A Chat with Rofi James (16.03.23)
Described as “endearingly dynamic and consistently melodic…” (Pure M Magazine) and “one of Galway’s leading bands…” (Galway Advertiser), Irish trio Rofi James shares their unique, intriguing music with the masses. We speak with Rofi James’ Jamie Murray about their new single ‘Over You’, greatest achievements and future plans.
OSR: What made you decide to pursue a career in music?
Murray: Seeing our favourite bands performing live as kids really inspired us to start playing instruments, and coming from a musical family meant music was always in the house so it was a natural progression to become a musician and follow in the footsteps of the family!
OSR: What inspires you to make music?
Murray: We get inspired by different things, sometimes Ronan can come up with a melody out of the blue and we’ll sit down and jam it out in a rehearsal before bringing it to the studio to flesh it out with our producer Dave Skelton. Other times we could be jamming and come up with a song from start to finish in no time, usually though it starts from a melody and hook from Ronan that’s built on in studio.
OSR: What does music mean to you?
Murray: Music is a massive part of our lives, if we’re not performing music live or writing music every day, we’re usually attending a gig or talking about a new single or album that’s caught our attention!
OSR: What can you tell us about your single, ‘Over You’?
Murray: ‘Over You’ is a song that came together in the studio. We initially had a version that was very different, but after stripping that version back that song naturally became an anthem about self-preservation.
OSR: Did you face any challenges when recording the single?
Murray: After the initial difficulty of getting a lyric that felt right for the chorus the song came together quite quickly.
OSR: How would you describe your music to someone who has not heard of you before?
Murray: Our music is hard-hitting, honest and energetic. As a band, we aim to make music that makes the listener feel something and relate to the songs, while also maintaining that energy and emotion while performing live!
OSR: What is your greatest achievement?
Murray: Several milestones come to mind, like reaching No.3 in the Irish airplay charts alongside U2 and All Tvvins, performing to over 10 thousand people during our Galway 2020 tour, and having our music broadcast nationwide on the radio.
OSR: If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be?
Murray: I don’t think it’s necessarily a good habit to look at the negative aspects of yourself, however, we could probably eat a little less Supermacs!
OSR: Do you have any future plans?
Murray: We have lots of plans and new music coming in 2023 including a tour of Scotland and possibly some shows in the U.S.A – an EP/album is currently in the pipeline also!
OSR: Do you have a message for our readers?
Murray: We hope you are keeping well and if you like our music, please give us a follow and hopefully we’ll see you at an upcoming live show!
Many thanks to Jamie Murray for speaking with us. For more from Rofi James, check out their official website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.
