“I think that’s the really wonderful thing about writing music – I will write something that feels intensely personal, but I know that once it’s listen– ed to by someone else, it will mean something completely different as they recontextualize it,” he explains passionately. “Also, most people don’t even listen to the lyrics! Ultimately, my ideal scen– ario is if someone is inspired by the music or lyrics.” “I think a lot of lyrics in pop music can be quite generic or just speaking to one audience. They usually talk about a sense of loss or longing, and don’t get me wrong, those songs are amazing, and I’ve written some of those too, but I don’t see why there’s any reason why we can’t have a lyric about getting on your knees and being sacrificed! I want to expand people’s imagination when they’re hearing pop music.” Olly has been more confessional on this album than ever before. In the three years since Communion was released, the frontman says they all have matured a great deal. “That period of your twenties, 24 to 27, I feel like you do a lot of growing up. I’ve definitely found it a big transformation. We went from being a band that no one knew about to having a #1 album and touring the world. That experience alone was totally life-changing.” When it came to writing the second album, though, Alexander had more confidence as a songwriter.
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“You’ve done the process once, so you know the pitfalls and the areas you want to explore more of. The difficult second album is a cliché for a reason. The pressure to follow up your first one, you’ve got deadlines and you’re different people.” It’s down to the support they received along that way that helped the band stay strong. “I’ve seen the way our fans respond to the music and seeing it work shows that I can stick with my gut feeling. You think, how the hell has that happened, I feel like I’ve just won a lottery ticket.” In terms of the musical production, the band have also been on quite a journey. “We started Years & Years totally DIY... We did everything ourselves, so it was quite dictated by the equipment that we had available, playing with old drum loops and synthesizers,” Alexander says. “That’s how we were created so we’ve just sort of carried that on. With the production on this album, the process has been dependent on each song. Either it will be all of us – me, Emre and Mikey with a producer in the studio – or just me in the studio with a producer hashing it out.” Although he doesn’t feel like the production side of things is his forte – “I’m more into the lyrics and the melodies” – it’s important for Alexander to sit with a producer and tell them what he does and doesn’t like.