Frontman Thom Rylance joined the Sam Steen Show on RTL Today Radio ahead of their Luxexpo date with Robbie Williams and CMAT, and the conversation quickly moved from touring to something a bit more personal.
“I was a huge Robbie fan growing up,” he said. “I used to watch videos of him and want to do what he does. And now we’re really, really close mates. We talk every day.”
That’s not the usual “we did a tour together and kept in touch” story either.
“Even just today I was texting him,” Thom said. “He was having a bit of a moment… like, ‘I don’t get why people want to come and see me.’ And I was like, because you make people feel love, don’t forget that.”
It’s a strange full-circle moment. The guy you grew up watching is now the one you’re reassuring.
“It’s mad,” he admitted. “Like… is this real life?”
For all the success the band have had in recent years, Thom doesn’t exactly sound like someone who’s fully settled into it.
“I don’t think we’re a proper band,” he said. “But then you see your name on a Robbie Williams poster and you think… well, that is proper.”
That mix of disbelief and momentum seems to be part of what makes them work.
Right now, they’re deep into making a new record, with Thom producing it himself for the first time.
“We’ve just been non-stop… like 18 hours a day in the studio,” he said. “Trying to make something good.”
And it’s not just the music.
“I came into the studio this morning with a great idea… and I had to film four things for socials before I could even sit down,” he said. “It’s just part of it now.”
It’s a different world to the one the artists they grew up with came through, but the goal hasn’t really changed.
“All I want to do is make stuff I care about,” he said. “And play shows. That’s the main thing.”
For Thom, the real payoff isn’t the charts or the big stages, it’s the connection.
“When someone says a song helped them… that’s better than anything,” he said. “That’s the best feeling ever.”
The Lottery Winners join Robbie Williams and CMAT at Luxexpo this summer, in what’s shaping up to be more than just a standard headline show.
“It’s going to be a brilliant day,” Thom said.
And given the mix of personalities on that lineup, it probably will be.
