Rebelution Live in St Augustine

Kicking off their Good Vibes Summer Tour at the Amp, Rebelution’s founder and bassist, Marley D. Williams sat down with us to talk about the band’s “Live in St. Augustine” album.

“It checks all the boxes,” Williams said when asked why they chose to record their live album at the Amp last September. “The size of it’s great, the surroundings are great, the history… There’s posters backstage and you see all of the great bands that have played here… It makes for a great backdrop… and it sounds good, too.”

When it came to writing the album, Williams says their lead singer, Eric Rachmany, found a lot of inspiration in their downtime during the pandemic.

“When he gets a creative burst, a lot of things will fall into place,” Williams said. “This last album Eric really led the charge…. He wrote a lot on his own and [the pandemic] really gave him time.”

Williams explained that sometimes it can be hard going from touring all summer long to then trying to write more music, but the pandemic was the creative break the band needed to spend some time apart and work on their most recent songs.

Recording everything during a live concert, the bassist said it helped having one other live record under their belt, but they definitely felt the pressures. Their previous Live recording was in the infamous Colorado Red Rocks Amphitheatre back in 2015.

“In the back of your mind there’s a little bit more of a voice going, ‘Don’t mess this up,’ but then you’ve got to fight it… We all felt that, but I think we’re all pretty confident in our ability and how much we rehearse and put time into these songs.”

One of the band’s goals on tour is to capture the different celebrities that are fans of Rebelution and the interactions they have with them when they go to their shows.

“We want to document and share. I feel like this genre is a little bit of an underdog and I think it needs to be seen and heard more. When people come, they’re hooked forever,” the band’s founder said.

Williams said he’s looking forward to their shows at Red Rocks, The Greek Theater and making stops in Boston and a few different cities in Texas. As far as when they’ll be back in St. Augustine, he says they’ll hopefully be back within the next year!

 “Live in St. Augustine” is available on all streaming platforms, and to follow along with the band on tour, follow them at @rebelutionmusic on Instagram.

Tucker Joenz