[INTERVIEW] Folk Pop Trio Raynes Talks Soaring Debut Single "Lemon Drop"

In the 21st century, the power of social media has no limits.

In fact, it was social media that brought folk pop band Raynes together.

In search of a third member for their new project, North Dakota natives Mat Charley and Joe Berger took to Instagram and eventually met British singer Mark Race, who became the last piece of the puzzle they needed to be complete.

Since forming as Raynes, the trio has created an addicting blend of pop and Americana, incorporating folk instrumentation and influences that range from Coldplay to the Beach Boys while exploring the human spirit through engaging, motif-rich stories.

Raynes recently released their debut single “Lemon Drop,” a soaring track produced by Mighty Mike (Lana Del Rey, The Neighbourhood, Dua Lipa) and mastered by Joe LaPorta (David Bowie, Vampire Weekend, Shawn Mendes) that examines the band’s bid for fame in Los Angeles and the ups and downs of that journey. They sat down with Musical Notes Global to talk all about “Lemon Drop” and more. Check out the full interview below.

MNG: You mentioned that the three of you met under fairly crazy circumstances. You've got us curious--how did you all meet?

Raynes: Joe and Mat met in university about five years ago and started playing and writing together. Before too long we realized that we would need a singer if we wanted to start a real band, so we started looking on the internet to see if we could find anyone. After weeks of scrolling through Instagram and searching hashtags, we finally stumbled across a video of Mark singing a cover of a Years and Years song and fell in love. We figured it was quite a long shot since he lived in England and we were in LA, but Mat reached out to him and asked if he’d be interested in joining the group. Mark was immediately on board, and ten days later he was on a plane to LA to visit the team. We all clicked immediately, both socially and musically, and Mark decided to be a part of the band.

MNG: How did you all land in Los Angeles?

Raynes: Before Mark was a part of the project, Mat and Joe had been out to LA a few times to play some small shows and meet people. When Mark signed on, there was really no question as to where we should be. LA is where all the action is for a pop band.

MNG: With Mark being from the UK and Mat and Joe being from North Dakota, what have you learned from each other so far that you think has contributed to your development as a band?

Raynes: To be honest, there haven’t been many wild cultural differences or anything like that, even with us being from different countries. Musically, though, we have all learned a lot from each other. Each of us has different and varied musical influences, preferences, and instincts, and one of the best parts of being together has been sharing those with each other and developing a unique and cohesive sound from them.

MNG: What are you most excited about as you prepare to release your debut single?

Raynes: We’re most excited just to finally have our music out there. We’ve been a band for over two years, and in that time we’ve written and recorded dozens of songs, so it feels amazing to be approaching the point where people can actually hear them.

MNG: What is the story behind "Lemon Drop"?

Raynes: Lemon Drop is basically about moving to LA to try and get famous. And a few other things, but mostly that. It’s sort of a funny song to us, because none of us are really that interested in throwing our lives away on drugs and partying or any stereotypical Hollywood excess, but it’s just fascinating to be at least adjacent to that kind of life. It’s a shock, but it’s a rush, and we love it.

MNG: How do you think it brings your individual experiences together into one sound/story?

Raynes: Mat wrote the lyrics to Lemon Drop just a couple months after Mark had flown out to LA, so it was very early days for the band and everyone was pretty excited––chasing fame in California was very much on our minds. So it’s definitely a reflection of our shared experience in that sense.

MNG: How do you hope listeners respond to the song?

Raynes: We hope they love it! If you’re making art, you’re also accepting the fact that you can’t control its interpretation after it’s in the public eye, so we don’t necessarily have any particular thing that we hope listeners get from it. We just hope it reaches people and affects them, hopefully in a positive way.

MNG: How do you think it gives listeners a preview of what's to come from Raynes?

Raynes: We’ve been talking about releasing Lemon Drop as our first single since it was written, because we feel like both sonically and lyrically it’s a very solid first impression of who we are. It contains many of the elements that we incorporate in most of our songs: folk instrumentation, interesting lyrics, catchy melodies, and a big hook. So, if you like Lemon Drop, chances are good that you’ll like what comes next!

Listen to “Lemon Drop” below.