SOMNIAC // Tequila, Doom Bar and a Hill Worth Dying On
From their current musical obsessions and favourite gigs to defending the importance of simply putting yourself out there, we caught up with SOMNIAC for a proper Beyond Noise deep dive. Meet the band: Teni on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Reuben on bass, Justin on lead guitar and backing vocals, and Harry on drums.
Who are you?
TeniWe're SOMNIAC. I'm Teni, I'm the lead singer and I play rhythm guitar as well.
ReubenYeah, I'm Reuben, I'm the bassist.
JustinI'm Justin, I'm the lead guitarist and backing vocalist.
HarryI'm Harry and I'm the drummer.
What's currently on repeat?
TeniI've currently got a song called Shakesdown by Revolver on repeat. I'm really enjoying it so far.
ReubenTotal Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler.
JustinGarage Flower by Garage Flower.
HarrySo Far So Fake by Pierce the Veil.
Your happy place
TeniI guess we're just about to perform at Ram Jam Records in Kingston. Our last gig was at The Horn in St Albans, and that was a banger.
JustinThat was my favourite one.
Your hero
TeniJohn Klute.
JustinJohn Klute.
ReubenJohn Klute.
Furry friends
JustinI have a dog.
HarryWhen you put it like that, I'm not a big fan… that's all you, Teni. That's not us. I have a cat.
JustinWoah, accusations. I have a dog. The dog's alright. He's gonna die soon because he's getting old.
HarryI've got a cat. She's sprightly, to say the least.
JustinI haven't seen your cat. Where's it been?
HarryShe was probably outside hunting.
Director's cut
JustinMine is the cover of our single, Fever.
Sliding doors
ReubenI guess for me, back at school, I decided to switch from Business to Music. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have joined the school band and wouldn't have met Justin, so I would probably have completely different music taste.
JustinYeah.
The big one
TeniI think they're gonna think that we were really depressed.
AllYeah.
The Quickfire Round
Vinyl or streaming?
TeniVinyl.
JustinVinyl.
HarryVinyl.
ReubenYeah, I think vinyl as well.
Early set or closing set?
TeniClosing set.
JustinClosing set.
HarryClosing set.
ReubenClosing set, yeah, definitely. You want to be remembered.
Favourite takeaway?
JustinChinese.
ReubenChinese.
TeniChinese.
HarryPizza.
The last song you listened to?
ReubenFever.
TeniYeah, Fever by SOMNIAC.
JustinYeah, Fever by SOMNIAC.
One artist everyone should know about?
ReubenWell, it's obvious, isn't it?
TeniSOMNIAC.
JustinYeah, SOMNIAC, yeah.
HarryQueens of the Stone Age.
ReubenGarage Flower.
TeniGarage Flower.
JustinPark Drive.
Most overrated thing in music?
HarryI think thinking you have to stick to everything exactly. You should be in time as much as you can, but if you're playing live, you're allowed to fluctuate a little bit with the energy and respond to the audience.
JustinYeah, playing to a click.
HarryI can see why people do it, though. You want to be tight.
TeniI think difficulty and complexity. Sometimes people on the internet want to talk about whether a song is simple or difficult, and they want to debate whether those things are the most important things. But if people enjoy the music, people enjoy the music.
A song you wish you'd written?
TeniFake Plastic Trees. What am I talking about? I'd steal Fake Plastic Trees by Radiohead any day of the week.
JustinI probably wish I'd written Rotten Apple.
HarryI wish we'd written Whole Lotta Love.
JustinOoooh, the riff's so simple but so good.
TeniMaxwell's Silver Hammer.
Worst advice you've ever been given?
Teni“Don't make more… don't post more music.”
Last thing you Googled?
TeniDirections to Ram Jam Records, Kingston.
JustinWingstop Kingston.
ReubenYeah, yeah. In fact, trying to find them in Boots, I was Googling directions to Boots.
A hill you'd die on
TeniErm, on the hatred of things like “indie poo”. I'd die on the hill that most people don't have the guts to come out and put themselves out there.
TeniSure, some people don't like some of the things that people put out into the world musically, but unless people are willing to expose themselves in the fields of things they do and put themselves out there, people shouldn't really talk.
ReubenDon't give what you can't take, basically.
What's one thing your fans would never guess about you?
ReubenWell, the five fans we have…
TeniThe five fans we have, we love you, first of all.
TeniThe amount of phone calls and messages we exchange on a week-to-week basis. Just to get the most basic decisions made. People don't realise that when you're in a band, you have to try to make decisions as a collective, and sometimes not everyone is about at a given second. You have ten minutes to make a big decision.
TeniI guess that's probably it — people don't really understand how much communication goes into it.
One last thing… what's something you'd like to say to someone who's about to give up on music?
JustinUm… don't.
HarryYeah, just keep at it, yeah.
TeniYeah, don't.
JustinDon't do it.
Somniacification
Bonus question: what's the SOMNIAC drink? After some heated negotiation involving tequila, Doom Bar and a rogue suggestion of Coca-Cola, this is the house pour. Drink at your own risk.
- ¼ pint Doom Bar
- 2 shots tequila
- 20ml blackcurrant cordial
- Coca-Cola, to top
- Ice, optional but strongly recommended
- 01Tequila
- 02Blackcurrant
- 03Doom Bar
- 04Coca-Cola
- 05Gentle stir
Why we chose it“Somniacification” is the only way to live — four different, contrasting ingredients all pushing in different directions but somehow coming together. Chaotic, weird but original. Everything SOMNIAC stands for.
SOMNIAC's whole outlook lands in one line: most people don't have the guts to put themselves out there. Between closing sets, Fever on repeat and a drink that shouldn't legally exist, they're a band who'd rather make something chaotic and honest than sit safely on the sidelines throwing stones. Don't give what you can't take.
Where to find SOMNIAC
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