You Me At Six are back and raring to go

[dropcap]Y[/dropcap]ou Me At Six frontman Josh Franceschi wastes no time in outing the difficult conception of his band’s sixth outing, the aptly titled, ‘VI’.

“We didn’t write a song as a band for the best part of two and a half to three years, and that killed the creativity,” he explains.

It hasn’t been that long since 2017’s ‘Night People’, but the frontman was raring to go right after the record’s January release.

“I remember being in Europe in March of last year,” he continues, “and I said to the boys, could we start talking about, or writing for the new record now? There was very much a feeling that we had to change our blueprint because it wasn’t inspiring us anymore. We needed to mix it up.”

Focusing on rekindling their love for what they do, the five-piece hunkered down in various studios, only surfacing to pop to the pub and eat.

“We decided to not go to America to make the record and to make it England,” Josh offers on this change of pace, “but to make it in a residential studio so that there’s none of this turning up between ten and midday and leaving by six.”

By doing so, they reignited what they loved about the band to begin with; hanging out with their mates and cracking out tunes that represent who they are as opposed to who they thought they should be.

“There’s a documentary called The Defiant Ones, about Dr Dre and Jimmy Iovine. I was watching that when we were back in the studio, and that was just the perfect way of articulating everything I’ve been feeling for the last year and a half,” Josh considers.

[sc name="pull" text="We needed to mix it up"]

“I hadn’t been able to understand how to articulate it, and that was a step back to set up, and ‘Night People’ was our step back to set up for this across the board.”

For various reasons, ‘Night People’ failed to launch whatever it was that You Me At Six had in mind, but with ‘VI’ there’s the chance for the band to resurrect themselves.

Starting with Max Heyler and Dan Flint tinkering away on their laptops building electronically rather than their usual studio-based method, it’s resulted in a sound that feels fresh, especially when compared to its predecessor.

The fact that the band are here at all is a testament to their love for what they do, and their want to be the best they can. After all, a surprisingly small number of bands manage to reach the sixth album.

“It’s one of those things that when we were growing up, our whole thing was; can we make one album?” Josh muses. “Then you make that one album, and it’s like, fuck, can we be in a band that can make two albums? Can we be in a band that makes three? Then you start looking around and seeing your friends and other bands drop off, or no longer make music.”

And so here You Me At Six are. A sixth album due out, the release of two new tracks (‘Fast Forward’ and ‘3 AM’), and they are eager to start this new chapter with a fresh appreciation for not only what they’ve achieved, but also what they’re capable of.

“I’ve seen it with people that are carrying the flag and killing it, [they] are people that can motivate themselves when it’s good and when it’s bad. That would be my main criticism of myself over the last eighteen months,” he freely admits. “I found it very difficult to motivate to be in You Me At Six, whereas I think when you get that hunger back in you… it’s a very powerful thing.” [sc name="stopper"]

Taken from the July issue of Dork. Order a copy here. You Me At Six’s album ‘VI’ is out 5th October.