ROLLA, a burgeoning band currently making waves in Manchester’s renowned rock scene, has shown remarkable dedication to honouring their local roots and the community that supported their journey. This showcases the enduring significance of remaining authentic to your origins, even as the prospect of wider acclaim beckons.
With the iconic Salford Lads’ Club – a beloved cultural institution that has long served as a hub for the city’s vibrant music scene – facing the threat of closure, the band quickly sprang into action, arranging a special benefit concert on November 15th to raise funds and awareness for the venue’s plight.
The show, which sold out in a matter of minutes, saw the band using their growing platform to shine a spotlight on the club’s vital role, with the group eagerly granting interviews to ITV and the Manchester Evening News to expound upon the venue’s irreplaceable impact and the urgency of preserving this cherished piece of the city’s musical heritage.
To commemorate the occasion, TMT Band Merch has created a special line of Rolla/Salford Lads’ Club merchandise, including two limited edition t-shirts available at the show and online. All proceeds from these items will be donated directly to the club. Additionally, the renowned menswear brand Marshall Artist is providing further support for the event.
ROLLA’s support of the Salford Lads’ Club recognizes its importance as a vital community hub, music venue, and cultural landmark. While the venue’s association with The Smiths will always be remembered, keeping it an active, thriving space holds infinitely more value than a mere plaque on a new apartment building.
ROLLA has been hailed as “honorary Salford Lads Club lads” for arranging the show there, but they’re not the only musicians to back the club. Others, ranging from Hollies legend Graham Nash to local heroes Courteeners, have also lent their support.
The venue’s GoFundMe campaign aims to raise £250,000 to secure its future, and donations can be made here.
As the show approaches, ROLLA will be dropping their latest new single ‘It Ain’t Easy’ on the 14th of November which can be pre-saved here. The track is the second from their forthcoming EP and debut on Run On Records (The Royston Club), following the acclaimed single “We Owe You Nothing” which enjoyed airplay from John Kennedy on Radio X and Jim Salveson on XS Manchester. The new single is also accompanied by a music video directed once again by filmmaker Charlie Lightning, renowned for his work with the likes of Liam Gallagher, Jamiroquai and Paul McCartney.
Commenting on the new track, frontman James Gilmore said, “‘It Ain’t Easy’ was written at a similar time to ‘We Owe You Nothing’, it’s another heavier, baggy tune. It’s got that constant driving groove behind it with the drums and the bass riff but then the guitars and vocals loosen the whole thing up and give it that shuffle. It’s a reflection of the parallels of life, working day-in day-out, all that shite, running alongside the moments of euphoria – a representation of taking the rough with the smooth, living your life to the full and making the most out of bad situations and using them as fuel to find inner peace and enjoyment in life.”
“It Ain’t Easy” is also directly related to one of ROLLA’s biggest influences. In 2022, Serge Pizzorno extended an invitation to ROLLA to open for Kasabian‘s arena tour. Each night, ROLLA’s members looked on with admiration as Kasabian’s songs elicited a strong response from the audiences. This experience went on to inform their approach to their new EP. They subsequently sent a demo of “It Ain’t Easy” to Serge, seeking his guidance on how to structure the track for optimal impact and his advice helped ROLLA elevate the song’s dynamic explosiveness and sinewy intensity.
The new single was recorded during the same sessions as ‘We Owe You Nothing’, with production and mixing by Gareth Nuttall (Frank Turner, The K’s, Lottery Winners, Dirty Blonde), with additional production and mixing from guitarist Luke McConnell.
ROLLA’s growing reputation has already seen them occupy the top spot on the iTunes chart with their debut EP, ‘Nothing Less Than Everything’. They have also performed to huge audiences at the Isle of Wight Festival, the Neighbourhood Weekender and This Feeling By The Sea, as well as headlining shows which have consistently sold out and never stop growing in size. It’s always an uphill battle , but everything for ROLLA looks to be heading exactly in the right direction.
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Band photo by Holly Pimlott
