After a hit wonder on SoundCloud, back in pre-covid times (you heard that right), Lowes now finds them fast-forwarding a few years and sitting within the oaths of 2023 ones to watch.
Vastly establishing themselves across the dance-pop music scene, the rising Lancastrians trio debut came as a sudden surprise but now doesn’t look half decent as their first single of 2023, “Game of Love” shows the intention of what’s to come next. From collaborations with Sub Focus & FRICTION to a long winding road of experiences, Lowes are focused to take it to the next step but continuing to be true to themselves.
Finally catching a blissful moment, EUPHORIA. chatted with Lowes about their first show in London, how it all started, and what the summer holds for the rising electronic trio.
Hey hey, how are you and congratulations on your recent show in London, what have the past months entailed for you?
Hey hey, all good vibes in camp LOWES thanks, yeah the first London show of the year was a fun one, with great people, a great venue, and good to be connecting with people again after a heavily studio-based winter.
Breaking onto the music scene back in 2016 with your debut single “Awake at Night” but really making a stir last year, how would you describe your rise and your journey in music?
A long and winding road! I’m sure any artist will tell you being in the industry is like a game of snakes and ladders, and that’s certainly been the case for us. We spent years writing songs for ourselves and other artists too, which had their fair share of love, but then, when the dance collaborations started to pick up, it gave us a huge ladder up! Since then, we’ve been loving writing and performing a mix of our own electronic-alt pop stuff as well as the dance stuff – mostly house and our beloved drum and bass!
Speaking of your rise and talking of some of your fond memories, why did you want to become an electronic trio, and what was the number one key influence in becoming Lowes?
Between the 3 of us in the band, our influences are extremely varied so LOWES is like the middle of this huge Venn diagram of our 3 individual music tastes… the electronic sonic is where we seem to have happily settled after a lot of experimentation and exploration. Key influences have been the likes of Robyn, Christine & The Queens, Lorde, London Grammar, Florence & The Machine, CHVRCHES, and then the likes of Soulwax, Justice, M83, and also The Beatles, Paul Simon, The Police… and that’s just the shortlist!
Currently, in one sentence, how would you describe your sound, and what’s your main goal in music?
LOWES is an electronic-alt pop trio – we aim to write good, honest songs that connect and deliver euphoric, memorable performances.
With the release of your debut EP setting out in 2022, what did that key moment mean to you, and what did you learn from that process?
It was huge for us to be releasing our own batch of tunes from our own ‘cooker’ after a couple of years of dance collaborations where so often musical decisions can feel like a compromise. It was our first chance to show the world what we are really about, and we’ve been lucky enough to keep releasing music since with B1, our label at Sony. It taught us so much about the ins and outs of releasing a larger body of work instead of popping out random singles and really helped us to shape our image and sonic.
Following stand-out moments, you followed suit with your latest single, “Game of Love” and even released an acoustic version. What was the process like compared to dance music, and would you like to delve into this avenue again?
Yeah, the Game of Love tune has taken us on a huge journey – we filmed a music video for it out in Paris, got to work with Friction on the remix, and produce a stripped acoustic version to support the main release. It’s had a great reception at live shows from fans and on streaming and radio too… more of that is on the way very soon, with our second single of the year just around the corner 🙂
Already working with a multitude of artists and producers, including Sub Focus & Solardo; who would you love to collaborate with in the future?
Ah man, there is so much talent out there, and because we work across quite a few genres, our dream collaboration list runs the full gamut with Hans Zimmer, George Fitzgerald, Disclosure, Aurora, and Hot Chip all on the list for very different reasons!
As you endure the highs and lows of the music world, what has been your number one learning perspective of the music industry, and what do you want to share with aspiring artists?
The one thing that has proven to be true time and again is that being fearlessly creative always pays off because you either discover something new and amazing or you discover something new and terrible… both useful findings! So long as you are being authentic, then you can always live with whatever the industry does with your music when the machine takes hold!
What is your biggest pinch-me moment so far, and what’s the most fulfilling part of getting to make music as a career?
I think playing to a packed-out dance tent at Reading and Leeds Festival was a career highlight so far – we just couldn’t believe the sheer size of the crowd and how into it they were – pure magic. The most fulfilling part of a career in music is when a complete stranger reaches out to say how your music has connected with them – when you release a song, you just don’t know where it’s going to end up and how far it will reach but when you get a DM on insta off some kid in Indonesia or Mexico or somewhere thousands of miles away telling you how much they love your music its a pretty mind-blowing, beautiful thing.
Continuing to cement yourself within the music scene and preparing for a busy summer, what shall fans expect next?
We’ve got a great team around us now, and everyone is focused on releasing loads of new LOWES music, getting us out playing loads of shows all over the UK, Europe, and beyond. But you know us, there’ll always be the odd cheeky dance collaboration thrown in the mix to keep things spicy!