INTERVIEW: Arkayla discuss origins and influences alongside new single ‘Lost In A Valentine’

After breaking through with their vibrant initial offerings ‘Falling Down’ and ‘Calling Time’ this past year, fast-rising outfit Arkayla are back once again to deliver their lively new single ‘Lost In A Valentine’.

Lifted from their eagerly-awaited self-titled debut EP, ‘Lost In A Valentine’ sees them continue that fun and uplifting indie-rock energy they are cultivating for themselves. So we caught up with them to find out more about their origins and influences over the years.

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What was the first rock song or artist that made an impact on you?

My dad showed me Prince playing purple rain at the superbowl half time show and from that moment I knew one day I wanted to be that good at guitar. I’m still getting round to it.

Who are some of your biggest musical influences within the rock genre?

The Strokes, which I think is fairly self-evident in our music. The Smiths, The Doors, The La’s and of course The Beatles. Basically, anyone with a knack for making a racket sound poetic.

Are there any non-rock musicians or genres that have also influenced your music?

Soul and motown definitely play a big part but we’re all into different things. Finley our guitarist is a massive Bob Marley fan. His brother’s named after him. Dylan our drummer is into Billy Joel, he’s a top lad but he’s always a woman to me.

What is your main inspiration when looking to write new music?

Life, really. Sometimes it’s a deep chat in the pub. Other times it’s just seeing a weird dog on the street and thinking, “Yeah, that’s a song.”

What do you enjoy most about performing live and do you have any memorable live performance experiences you’d like to share?

The crowd’s energy is unreal. Our first sold-out show in London was mad. We thought it’d be a quiet night, but people went nuts. We’re still buzzing from that one.

What has been a particularly rewarding moment in your musical journey so far?

A few things stand out. Guy Garvey giving us our first national radio play and saying some top words about us was unreal. We’re all big United fans, so hearing our single on the matchday playlist was mega. And the turnout at our Isle of Wight set? Absolutely mental. We’ll never forget that.

How would you define success as a musician?

Success for us would be headlining the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury, looking out over thousands of fans, and then wondering how on earth we pulled it off. But that’s the dream… They say the journey is better anyway.

What advice would you give to aspiring artists who are just starting out?

Be yourself, don’t try to be the next oasis—be the first you. And graft hard. Play everywhere you can, practice like mad, and remember, even the bad gigs are good stories later.

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Listen to Arkayla’s new single ‘Lost In A Valentine’ below.