Everything Everything on Their India Debut and Writing 'Emotionally Interesting Music

British art-rock band's vocalist-guitarist Jonathan Higgs talks about performing at Bandland 2024 in Bengaluru and having die-hard fans who'll talk to them about politics as well as personal stories

- Annurag Tagat

Over a Zoom call from the U.K., Everything Everything's frontman Jonathan Higgs says, “I can’t believe I’m talking to somebody in India about Ronnie Pickering. It’s crazy.

”Higgs is referring to one of the inspirations behind their song “The End Of The Contender” from their 2024 album Mountainhead. Ronnie Pickering was a local and national legend in Britain after a viral video nearly a decade ago, thanks to his road rage.But even if you didn’t know Pickering, “The End Of The Contender” is wrapped in memorable melodies (“It’s all about the Benjamins,” Higgs sings) along with a story about male egos and feeling lost in a fast-paced digital world.

That’s part of the allure of Everything Everything’s music – even a hyperlocal reference is put across in a way that resonates universally, going over experimental songwriting that had first been inspired by the likes of Radiohead and now lives in its own sonic space, between moody rock riffs to dancey detours and more.

After releasing Mountainhead – their seventh album – earlier this year, Everything Everything went on to tour the U.K. and Australia, plus head to the U.S. with seasoned British rockers Keane. Now, to close off the year, the band comprising Higgs, bassist Jeremy Pritchard, guitarist Alex Robertshaw and drummer Michael Spearman are making their India debut at the second edition of music festival Bandland in Bengaluru, on Nov. 23, 2024. The event is produced and promoted by BookMyShow Live. Higgs says, “We got an email from somebody who is involved with the festival, saying that they were a big fan of us. so we absolutely jumped at the chance. It’s an amazing opportunity. We’d never been there, and it’s somewhere we’ve always wanted to go.”

In an interview with Rolling Stone India ahead of their first visit to the country, Higgs spoke about their new album Mountainhead, the universality of their songs and how emotions drive most of the writing. Excerpts: