Imagine this: explosive guitars crashing into a love story that is a twisted tale of AI, and performed by a duo that does not want algorithms to triumph over raw human passion. That is Glass Rumours, this UK juggernaut is killing it with their big visuals, amazing guitar work and songs that do not just play, they tell whole stories.
Their new single Ray Gun is crazy – think of a dark, dramatic trip into what might happen when artificial intelligence began to get far too emotional and sneaky. It is as though science fiction horror was brought to life with a thunderous rock soundtrack supporting it. And this: they wrote this song literally across the oceans! Gemma was singing her lungs out on a ship in the ocean, and Paul Mead was at home recording those electric guitar parts. These two have produced something fantastic a creative collaboration that functions regardless of where on the planet they are.
The second song on their amazing Tsunami Release, they are releasing ten weeks of new music and videos that they have been working on over the last two years. And what these two opening songs are demonstrating to us is that Glass Rumours is not merely producing catchy songs. They are building whole worlds.
We sat down with Gemma and Paul to get deep into killer robots, crazy laundromat visions, and how they are trying to keep that human spark alive and burning.
Listen to Ray Gun
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What’s the story behind the title “Ray Gun”? Is there a deeper meaning or specific inspiration that led to this name?
Well funny you should ask because this caused something of a division in camp Glass Rumours. Paul’s insistent it’s just the casual name everyone uses for a laser gun (like you’d see in films like star wars) but Gemma had never heard the phrase… which caused Paul’s mind to be utterly blown!!!
There’s a tiktok “WHATTTT?” moment on exactly this transpiring. We’ll leave it to the viewers to decide who’s right! Incidentally, it’s also the nickname of the girl who got famous for doing some dodgy break dancing in the last Olympics… but that was a coincidence… we had the song written a couple of year’s prior!
How does “Ray Gun” represent Glass Rumours’ sound and artistic vision compared to your previous releases?
It’s classic rock which is at the heart of everything we do, even the edgier tunes. What separates this one is the lyric about AI. We are fully aware having AI mentioned in the lyrics of a rock song will divide people and have a massive marmite effect. We debated it for a while but decided it’s better to have some people love something and others hate it than be boring and middle-of-the-road. Nobody wants compromise in their music do they?!
Can you walk us through the creative process for “Ray Gun”? How did this track come together in the studio?
Paul wrote it on an acoustic guitar, then recorded the electric version in his bedroom studio, sent the backing track to Gemma who sang it in her cabin in the middle of an ocean! Gemma spends 6 months of the year working on cruise ships all over the world so we write/record remotely. We joke that our band is international when in truth we have about 5 followers hahaha!
The title suggests something futuristic or sci-fi inspired. Does that theme carry through the lyrics and sound of the song?
Absolutely… it’s the story of someone dating an AI and being catfished, then they get chased down by the AI robot and shot, then they rise from the dead to become the AI themselves! …And so the terrible cycle starts over. It’s a sort of tongue-in-cheek horror story with a twist at the end. Not enough artists do story songs these days – we enjoy the lyrical challenge. There’s also a dollop of irony and sarcasm in it pointed at all the doom scaremongering associated with AI… but it’s all in good humour.
What emotions or messages are you trying to convey with “Ray Gun”?
Perhaps the tenseness of the existential threat of AI taking over the world… It’s a hot topic right now!
Did any particular artists, genres, or experiences influence the creation of “Ray Gun”?
There’s probably some Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver, Foo Fighters type guitar riffery in there… but then the verse melody is more Fleetwood Mac. That’s what we aspire to sound like and if we’ve captured even 1% of their magic, then our job has been well done.
How did you approach the production and arrangement for this track? Were there any unique sounds or techniques you experimented with?
Just years and years and years of making rock music. After a while you know what’s gonna work. We find working at speed and making decisions fast ends up with the best outcome. With music production these days, there’s so many knobs to twist and buttons to press it can be a distraction as well as a blessing.
Throw it down fast, if it feels like the song is building itself then you’re onto something good – that’s what happened with this one. We did some vocoder stuff on the lead vocal towards the end where the lyrical “twist” is Gemma becoming a robot… so that’s a fun kind of Daft Punk thing we’ve not done before that we felt would work on this track. A girl turns into a robot… how can you not fade a vocoder in?!
Is “Ray Gun” a standalone single or part of a larger project like an EP or album that Glass Rumours is working on?
It’s part of what we’re calling a Tsunami Release (TM!) You heard that name here first haha! We’ve literally spent 2 years creating content in a MASSIVE Google drive stash. We’re gonna drop it ALL over ten weeks. It’s so much content it’s gonna overwhelm the algorithm hopefully!
What has the response been like from fans and listeners since “Ray Gun” was released?
At the time of writing it’s not been released, but I hope people will be confused by it. Music is art. Art is conveying concepts. Concepts should make people stop and think. Maybe they will like it or maybe they’ll hate it, but to generate SOME feeling in people is surely the aim of an artist. How they respond is up to them but it’s going to be fun finding out.
What’s next for Glass Rumours after “Ray Gun”? Are there plans for more music, tours, or other projects in the works?
Well our forthcoming ten-week Tsunami drop… then what? Well… it depends on if things fly or flop. If they fly, we’d probably be smart to rush out more content to keep the wave of interest building. On the other hand, if it all flops and doesn’t do as well as we hope then it’s back to the strategic drawing board. Part of the fun of making your own music is the moments where you realise something isn’t right and go and fix it.
It’s like when they make a major discovery in science and have to rewrite the text books… it’s a self-correcting pathway to world domination… haha!! Just kidding… we just want to have fun and if people can share our journey and find amusement and enjoyment in what we do then our time on earth has been valid. Thanks for listening!
