded maybe 8 tracks.. then we wrote a few unorthodox songs, which were a little different. We fell in love with them and completely scrapped the songs that were already recorded. I mean, we have completely re-recorded one of our earlier single 'I Keep Dreaming'. It will cause a divide, we're sure, but we love this new version so much." Williams continued to add, that the title of their album is a homage to one of his favourite songwriters, Prince. "As a band, we all love like sexy R&B music. People like The Weeknd, Miguel and Prince. Prince is one of my biggest inspirations. The title of the album is kinda a tribute to him, from the song 'Purple Rain'. It just fit the album perfectly, it kinda sums up what i've been writing about."

The band's use of marijuana and alcohol has been well documented on their Instagram account. It has become tradition for the band to hang around outside after their gigs, where fans report that Williams will frequently light a 'spliff' during the meet & greet. "I think it's abit silly that." Williams laughs. "Yeah, after a show and we want to chill out after a real intense set, we may smoke a little but that's nothing. I don't encourage it.. actually, fuck it, I do. I've wrote so many songs high it's crazy." Cohen laughs along with Williams and adds that "It's like, after every show Zach will always go for a beer somewhere, always. We go outside and enjoy a little smoke and talk to fans." To their credit, after the bands last San Francisco show, they stuck around for an hour afterwards to take pictures and talk to fans.



New song 'LOVE//LIES' is a more upbeat track and definitely carries the bands 80's influences. Williams himself stated that this song is probably the most guitar-driven song on the album. From the off it pumps an infectious riff with a lovely 80's plucked bassline. The band has toyed with song structures quite a bit and look to throw away the traditional verse-chorus-verse structure here. After the second verse the song reaches a massive climax which screams live 'moshing'. Mid-way through we are introduced to a synth-y rhythm which competes with the guitars to be at the forefront, leading the drive. Williams' voice sounds refreshed and dare we say it, seductive, as he screeches about a relationship filled with lust, love and lies. The albums three main themes are present here. "It's probably our most radio friendly single, it's like the only song which doesn't have some sort of sexual lingo." Staying true to their word, you will feel your foot tapping and head nodding along to the bassline as the band set out to make a record that will make you "dance".


It’s like you’ve come of age, as you hide under the bed sheets
If this is how you like to unwind, I think I might love you
Oh, she doesn’t care about the future, it’s so cool
She only makes me promise that I don’t take her for a fool


I just can’t get high around her,
Cause when I’m looking into her eyes,
Our love always seems like a massive lie


It’s almost like we’re boyfriend and girlfriend
If this is what that feels like, I think I might love you
Oh, she says don’t talk about next week, or even the morning
She only makes me promise that before I leave I give a warning


This is not the time to feel melancholic
I’ll ask you to take a look at what you see
Tell me if it’s just me or three


We can’t be lovers, we’re not even friends
We can’t do this when we know it’s going to end
Embrace the secrets, embrace our lies
This is something we can no longer disguise


I just can’t get high around her,
Cause when I’m looking into her eyes,
Our love always seems like a massive lie


She says that she knows that im off soon
And that is too soon
Begs me to stay with her in her room
And seal it off like a tomb
I wonder if this is all incidental
Surely it can be true, she can't really love me


I quit my smokes all for her
I ditched my best friends for her
I stitched my brother up for her
The lust, the lies, the love blinded our hearts
We were cut off from reality from the very start
We'll never get to mend our hearts, we should have known this at the very start



Sounds like:


*PURE will be releasing the artwork and track-listing for 'Weekend Lovers' this week.