After 13 years, The Miserable Rich has come back better than ever with their hit album Overcome. This emotive yet empowering record stands as a tribute to the challenges they conquered collectively and the enduring bond of their friendship. With fresh, soon-to-be-released music on the horizon, you will not want to miss what they have in store. Read on to learn more about The Miserable Rich.

Where are you all based?
We’re all based down here on the South coast – Brighton and Worthing mostly.

What inspired you all to start a band? How did you all come together?
We got together way back in 2007. I had a collection of songs I had written over a number of years and tried in different styles. I’d just left Bonobo’s live band and was a bit-part player in 12-piece alt-folk band Shoreline (their album ‘Time Well Spent’ is a very well-hidden gem!). They used to have get-togethers at their housing collective and Mike (violin) and Will (cello) played in several bands with shared members (The Leisure Society, Sons of Noel and Adrian, Laish etc).We got together to make something a bit more chamber-music orientated using my songs, and formed the Wilkommen Collective with the other bands — because we all had Will in common, geddit?

How would you describe your music style? What influenced the style?
In the beginning we were influenced by The Balanescu Quartet’s cover of Kraftwerk’s The Model and by (Zombies singer) Colin Blunstone’s classic ‘Say You Don’ Mind’ — perhaps a little of early Coco Rosie too. We thought, if we used classical instruments with new songs, they might not age too badly — while we did. Not sure if it worked, but we’ve kind of relaxed the code now and use all sorts – drums, keyboards – and even bloomin electric guitars.

Congratulations on the release of your new single “Crows.” Can you all tell us the story behind the song?
Thanks. This one is one of Will’s. He is the band science correspondent, having done biology at Oxford (for all the good it did him). He wrote the tune and said he wanted it to be about crows taking over from us when we muck ourselves up. I did a bit of research and crikey — they are amazing. The lyrics are kind of a pub conversation of what I found out. In Sweden, they are training them to pick up cigarette butts, so I guess they are already doing a bit of that the songs says. We ought to write one about winning the lottery under a new government.

Image courtesy of The Miserable Rich Official

We heard that you guys are planning on releasing your album Overcome on February 2, 2024. What was the inspiration behind this album?
The band got back together to play at the charity event I put on – KitFest – in 2018, to raise funds and awareness for the charity – Kit Tarka Foundation – we started after the death or our first child, Kit – at 13 days.

In the meantime, other members went through some difficult times – didn’t we all?! – and we got together for ‘rehearsals’ that were actually more of an opportunity to drink beer, eat pizza and mouth of and support each other. We were a bit surprised when we found we had an album – and more so that the support we had given each other is so reflected in the deep joy – as well as pain – that imbues the album. It’s really a testament to survival and enduring friendship through the hardships of life that are both inevitable and deeply personal. It certainly helped me making it.

What can fans expect in this album?
Mood wise, people have been commenting on how optimistic it sounds, even with the clear pain inside it. I suppose it’s there in the double meaning of the album title. That optimism might be a little surprising – it wasn’t really planned - but may have helped us survive. Musically, I guess we still sound like The Miserable Rich, but perhaps with more freedom and a bit more rock. There are still folk and classical elements, but I’d say we are more of an alternative rock band — if very a very tuneful one.

What message or theme do you hope to send to your listeners?
I guess I want to acknowledge the pain, but know that we can beat it. The song Probably Will – even if it’s a bit jokey (not least the video, coming soon from the makers of award-winning short film ‘The Girl Is Mime’ starring Martin Freeman) pretty much covers it. Got to believe – and have a laugh – to survive.

What prompted you to release an album after 13 years?
Haha – tragedy and trauma – and a lot of compassion and love.

How has your music style evolved over the years? Did the 13-year break have any impact?
We used to make rules for ourselves as a kind of way of making things interesting; first album (Twelve Ways To Count) there were to be lots of guest appearances from friends (in case we never made another), acoustic instruments and no drums. Second album (Of Flight And Fury), we all had to sing and play at least two instruments on the album, plus instrumental links. Third album (Miss You In The Days) had to be all about sex, death and ghost stories. I wrote a song for my own funeral and we recorded in the most haunted stately home in Britain (Blickling Hall). This time, we had no agenda – just to get together, support each other and enjoy the songs we were playing. I felt I had to address Kit directly – and my sister who died of MND near the end of the recording – but otherwise, whatever came up went on, for good and for bad. We’re all surprised how well it flows tbh — the track listing is just alphabetical!

Starting the Kit Tarka Foundation after the death of James’s son, Kit, truly is heartbreaking but powerful. Can you tell us about the organization and what it does?
Kit was born healthy but infected with HSV1 (the coldsore virus) in hospital. I won’t go into the details here but it was actually indescribably painful to watch and go through, especially for my wife. She suffered many pains and the aching arms that mothers who have lost babies often suffer. We did a great deal of wailing and crying together and alone.

She and I started Kit Tarka Foundation to try to prevent other families suffering the same trauma. We put ourselves through press and tv interviews, with wreaked havoc with the PTSD, I can tell you – because we felt we had to let people know. We then put on sponsored walks (Walk For Kit), KitFest, Jump for Kit (from the i360 here in Brighton), Go Orange and lots more events. Starting a charity in the name of your child that has died is pretty much the definition of what you don’t plan or want – but it went well, making lots of money for the cause and raising awareness with the public and health professionals and funding the first study into neonatal herpes infection in the UK for over 25 years – but we felt after 5 years it was time to pass it on to a charity with further reach, and the Lullaby Trust have taken over with great awareness and sensitivity.

We are really grateful to them in taking over the THANKS campaign (Think Hands And No Kisses – raising awareness of hygiene around other people’s babies). It’s left us able to nurse our wounds a bit and focus on our other son and his new 12-week-old brother after some very difficult times.

In honor of Kit, you guys performed at Kitfest. Can you tell us more about this event?
When we started the charity, I thought about what I could do – and a music event seemed the obvious thing. We knew it would be hard coming up to the anniversary of his birthday so tried to make it more positive by raising money to save other babies. I asked old bands and connections I loved – one (Gloria Cycles) hadn’t played for eight years (fun fact – I proposed to my wife in the bass player Jennifer Left’s pub and she guests on the album) — Alice Russell and Fujiya and Miyagi headlined. Everyone was so kind and agreed to play free – and friends ran the bar, which ran dry several times. The artist David Shrigley compered wonderfully, and local MP Russell Lloyd-Moyle made a speech, and asked questions in parliament for us later. It was quite a rollercoaster — we wrote Glue for the event and I’ve never cried on stage before or since. 650 people packed into a Brighton church, lots of smiles and not a dry eye in the house.

Are there any exciting upcoming projects you guys would like to share?
Two more singles – Quietly and Probably Will before the album. We’ve made a video for each of the songs, sometimes with old friends (see above). I’ve been so grateful for the opportunity to be creative and work with mates. We also have a track on a French film coming out next year (La Sirene A Barbe). And we’ll be playing live again – family allowing – through next year in the UK and Germany. Maybe some festivals. And then let’s see – Jim the guitarist says he has a new song, so it might be time to get the beer and pizza out again.

Where do you all see the band in the next few years, and what goals do you hope to achieve?
To be honest, I think getting through all we have, suring up our friendships, supporting each other and making this record and all the films have been a big enough achievement for now! I do feel a little tired, but happy. That could be the baby mind. I think we’ll just carry on in our lane for now, making music and smiling at each other while we can.

It has been a crazy past few years, how have you been staying positive?
Yeah, I was thinking ‘We’ve made a record about getting through some difficult times together – wonder if anyone will relate?’ Hahaha. Crikey – what a bunch of years, As a friend said to me recently – ‘the last few years have been very years-y’. Just got to keep going. Surviving crisis and trauma – though you’d definitely rather avoid it, especially to have Kit here with us now – still, in a way gives empowerment. One of the worst possible things happened to us, and now I know we will survive whatever else they can throw at us. And it doesn’t half help you cut through the bullshit and be grateful for what you do have.

What is your motto in life?
Constant challenges and much to be grateful for. It’s just about all there is.

To learn more about The Miserable Rich, please follow the links below:
The Miserable Rich
Facebook: @themiserablerich
Instagram: @themiserablerich
YouTube: @themiserablerich
Kit Tarka Foundation
The Lullaby Trust

The Miserable Rich - The Resurrection of a Band