Liam Ramsden is Mellah, an outrageously talented south Londoner who plays several instruments, writes his own songs then directs videos for each of them. He’s also a carpenter who went from building props for Black Mirror’s second season to having one of his first songs featured in season three. On stage, he has rebuilt his solo studio project into an eight-headed group who might look like they just met at a bus stop but are the most exciting indie big band in tiny venues since Arcade Fire’s first tour.
Ramsden shares some of that band’s guileless intensity, if not their pretension, and is similarly happiest tackling big topics. Last year’s debut EP, Liminality, included songs about his dad’s death, depression, mindless war and selfish hedonism, while new EP Middle England takes a tour through suburbia, social media and psychosis. At a time when our best bands retreat into roleplay or cynicism, there’s something deeply affecting about a writer unafraid to provoke genuine emotion (or “feelies”, as Ramsden would have it) regarding real, rather than imaginary, things.
Throughout both EPs, the only two constants are Ramsden’s vulnerable, querulous yet weirdly authoritative vocals and his liquid guitar playing. He and his instrument constantly sound on the verge of offering you outside for a fight or bursting into tears – which, as you know, is true of all the best rock.
- Mellah’s new EP Middle England is out 1 June on Columbia Records
