A MEETING of two musical minds is coming to stages around the country, including a show in Reading’s South Street this week.
Romeo Stodart and Ren Havieu are bearing out the collision of worlds with their new project after the pair found new inspiration in one another.
Stodart, frontman of Mercury Prize-winning outfit The Magic Numbers, has teamed up with Ren, whose debut album, Through The Night, reached the top 10 charts.
Romeo says: “I first I reached out to Ren because I had seen her performing on Jools Holland, stuff from her first album, and I was just blown away by her voice.
“I knew a friend of mine who was on our label, writer Ed Harcourt, had written with her, so I reached out to her– it took a little while, actually.”
Ren explains: “I didn’t know who he was, so I thought ‘I’ll get back to that later’ –I emailed him back six months later, and then he didn’t get back to me, which annoyed me.
“But then we ran into each other randomly and started chatting; we had many similar interests and so much crossover in what we liked, music-wise, that it sort of felt inevitable after that.
“We were working together in a matter of weeks.”
The pair say that they hit it off immediately and found a fast musical bond: “After our first writing session,” Ren says, “I said to my sister on the phone ‘I think I found a musical soulmate.'”
“I’d worked with people for years, been writing with people since I was 17 and I’d never had that feeling before.
“It just sort of clicked together; I felt freedom to be able to express myself without that awkwardness or clashing of egos.
“It was just so different.”
Both Ren and Romeo have decades of experience in the music industry, Romeo with The Magic Numbers, and Ren with her solo career.
“We really love great songs, it’s something we’ve clung to in our careers, that core thing which draws us in, and we shared that throughout.
Romeo says: “Ren hit the top five with her first album, and The Magic Numbers got to seven – but who’s counting!”
Ren added: “But we do still feel very separate from the industry, so we don’t really think about it– for us its about the enjoyment of the beauty music.”
Romeo explains: “When you feel uncomfortable, that’s when you’re creating your best work, taking risks and pushing yourself– that’s a new thing for us.
“It brings so much freedom, and you express more of your individual identity through sharing and bouncing ideas off of one another.
“We share a lot of the pressure; the collaborative aspect is something I’ve been drawn to for a long time– you’re part of something which is expressive and fun.”
As for what can be expected at a Romeon and Ren live show, Ren says: “We’re concious of avoiding rocking up and doing a nicey-nicey acoustic set.
“We want to challenge ourselves and the audience, and forget whatever else is going on for an hour.
“We’re not looking to necessarily express the deepest parts of us, we just want it to be great riffs, great harmony, and uplifting feelings.
“There are intense bits– we can give depression era too.”
Romeo adds: “And of course we’re going to play a few things from our previous projects, but of course with loads of new material and experimentation.
“We make each show different– we want to have a moment with the people in the room, who are all on their own journeys, improvise and let go.”
Romeo Stodart and Ren Harvieu are performing at South Street Arts Centre from 7.30pm on Saturday, October 5.
Full details and tickets are available via: whatsonreading.com
Ren and Romeo are on tour throughout October, including dates in York, Southampton, Blackpool, Ipswich, Manchester, and Durham.
Full details of the tour are available via: songkick.com
