Words: Linn Branson
So, hello....and who do we have here then? Tell us your full name and address - okay, we'll let you off the address; don't want hoards of girls dropping in on you do we...!
Hello. I'm Rory Wynne. No, we don't. I can't be doing with the screaming at all.
And how and where do we find your good self at this point? I believe you have been or still are over in Ireland this week? But most of the time you are based at home in Stockport?
I'm now back on home soil in Stockport. I'm in Reddish right now, actually, where I grew up. I do live in Heaton Moor, however.
Right, check. As long as you know where you are, eh. Now, is this school hols time for you, young sir? How do you plan on filling the summer?
It is, yes. Sometime in September we go back - too soon to be honest! I don't have any plans really, just to keep writing new songs, and listening to new things. I want to try experimenting with a few things musically as well. I think I want to go a bit more punk. We shall have to see though.
I think most who know of you may know this, but for those who don't, and may wonder about the school reference: how old are you again?
I am now 15 - half-way to thirty.
Okay, so 15 now, but the songs you have out online you wrote and recorded when you were...what...14? 13?
Mostly 14. I started at 12, so there are ideas from here there and everywhere age-wise.
Do your teachers at school know about your music life, or have you kept it pretty much away from the 'day job'? Have they been supportive in your music endeavors?
Some of them do. The ones that do have been supportive, yeah.
Acting as your own PR, give us a short spin on Rory Wynne: the songs, the influences, your best points...
Rory Wynne is a handsome young fella...just kidding! Here we go: Born in 1999 in Stockport, Manchester, Rory was brought up on a steady diet of rock n roll with sides of indie, punk and Irish music. With those influences anchored in his blood, Rory started writing his own music. Mostly fast, in-your-face tracks yet some tracks more soft, delicate and even ambient. Rory plays guitar, drums, keys and tries to sing. With a cool style, swagger and cocky vocals, Rory is surely destined to be a full-time rock star. I took some lines from reviews.
You were going great there until the last bit. If the music falls through, you could take up the publicity side, you know. So how did you come to pick up the guitar and turn to writing?
I first took up guitar when I was maybe 5, 6 ...or 7, I can't remember, because I got a guitar and lessons for my birthday or Christmas. I wasn't very keen then as it was classical guitar and at that time I had a MP3 player with rock and blues and punk etc. So I wanted to play songs like that. I gave it up. Then the Christmas or birthday before I started secondary school I got a white Telecaster with an amp and lessons at school with Mr Connor, and I realised then that that's all I wanted to do really. I think it was either that year or the one after that I wrote me my first song, 'I Know She Knows'. Then it all took off from there.
Given your age, you seem to be making a fair bit of headway on radio. I believe Tom Robinson knows of you, is that right? And you have also been on Pure Radio and of course had the national airplay with the session and phone interview on XFM with John Kennedy. Tell us a little about all and how they came about?
Tom Robinson knows of me, yeah. I've been told by a colleague of his that he "loves me" and he's given me heaps of advice which I am very thankful for. Tom first got in touch with me when I uploaded 'Heart of Stone' to his website 'Fresh On The Net' 'cause I read somewhere that the site was brilliant for advice on how to get started. And it is, the best. I saw there was a link or something that said 'upload your music here' and that's what I did. Weeks later I got an email from him saying he wanted to play my track on one of his shows and he was a big fan of 'Post Party Confusion' - another of my songs - as well.
I did a session and interview on Pure as well, which was my first one so as you can tell if you watch the YouTube video I was very inexperienced. Then XFM, well I listen every night to John Kennedy's X-Posure show as it's my favourite show and I remember one night I just thought maybe I should send him my stuff. So I wrote to him with a Soundcloud link asking if he'd check it out; he did and he liked it. His favourite was 'The Storm' and he played that a few times, and included it in his 'Tips for 2014'.
Then I finished my record - which I hope to release sometime before I die! Nah, I want to release it next year definitely - so I dropped off a copy of that to XFM in a parcel with his name on when I was down in London. About a week later I was listening and 'Post Party Confusion' was played as an 'X-Posure Hot One' or 'X-Posure Big One'. I was surprised and he said he liked it and then he played 'I Know She Knows' later in the same show. Then a month later or so I went to school as usual and was sitting when the fire alarm went off, to cut a medium-length story short we were sent home for the next 3 days and we were finished for holidays then anyway. So I emailed John saying I'd got a free few days would you want me to record a session, and he said 'go on then'. So I did and a few days later he emailed back saying he liked them and was going to use them. And that was that we did the phone interview the week after. While we're on radio, I'd just like to mention Bruce Ravid in the US as well, another who has given me loads of advice and a few plays recently.
Fire alarms...school shutting...you weren't up to no good setting off the fire sprinklers yourself were you to get a day off?
No, no, not me.
Who are the musical influences behind Rory Wynne and how would you say that has impacted in your style and sound, if at all? I gather you write everything on a laptop, in your bedroom, is that right?
I write on paper then record via the laptop which barely works any more. The Influences are very varied. My first influences were: The Beatles, The Jam, The Kinks Blondie, Mammas and Pappas, The Who. I think it was 'Rolling Stone Magazine Top 500 Songs' that I had on an MP3 player and that was all I listened to between the ages of 4/5 - 7/8 out of choice. My Dads music collection had a lot of influence he listens to Rock, Blues, Irish, Indie, Metal so I picked up bits off that especially some of the Rock : Pearl Jam, Guns n Roses, Nirvana etc. And the Indie, Blues & Punk. I think that shaped what I listen to now and my style and sound definitely come directly from that. From the age of 8/9 to 11 I started listening to mainstream pop for some reason. And now I listen to all that I used to listen to - and think it's utter rubbish! I obviously felt some kind of appeal then. But I don't think that's influenced me much at all. So my style and sound comes from 'Rolling Stone Magazines Top 500 Songs' and what my Dad listened to.
What is the process for you? ie do you sit in a boring maths or science lesson coming up with song lines or a guitar tuning you want to try out? Or do you get a melody first and then fit words to it?
I don't really have much of a process. The only kind of thing that's occurred in all my songs is that I wrote the whole song at once. I know some artists like to come up with riffs and give them time to develop but once I start I have to finish. I never write the music first, I always write lyrics first or just do both as I go. So I'm sorry but no super productive processes' here.
The three songs we have heard online 'Post Party Confusion', 'I Know She Knows' and 'The One Before The Next One'....tell us a little about each.
'Post Party Confusion' was just, well I had a structure which I wrote down as riff-verse-riff-verse-riff-verse-riff-chorus etc. And I just wrote some lyrics that I wanted to be funny and unrealistic yet some people though they're stupid he's clearly never been out that'd never happen. All that is true but I wasn't trying to be realistic I just wanted a fun song. 'The One Before The Next One' I wrote whilst listening to an awful lot of The National, in fact that was all I listened to for a month or two at least. And it's just simple chords with that riff and droney vocals. The lyrics are just about how a character says something that he's never going to do so when he says it it's 'The One Before The Next One'. I had that as I title for the album so I tried to write lyrics around that. The production on the non-session version I'm pretty proud of and I can't wait for people to hear it. 'I Know She Knows' is... about a character who is reflecting on school love life. It was the first song I wrote.
'PPC' - written from personal experience? With it referring to beers, black eyes and fights - one would hope not!
Unfortunately not. I'm not that exciting, unless I'm playing of course.
'I Know She Knows' - you have described this as "a love song", but you sounded on JK show as if you didn't want to divulge too much more about it?
That's right.
Ah-hah, could this be the Rory Wynne equivalent of James Blunt.
You have a rich timbre to your voice which I think if people were unaware of your age and had to guess they would place you in a much older age group. Is this your natural sound, or have you had any vocal training?
I haven't had vocal training - and I never want it. This is my natural sound. I don't think my music is meant to be sang perfectly. I don't think anything is 'perfect'; in fact, I hate the word. It's those little imperfections that bring out the human element to music.
Although we have you as a solo performer, you played your first band gig recently - with The Jumping Pandas. So is the band side to work alongside you solo, or is the idea to record solo but have a band for live dates?
At the minute it's record solo an play with then live however this could change depending on the feedback I get.
What are your long term aims: a career in music, or is this just a 'hobby' more at this time in your life?
I want a career in music. I can't see myself doing much else.
You now have a few sentences for your big plug to push whatever you might want to promote. Use it wisely. Go.....
The new single is on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, Google, YouTube Channel.
Last word: spill your word or words of wisdom. Say 'pass' if you have none.
Put yourself first.
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