Bones UK Releases Their New Album "Unplugged" and It's Not for the Faint of Heart

Tired of the stereotypes, the boxes, and the preconceived ideas of what makes a girl, Bones UK sends a refreshing message in its music, empowering people to be true to who they are, and want to be regardless of what society thinks. And their message was well received, as the band has been nominated for a Grammy as part of the Best Rock Performance. Vocalist Rosie Bones and guitarist Carmen Vandenberg aren't afraid to turn the volume up in their music, to get their message out in the open, loud and clear. After a first encounter in a small bar in Camden, London in 2014, where Carmen was on stage and Rosie in the audience, the musical crush never faded away. Six years later, and a move from rainy London to the sunny West Coast of the states, their latest EP released on on January 24 of this year, Unplugged, now out on all streaming platforms, delivers on a musical, artistic, and even spiritual level: an anthem, or rather anti-anthem to perfection, mixed with a bewitching guitar strum, Bones UK has outdone itself, yet again. Using the Lomo'Instant Square Glass they have been documenting the behind scenes of their musical adventures. We had the pleasure to talk to them about their artistic and musical journey.

Hello Bones UK! It's great to have you here at the magazine! First off, could you tell us a bit more about the night you guys met up?

Rosie had just been broken up with or broken up with some boy and was hanging at the blues kitchen in Camden drinking Whisky alone and feeling sorry for herself. She saw Carmen playing blues on stage with some old men…the classic….and was just like “I have to talk to her”…so I went and spoke to her after the show and we went back to mine that night and fell in musical love

Where do you draw inspiration from?

Experiences, things we learn, things we want to say, things that piss us off, things that make us happy.

When did you transition from London to Los Angeles?

Moved to LA 3 years ago. It didn’t really affect our music. It more just affected our complexions.

Why is it important for you to carry a message of inclusion and acceptance in your music?

Because that's what we believe in. That's what our truth is. Making people feel included and accepted is the most important thing in the world. And if we can do anything we can to help someone feel that…we will.

How do visual arts (photography, illustration, videos) intersect with your music?

HUGE. Rosie went to art school and art directs everything we ever do. Music and the visuals are woven together for us. It all builds the world.

If you could play anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Uranus

If you had to pick only one song to play at a concert, which one would it be? And can you tell us the story behind it?

Song called ‘Shrine’ off the album we wrote with Jeff Beck. It's a message that would help a lot of people. Very pure. We wrote it in Jeff’s living room balls deep in about 52 bottles of Prosecco. Made us all cry. Always a good sign.

Can you tell us the story behind your latest album “Unplugged”? What was the most exciting part of working on it?

It all came about cos the label asked us to do some, super simple acoustic versions of some of our songs. Rosie then went mental with the visuals wanting to do a homage to the Nirvana MTV unplugged session but with the BONES UK people in the audience (ie vampires and freaks and geeks). Then Carmen got super inspired and into doing the rearranged versions of the tracks, strings, etc. Before you knew it we had 150 extras in the youtube studios and a whole new ‘unplugged band’ - strings, double bass, etc. The EP was all recorded live on the day that we filmed the video.

How did photography become a part of your artistic identity?

It's a huge part of our artistic identity. We take our own photographer David Solorzano on the road with us always. He works with Rosie to keep things really tight and new ideas rolling. They did the album cover together too.

On your website and social media platforms, most of the images you post are very strong black and white contrasts. Why do you choose this aesthetic?

Yep, everything in the BONES UK world is black and white. When we started out it was a great way with the photos to create a uniform and build a world. Having an overall look at things is super important. You turn any photo high contrast black and white and you're in the BONES UK world. Plus it looks fucking bad arse.

Why did you choose to shoot with instant film?

We’re all about imperfections and mistakes and things just being what they are. With instant film you get what you get. We love that.

Where does analog photography, and in particular instant film fall in your artistic platform?

Falls beautifully into it. It’s raw and real and bad boy. Like us.

From the batch of photos you sent us, do you have a favorite? And can you tell us the story behind it?

Couldn’t possibly pick a favourite. They all sum up such good memories of an amazing tour. Working out how to use the camera was hard for us at first. But we got there!

Is there anything you want to add before we wrap up this interview?

LOVE YOU GUYS

We love you too Bones UK! If you want to hear more of Bones UK's music head over to any streaming platform, or to their website and Instagram.

written by tamarasaade on 2020-05-30