James Bay on working with “hero” Brandon Flowers: “It was kind of terrifying – but that’s how it is supposed to be”

The singer, songwriter and guitarist tells us about finding a fan in The Killers’ frontman, and how his new album sees him become more "truthful" than ever before

James Bay has spoken to NME about ‘Changes All The Time’, his upcoming fourth album that sees “the guitars to come through more than they ever have done before” as he joins forces with Holly Humberstone and “hero” Brandon Flowers.

Ahead of the album’s release on October 4 (pre-order here), the singer-songwriter opened up to NME about how he wanted to introduce more “freedom” into his songwriting this time around.

“I wanted to get myself across in a more direct, truthful way,” he said. “They’re still songs that mean a lot to me and describe what I’ve experienced, but I wanted to come across as a guitar player too.

“While I’ve always played the guitar in my songs, I’ve never really released music with guitar solos on. So this time, I’ve introduced them into the songs more than before, and done it in a way where I can elaborate on them when I play live.”

As well as pushing the boundaries of his songwriting, Bay also opened up about how he hopes an upcoming show at Wembley Arena – his first headline UK arena show to date – will help fans better understand him as an artist.

Check out the full interview below, where Bay also opened up about his longtime friendship with Noah Kahan, inspiration from The Killers, and what sets Holly Humberstone apart from other new songwriters.

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NME: Hi James. You’ve described ‘Changes All The Time’ as giving you a “taste of more musical freedom” than before. What do you mean by that?

James Bay: “It’s in the sense that the focus was entirely around my experience creating and releasing music. There were times in the past when I’d make a choice to not include as many instrumental moments or I’d try to write the lyrics differently to what felt right, but this time I pushed myself to be more free.

“Making music has always been massively anxiety-inducing for me. I find it a bit terrifying that the thing I’m recording will go out there and become the thing that I’m known for. I guess that’s why I enjoy playing live. I think when people come to my shows they can understand me better as a musician. So with this album, I wanted to put something together that feels real to how I want to be perceived as an artist. That, plus I really wanted the guitars to come through more than they ever have done before.”

This year also marks a decade since early hits like ‘Let It Go’ and ‘Hold Back the River’ first put you on the map. What is your relationship with those tracks now?

“My relationship with all of my earlier discography now is that I love it in a long-term relationship way. I know them inside out and I know that I’m a better artist because of them. It might not be identical to what I’m doing now, but it is because of those that I’ve improved as a performer and a writer.

“They’ve become the backbone of my fanbase too because they’re the ones that they first connected with. I have pride in them in the way that, if my voice were to go mid-show or something, the audience would be able to sing them for me.”

You collaborated with The Killers’ Brandon Flowers to write new single ‘Easy Distraction’. What was it like to be in the studio together?

“A mutual friend of ours told me that [Flowers] was keen to work with newer artists to see what they could bring to the table. Hearing that, of course I was like, ‘Excuse me, sign me up!’ He seemed keen to do it too, and when we got together I had that same feeling as when you meet a hero – that moment where you can’t quite believe that it’s really happening. It was kind of terrifying – but that’s how it is supposed to be! It was great to feel that because, in the best way, he’s not there to mess around. He’s there to write really great stuff and he takes it very seriously.

“It was a privilege and an honour to connect as contemporaries, and it was the idea that I brought to that session which became the final song. He heard the melody and told me that it reminded him of something The Beatles would do. Now, I don’t want to overdo it, but I’ll never forget that because it was a great moment to hear that from him.

“I had already found out beforehand that he was a big fan of ‘Hold Back The River’, so it meant a lot to me to be there based on the merit of my earlier songs. To me it was so surreal that he and his bandmates knew and liked that track because I wrote it in about an hour! It always meant a lot to me, but it was amazing that it reached someone like him.”

Were The Killers a source of inspiration for you?

“Of course… their influence was inescapable! They were everywhere when I was growing up, although I was a little slower discovering their music than some of my friends. I spent a lot of my early teen years exploring artists from decades before, but their records and big hits like ‘Somebody Told Me’ and ‘Mr Brightside’ definitely did have an impact on me and some of the bands I was in when I was 14, 15, 16.

“To then be on the inside of their writing process was an incredible thing to see. There’s something quite prolific about Brandon Flowers writing a song. My process is usually that we get together and throw some ideas out there – some good, some not so much. But for him, everything he put out there was great. Yes, I was there as a fan to an extent, but even from my critical-songwriter perspective, I saw that everything from him had the potential to make a great song.”

What did you see in Holly Humberstone that made you want to bring her into the studio for the songwriting process?

“I think she’s very exciting as a songwriter. The energy between her and Brandon was different because they’re both at separate parts of their careers. There’s something a little more patient about Brandon’s process, whereas Holly approaches the writing process with a curiosity and an intrigue to explore different ways of creating a song. Also it was massively flattering because she came to the sessions already knowing a lot of my work. It’s one thing to write with another artist, and it’s another to write with an artist who has an interest in your music.”

“On paper, she’s relatively new to all this, but there is something very wise beyond her years about her ability and she’s very mature with her presence as a writer. I’m a real fan of hers and I felt privileged to be able to work with her on that level.”

The track ‘Up All Night’ sees you collaborate with Noah Kahan for the first time. We understand you have been familiar with each other’s work for a long time now?

“We do go back a bit together because we have a few different connections! We’re both signed to the same label and, back when my first album was going well, the guy who signed me introduced me to Noah’s music. He was brilliant from day one; it just took the world a little longer to understand that.

“After his second album [‘I Was / I Am’], Noah came to open for me. It’s funny to look back at that now because I recently opened for him across America. When he was on my tour, we were playing to around 3,000 people a night, then at his headline show, I was opening to 20,000 people a night! It’s been lovely to see him get recognised like that. We’ve known each other for around six years now, and Gabe Simon – who produced this album – also produced his album ‘Stick Season’. It was after noticing that connection that I decided to float the idea of working on a song together.”

You recently played three intimate gigs at London’s Troubadour, and up next you’re heading out on one of your biggest tours to date. How are you feeling about playing your first headline arena show?

“It’s a huge leap to go from playing a 100-capacity room to headlining an arena show at Wembley Arena! At this point, I’m happy to play any size venue though. I had such a good time playing those Troubadour shows because it was in those settings that I really learned how to be a performer. It’s so vulnerable, and I played a lot of open mic nights from 16 all the way up until 22, so it was really exciting to revisit those terrifying details. I can’t tell you how many times I tried to play in a place like that, being the skinny lad trying to do a song while people were just trying to have a drink.”

“I know it’ll be just as much of a crazy extreme to be in the 12,500-capacity Wembley Arena when the time comes, but it does feel like the right time to be doing it. Back around 2015, I did seven shows in London in six months which amounted to around 35,000 tickets, but it’s not the same as doing so many in one go at an arena. I’m definitely looking forward to it though because I love having an excuse to make lots of noise and go all out on stage.”

‘Changes All The Time’ is out on October 4 via Mercury/EMI. You can find tickets to James Bay’s upcoming tour dates here.