Independent alternative rock three piece Boundless Brothers are attempting to make their mark in the exciting indie scene. Raised and based in Cornwall in the south of England, the band have made had career highlights such as support slots for the likes of Scouting for Girls and The Proclaimers.
Following a run of impressive singles, the band has now unveiled their debut album. Entitled Love & Monsters, the album features heavy hitting tracks previous releases like “Crying Shame” and “Oh Dear, I’m on Fire.” Straying into new stylistic territory – leaning further into the pop rock sphere rather than the folk-driven sound their earlier work offered, it’s a cohesive and easy listening album that sees them cement their style.
We spoke with the band about humble beginnings, inspirations in and out of music, and the creative process of their debut album.
Hello Boundless Brothers! Can you introduce yourselves and talk to us a bit about how the band was formed?
I’m Sam Wilson – I’m lead singer and play acoustic/electric guitar.
I’m Seb Wilson – I play bass/double bass and sing vocal harmonies.
I’m Bo Payne – I play drums and sing vocal harmonies.
Brothers Sam and Seb started out at Open mic nights and busking before forming a band. Following a few line-up changes and a name change, Bo joined from another band, and the line-up has remained largely unchanged since then.
How would you describe Boundless Brothers sound and existence within the British music scene?
Like a lot of bands, we cross many genres, and our sound continues to evolve but at the moment, when we need to, we’ve settled on the alternative pop rock label. Within that, three-part vocal harmonies are at the core, and the inclusion of double bass reflecting some jazz influences, sets us apart.
We’re independent, we write our own songs, and self-fund recording and releasing our music. All of us are multi-instrumentalists, having learnt any additional instruments we needed to obtain the sound we wanted for particular songs, so we’re pretty self-sufficient.
Who have been major inspirations to you both musically and personally in your journey so far?
Musically Sam and Seb were big fans of metal music growing up, and really looked up to bands like Metallica and Slipknot. As we got older Sam’s taste changed to more pop/rock such as Oasis and U2, and Seb developed an interest in jazz musicians such as Jaco Pastorius and Steely Dan.
Discovering Pino Palladino, was the artist that made Seb want to push his bass playing further.
Bo was influenced growing up by the likes of The Police, John Mayer, Steely Dan also, and more recently Joy Crookes.
All three of us had dads who were performers in the music industry which undoubtedly influenced our interest in music from an early age. Sam and Seb remember being taken along to recording sessions and getting to watch their dad create music. Bo remembers his dad playing guitar and singing around the house, teaching him guitar and giving him a gentle push into the world of performance.
Sam cites his brother as his biggest inspiration, as he has a massive drive to get the technicalities of music right, which inspires him to do better and fuels his passion.
Seb was inspired by the local music scene he discovered when he first moved to the South-West, as it showed him it was possible to make a career out of music.
Bo was inspired by his college music teacher, who had faith in him, introduced him to the drums at an early stage, and kept him focused to follow his new passion.
Which is a stand-out Boundless Brothers track to you all and why?
Sam: “Million Years” is the stand-out track for me. It is a very personal song about my older brother looking after me when I was young and struggling with nightmares. Seeing this song come to life in the studio has been one of my happiest moments.
Seb: “Let Me Down Easy” is my favourite on the album, because it is the most ‘musically interesting’ song that we have produced so far, which as a big fan of jazz this was the obvious choice for me,
Bo: “Million Years” also for me. I love this song. It means a lot to musically, and the lyrics really move me.
Congratulations on your new album Love and Monsters. Can you expand on the message and motive behind this project?
The album is a collection of songs about the highs and lows of love and relationships. Written from the heart, they’re about emotions everybody can relate to at some point in their lives. We’d love anybody feeling those emotions to know that they’re not alone.
We wanted to put together a full body of work that captured Boundless Brothers core sound while also showing versality with an eclectic mix of tracks across different genres.
How does it differ from your EPs and what sets it aside from other Alt/Pop/Rock bands?
We’ve released two EPs previously. “Untold” was the first and reflected our original bluegrass roots. “Cause and Effect” followed which was self-produced and showcased a move to a more pop/rock sound. The album reflects the further development in our core sound, maturity in our songwriting, and mastery of our instruments. We had much greater involvement in the recording process, delving deeper into the production side of recording.
We have an unusual mix of influences – rock, pop, jazz and folk – this, and the focus on vocal harmonies and inclusion of double-bass sets us apart.
What was the creative process like behind this full studio album?
We used the same studio we’ve used previously but were much more involved creatively. We’ve learnt a lot along the way and arrived on day one much more prepared and confident. We knew what we wanted and had recorded full demos for each track at home. WE had a good base, but each track still developed while in the studio. A modern recording studio provides so much potential to add layers and layers of extra sound, and we wanted to harness that with the help of our engineer and producer.
What has been a standout moment for Boundless Brothers in 2023?
Actually – there are three! It’s been a great year..
-Releasing this album! – it’s something that we’ve desperately wanted for some time now, but like most independent musicians self-funding a whole album is not easy. The stars finally aligned for us this year, and we’re so proud of what we’ve produced.
-Playing as support to Scouting for Girls at their show in St Agnes. They’re a band we all grew up with and admired so playing the same stage as them really was a dream come true.
-Producing our first Boundless baby! Drummer Bo and wife Rosa welcomed son Arlo in July, and we’re all madly in love with him.
What aspirations do you all share for 2024 and beyond?
Now the album is out we really want to tour it. We’re very proud of the songs we’ve crafted, and now we want everybody to know about them and love them as much as we do. Pre-covid we’d started spreading our wings geographically and we really want to get back to that now.
We want to continue to work with other musicians to further develop our sound for larger stages and to take that on tour and to some summer festivals. The buzz we get from performing to a large crowd is incredible.
Later on, we’d like to record a couple of new tracks for release in the second half of the year, and then start work on the next album.
What is one dream you each had when you were younger that has come true now?
Once we all got into music properly, our dream was to perform to big crowds. We’ve had a taste of that now and its addictive! Hearing the crowd sing our songs back to us is a real pinch yourself moment. When you connect with an audience, there is no better feeling.