The Vamps are already a sensation in the U.K., with three Top 3
singles, over 80 million views on their YouTube/VEVO channel,
slots opening for Taylor Swift, McFly, Selena Gomez and The
Wanted, and a Nickelodeon Kids Choice Award for UK Favourite
Breakthrough. Now the British four-piece, who were nominated this
year for a Radio Disney Music Award for The Freshest-Best New
Artist, are gearing up for Stateside chart domination with their
irresistibly catchy pop-rock songs. The band, which sold out
their February show at New York City s Gramercy Theatre in 10
minutes flat, has just released their first U.S. single, the
lyrically heartfelt, chanty sing-along Somebody To You, featuring
Demi Lovato, from their debut EP due from Island Records in
August.
The Vamps acoustic-guitar driven pop sound came about naturally.
We re all songwriters and musicians who have played our
instruments for eight years or more, says singer Brad Simpson. We
take a lot of pride in that, adds bassist Connor Ball. I think
the ultimate goal for us as musicians is that when people listen
to our music they realize that it s all us. Not only that, but we
would love people to be happy when they listen to our music and
to be able to connect with it in any way they can.
With their strummy, feel-good vibes, songs like Wild Heart and
Move My Way are summery and uplifting, while Can We Dance (a No.
2 hit in the U.K.) is a bit more edgy. We don't want to write the
typical, I really like this girl, let's go party and dance, type
of song," guitarist James McVey says. We like being a bit
naughty. Some of the songs are a bit provocative. To me, the
music has an indie twist. Brad's voice is not a typical pop
voice. And I think that's what s exciting about The Vamps. It s
important to us that people know our music has substance.
Hailing from different parts of the U.K., the members of The
Vamps met through social media in 2012. James had been making
acoustic guitar pop on his own when, inspired by such bands as
Arctic Monkeys and Good Charlotte, he decided it d be more fun to
be in a group. He scoured YouTube searching for potential
bandmates, which yielded a series of cover videos that Brad had
posted of songs by Ed Sheeran, Mumford & Sons, and James
Morrison, to name a few. Brad had also written an original song
called Loaded that I thought was really good because he was
only 16, James says. His voice was very different from other
people I d been looking at.
For his part, Brad says, I think it's very lonely being a solo
artist. You don t have the camaraderie of having your best
friends with you, so I always wanted to be in a band, he says,
adding that he grew up listening to classic rock bands like AC/DC
and Led Zeppelin, as well as Foo Fighters and Arctic Monkeys.
A Facebook friend request that drummer Tristan Evans sent to
James resulted in his joining the group. We did a bit of research
and found out that he was one of the top three drummers in the
U.K. in his age group, James says. Plus we saw loads of videos of
him playing and he was really, really good. I first became
interested in music when I was seven, Tristan says. I was an
extremely hyperactive child and drumming was a way I channeled my
energy. I ve been playing music ever since. The final piece of
the puzzle was Scottish-born Connor Ball, a singer and guitarist
who cites Green Day s American Idiot as his inspiration for
picking up an electric guitar at age 12. What struck us all is
how talented he is at playing so many instruments, James says. He
learned to play bass for the band. That s how good he is.
Of the band s chemistry, James says, It s a really good blend of
personalities. Brad is very chilled out. He doesn t need to try
to be cool