Ruiz! is the mysteriously evoked moniker from Sheffield based DIY multi instrumentalist, songwriter, producer and vocalist Hugh Ruiz Robert. Recorded with just a laptop and extra live instruments, it all started in Lockdown, Ruiz’s collection of songs seamlessly transcend across 60’s rock’n’roll, electronica, punk, pop, psychedelia and dark rock, with each genre being effortlessly fused with Ruiz!’s take on life in modern times. Songs about life, love and the modern maladies between men, women and life in these strange post Covid times. Described as Iberian Psych by Sheffield’s Reverend Jon McClure, The Human Touch is Ruiz!’s 8th release on Only Fruit Recordings, and has already garnered the support of Tom Robinson’s Fresh on the Net and the BBC Introducing Mix-Tape.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Kamil) Hey Ruiz!, super nice to have the chance to chat with you. What first got you into music?
Hi Kamil. I started playing music as a five-year-old. I started with piano lessons and then took up the cello too when I was around 8. I sat Grade 5 piano at the young age of 10 and then decided to stick to four string instruments and took up the bass at 13. I’ve not looked back since on the performance side. Writing songs, performing and producing all my own music started only in 2020 when we went into lockdown. It’s been amazingly rewarding in a cathartic way but also in a blowing my mind way when I sit back and listen to my work. I don’t mean that in an arrogant way, I just wish I’d had the confidence to sing and even write my own music rather than being the bass player in loads of bands.
Describe your favourite and least favourite part about being a musician.
My favourite bit is like I said in the last question. When you complete a track and people love it, especially when some people who have known me for many many years don’t believe it’s actually me… The least favourite part is cutting through the noise and getting your music heard. As I am a one-man operation there’s a lot of admin involved be it keeping the socials updated or chasing emails. There are loads of bands and I think that money gets you further. Big Radio Stations only play music taken to them by pluggers, they cost loads of money. I could maybe do with a connected manager… lol
Your latest song is 'The Human Touch'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation?
Absolutely. I am a teacher by day, in a high school, and I noticed the world changing as we all were sent to work from home and weren’t allowed to leave our houses as Covid took over the planet. Anxiety went through the roof and friendships started to disintegrate. I noticed the world fall apart around me. I ended up getting the dreaded Covid October of 2021 and suffered from the effects of long Covid, being off work for over six months. As I lay in bed recovering I listened to the news a lot and had a lot of time to digest what had happened to me, but also to others, people dying alone, food running out in supermarkets, lack of vaccines, Covid19 conspiracies etc. The world was broken. My daily routine had stopped, I slept during the day and awoke at odd times during the night. The lyrics came to me one night when I woke up at stupid o’clock. I grabbed my phone and dictated them. At a later date I was messing around in my tiny office come studio and recorded the music in an afternoon. It all happened quite swiftly.
How do you differ from most other artists?
I am self-taught musically and I don’t write songs about specific things. I tend to write the music and then listen to it, working out what the song is about as I go. A lot of my songs seem to be messages from my subconscious brain to the conscious side. I have listened to my own songs in the past and suddenly realised what it was about!
Where are you from and do you have a stable home or do you prefer travelling?
I am originally from Barcelona in Catalunya, Spain. I grew up in Durham though, a city near Newcastle in the North East of England but have lived in the People’s Republic of Sheffield since I came to study at the University here many years ago! I live with my partner and our six-year-old twin daughters. I’d love to do a tour and travel the world though.
How would you describe the music that you typically create?
That’s a great question. It’s been described as Iberian Psych by Jon McClure of Reverend and the Makers, do you know them? I think it’s a cocktail of all my favourite bands mixed up and reinterpreted by me subconsciously. There are guitars and elements of electronica, mixed with loads of 60’s harmonies.
How do you nurture your own creativity?
I am constantly learning new skills and listening to music, new and old. I love experimenting in the studio. I use Logic Pro to record my music which is a very versatile bit of software, and recently invested in an Arturia keyboard that comes with all the software versions of all the synths ever invented. I lose hours making noises that sound like Kraftwerk, OMD, the Human League etc. I think some of my later tunes sound a bit Depeche Modesque. Not on purpose…
If you could go open a show for any artist who would it be?
I think Depeche Mode would be fun! The The, Super Fury Animals would be amazing too. Maybe even Paul McCartney… lol
Who's your ideal musician to collaborate with and why?
I would love to have collaborated with David Bowie as he was always so musically adventurous. Graham Coxon, the guitarist from Blur would be great to work with. He’s very clever and gets great sounds out of guitars. Johnny Marr would be great. Bernard Sumner from New Order too… Iggy Pop, McCartney… There are so many that I can’t really answer that. If they asked, I wouldn’t say no.
What are your plans for the future?
I’m glad you ask… My next single will drop towards the end of February, early March and is called Love is Blind, it’s a song about relationships and how they morph, and change over the years.
My sophomore album will be out at the end of May/June time. It’s recorded and I’m working on the mixing with my main man Paul Galpin, who I’ve known for many years. Once I finish a track I send it off to him for his mixing magic. The album artwork is not finished yet, that’s all done by another longtime buddy, Tony Fitzgerald who helps with the covers and video work. I do some of that too. I’m hoping to get a band together and actually do a gig or two this year… maybe at the album launch I’ll perform some songs… watch this space!
Thanks for having me.
Keep on keeping on!