Following their debut release Find A Way, South London duo James Lamb and Richard Craker – aka 11 – have made a welcome return with the infectious new single Best of Me, out now.
An internal dialogue centring around themes of insecurities, Best of Me is propelled by funk-fuelled hooks and a buoyant energised groove, with a sound akin to the likes of Passion Pit. Filled with James Lamb’s soul-soaked vocals and frenzied beats, it fuses together an eclectic range of sounds, showcasing the duo’s impeccable production skills, creating an instantly catchy slice of uplifting indie-pop. Of the track Lamb explains:
It’s about not allowing negative energy to take you off your path. It’s about mind-state, the internal battles that we all have… It’s a fight between success and failure, where success is landing all the punches.”
In this interview spotlight, I chat with 11 about the latest release, challenges, motivations and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
Let’s dive a little deeper into You, the artist and your music. What attracted you to this genre(s) or style(s)?
We can’t wait for people to hear the album as we’re experimenting with so many sounds and styles. We’ll often go into the studio with a completely clean slate and just write and jam freely along to how we’re feeling, staying true to what we want to write about in the moment. The best ones come out that way. James has a lot of energy so sometimes it’s fun to let him loose on a hard hitting track where he can really let go vocally and rhythmically. Equally a lot of what we write and produce is very honest heartfelt stuff so we delve into creating soundscapes where it can truly be heard, which is important to us.
What led you into this journey with music? And further, what drives you to push it out to the public?
We’ve both always been around music and with people involved in the music industry from an early age. Instead of good night stories I would get a good night song by my dad with his acoustic and my older siblings would always have a record spinning at home – i remember them blasting old Prince, Rage against the Machine, MJ and Daft Punk so my ears pricked up from an early age and I wanted to perform on stage, sing and write songs. Now if i’m honest, making music is a strong catharsis and is definitely a necessity in life. It got me out of a dark place and that fact alone is what drives the will to share what me and Rich make to the public. I’d love to inspire others the same way I’ve been inspired along the way, and make people feel something! I’m also proud of my creativity and it’s important to share your self expression too. We’re blessed to have a platform to really say how we feel… Sometimes you can talk and talk but it feels no one is truly listening, but when you put it into song and share it with the world, it feels good!
Who or what influences your creativity? Have your tastes in music changed over time?
Life! Its everyday brutal truths and struggles and its infinite beauty and finesse. I’m influenced creatively naturally by the company i keep, the books I read and the films I watch, the places I visit and relationships I build or break. Music taste seems to change by the day… and goes a little in cycles. Some weeks i’ll listen to nothing but rap and grime, other weeks strictly folk and songs that make me wanna cry. Some days I indulge in emotion and pick a playlist to suit. Other times I listen to something that I feel I need… like a song that will give me the energy to finish a run or simply uplift when feeling shit. So yes definitely evolving over time and always pretty eclectic. I remember being a big Hanson fan as a kid, guilty pleasure now, but at the time they had their place! (never managed to grow my hair that long).
Were you trying to accomplish anything specific on this new project? Creatively or otherwise?
Just a free space and an outlet where we could both collaborate, express freely and enjoy ourselves. We wanted to take our visuals to the next level, push each other and work outside of the box and of our comfort zones. No rules. It’s all leading to the debut album…
What was the last song you listened to?
‘Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me’ – George Michael
‘Unknown Brother’ – The Black Keys
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
Vinyl
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
Spotify personally, I find it easy to use. Love the playlists, the radio feature and my discover weekly’s always have some fire gems too. For me it’s all about finding new music and Spotify always delivers.
Other than the digital era overwhelming us with access to an abundance of music, what is the biggest challenge you face when trying to connect with or find new fans?
We need a big stack of cash so we can tour the world and make more videos!
Where is the best place to connect with you online? Discover more music?
We check all our socials regularly, but Instagram is probably the best place. We take pride in our insta and the videos we put out on youtube… Feel free to slide on into those DMs! We will always update about new music and always link the other socials too, we got ya wherever you are.
Anything else you’d like to add before signing off?
Thanks for the interview! It’s been real. Go give us a listen, check out our videos and join the journey. Love each other and look out for the number 11!
