LISTEN as Wes Miles From the Band, RA RA RIOT Talks About Their Record, “Need Your Light”, Their Upcoming U.S Tour, Creating Music Videos, His Role on ‘Vinyl’ And More!

Photo Credit – Shervin Lainez

“Need Your Light” is the latest collection out now by the indie band, Ra Ra Riot. It was primarily produced by Ryan Hadlock (Vance Joy, Blonde Redhead) with “Water” and “I Need Your Light” produced by Rostam Batmanglij (Vampire Weekend, Charli XCX, Carly Rae Jepsen).

This fourth album is celebratory without being saccharine and sees the group collectively mining their prior experiences in order to craft something that looks toward the future with an optimistic gaze.

After being a band for a decade, it’s easy to get disillusioned with the tedium of adulthood, but Need Your Light is the sound of a band being reinvigorated by their own existence. Correspondingly, the album sees the group—which originated in Syracuse but has now dispersed all over the country—getting back to their house party roots without abandoning the more heady soundscapes they explored with 2013’s Beta Love. The result is an album that’s celebratory without being saccharine, and that sees the group collectively mining their prior experiences to craft something that looks toward the future with an optimistic gaze.

The original plan was for the band—which features vocalist Wes Miles, bassist Mathieu Santos, guitarist Milo Bonacci, violinist Rebecca Zeller and drummer Kenny Bernard—to take the first extended break of their career after the year and a half they spent on the road supporting Beta Love. After a few months, however, they couldn’t help themselves from working on new music. “The inspiration came very quickly,” Miles says, explaining that he decided to fly out to Los Angeles to start fleshing out ideas with previous producer Dennis Herring (Modest Mouse, Elvis Costello). Shortly afterward, the group went on a writing trip to Milwaukee and began the process of creating what would eventually become Need Your Light. To fully realize their vision, Ra Ra Riot ended up working with a host of previous collaborators, including Ryan Hadlock (who produced 2008’s debut The Rhumb Line); longtime friend and sound engineer Andrew Maury (who co-produced 2010’s The Orchard); and Vampire Weekend producer Rostam (who is also half of the avant garde R&B duo Discovery alongside Miles).

Upcoming Tour Dates:

3/10 – Savannah, GA – Savannah Stopover Festival
3/11 – Atlanta, GA – Aisle 5
3/12 – Birmingham, AL – Saturn
3/13 – Nashville, TN – Exit In
3/15 – Houston, TX – Walter’s Downtown
3/16-18 – Austin, TX- SXSW
3/19 – Fort Worth, TX – Live Oak Music Hall & Lounge
3/21- Phoenix, AZ – Valley Bar
3/22 – San Diego, CA – The Irenic
3/24 – Los Angeles, CA – Teragram Ballroom
3/25 – Santa Barbara, CA – Soho Restaurant & Music Club
3/26 – Santa Ana, CA – Constellation Room at The Observatory
3/27 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent
3/30 – Seattle, WA – Neumos
3/31 – Vancouver, BC – The Biltmore Cabaret
4/01 – Portland, OR – Revolution Hall
4/03 – Salt Lake City, UT – Urban Lounge
4/04 – Denver, CO – Bluebird Theatre
4/06 – Kansas City, MO – The Riot Room
4/07 – Minneapolis, MN – Triple Rock Social Club
4/08 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall
4/11 – Columbus, OH – A&R Music Bar
4/12 – Millvale, PA – Mr. Small’s Theatre
4/14 – Toronto, ON – Lee’s Palace
4/15 – Montreal, QC – Bar Le Ritz
4/16 – Geneva, NY – The Cracker Factory
4/30 – Tampa, FL – WMNF’s 35th Annual Tropical Heatwve
6/11 – Cleveland, OH – LaureLive

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Connect with Ra Ra Riot:
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Learn more about Ra Ra Riot in the following All Access phone interview with front-man, Wes Miles: