Today, Ruen Brothers released their third full length album, Ten Paces, via Yep Roc Records [LISTEN HERE]. Throughout the album, the Scunthorpe, England-raised duo – Rupert and Henry Stansall – create a thoroughly modern sound while embracing their love of American Westerns. “We want listeners to be transported into the immersive world of Ten Paces, delivering something cinematic and personal,” notes Ruen Brothers. For the album, they also created videos and photos with inspiration from mid-century films like The Night of the Hunter, to immerse the audience in their romantic and haunting vision. And No Depression adds that their Western Noir-influenced album shows “how they carry labels of both timeless and timely throughout a full set of songs,” including their just-released latest single, “Hi-Yo.” Fans can also hear the new songs live as the band tours the U.S. this summer including a show at New York City’s Central Park SummerStage with Café Tacvba. See all tour dates below and listen to “Hi-Yo” HERE.
Ten Paces follows Ruen Brothers’ 2018 Rick Rubin-produced debut All My Shades of Blue and 2021’s ULTRAMODERN. The album was produced by Rupert, seeing him deftly preserving the quality and authenticity of early recording gear and techniques while achieving a unique sound. It was recorded on opposite sides of America, where they currently reside: Rupert crafting the base of the recordings from his Los Angeles studio with Brooklyn-based Henry laying down acoustic guitar and vocals. Throughout Ten Paces, Henry’s dynamic four-octave range is on display with him jumping between octaves in songs where emotions are highest, reflecting his love for Roy Orbison; and using his lower octave range to create a grounded and conversational feel, true to the laconic and hard boiled characters of the West, reflecting his years of covering Johnny Cash songs in British pubs.
Ruen Brothers open Ten Paces with “Slow Draw” which features sound effects like triggers cocking, gunshots and ricochets – added to help create a soundscape to compliment the track’s title. It’s the first of several times throughout the album that they use sound effects to expand the aural environment, and the song was recently featured as influential radio station KCRW’s Today’s Top Tune. Additional album highlights include the unnerving and anxiety-filled “The Fear”; early single “Don’t Know What’s Come Over You” which was inspired by B-movie alien flicks and mixes acoustic instruments with mid-century sci-fi synths; and “Bullet Blues” which likens a relationship to a duel and starts off intimate and conversational before crescendoing towards “the final round.”
Much of the cinematic sonic ingenuity found throughout the Ten Paces was born from a turbulent period of bad luck and good fortune. After the pandemic canceled their live music gigs – including a promising tour with rising alt-country star Orville Peck – the duo turned to writing music for film. Since 2020, they’ve penned songs for films like Blumhouse’s Adopt a Highway, Netflix’s award-winning rom-com The Half of It, and the full score for the indie feature Going Nowhere. “There’s commonly a void between songs, score and sound design,” notes Rupert. “We wanted to take some steps toward merging them with this album.”
RUEN BROTHERS TOUR DATES
Jun 16 – Winnetka, IL – Winnetka Music Festival
Jul 21 Columbus, OH – Rumba Café
Jul 24 – New York, NY – Central Park SummerStage @ Rumsey Playfield *with Café Tacvba
Jul 25 Vienna, VA – Jammin Java
Jul 27 Nashville, TN – East Side Bowl
Jul 28 Louisville, KY – Zanzabar
Jul 30 Decatur, GA – Eddie’s Attic
Aug 18 Charlotte, NC – The Evening Music
Aug 19 Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle Back Room
TEN PACES TRACK LISTING
01 – Slow Draw
02 – The Fear
03 – Hi-Yo
04 – Don’t Know What’s Come Over You
05 – Bullet Blues
06 – Silver to Gold
07 – The Good Surely Die
08 – Free As the Birds
09 – Sleep
10 – Long Road
Listen to ‘Ten Paces’ here: https://ffm.to/tenpaces