Monarch Artist Feature: Henry Stansall of The Ruen Brothers

By Kelsey Knott Photos By Matt Johnson 

Allow yourself to be transported through the sound of the Ruen Brothers, an international band from Scunthorpe, England, who’ve played major world stages like Glastonbury, Coachella, Bonnaroo, Edmonton Folk Fest, and more! 

Encouraged by their grandmother, who always regretted not learning the piano, Henry and Rupert Stansall learned guitar in their youth. “As soon as we learned to play, we started trying to write songs.” With supportive parents who often played American artists at home, the Ruen Brothers started gigging the pub circuit as young teens in their steel town on the northeast coast. Moving to London at 20, they recorded music in their tiny apartment, a passion of Rupert’s from the four-track tape days when he was 11 to the GarageBand and Logic era in their early adulthood. Their song “Aces” was picked up by BBC Introducing, finding its way to Zane Low, who played it back-to-back three times on Radio 1. “We went from nobody really wanting to know us and telling us we weren’t ready yet to the whole industry wanting to sign us.” Through their label, Republic, they connected with Rick Rubin to make their first record, as he shared their vision to create something cool and brought in amazing players like Chad Smith from the Chili Peppers and Matt Sweeney. They feel fortunate in their ebb-and-flow music journey, and each record since their first returns to their roots of self-producing and recording. 

With an ethos of creating transportative music, Henry stays inspired by film and visual media. “The reverbs are intentional. Listeners close their eyes, and maybe they’re in a huge, cavernous outdoor space, or standing in front of the ocean. Awooo explores that, more than any other record.” Writing daily and spending time outdoors is also key: “In natural environments, your mind becomes neutral and balanced. Walking or running through the woods helps the creative brain because you come back refreshed with a different perspective. It’s giving you a chance not to think, and when you’re in the process of not thinking all too much, naturally, the ideas start to come, and they start to bloom.” Henry and Rupert tend to write separately and come together with their best ideas to create consistency within the record, and this workflow can produce quick results, such as their upcoming lead single, “Sitting at the Station,” which came together in less than half an hour. 

Of the cities in which they’ve resided, this city feels the most like their home in Scunthorpe. Unlike the chaos and fast pace of larger cities, Louisville allows for respite, making room for energy focused on being purely creative. Furthermore, the Monarch creates a no-pressure community space made for listening, supporting, and enjoying. “I don’t know anywhere as unique. Mark immediately welcomed me and made me feel at home. There are so many resources here for local artists and touring artists, and it encourages creativity, growth, experimentation, and collaboration.” Henry helps further the space’s growth with his production of The Monarch Living Room session series.

While the industry evolves and changes, Henry urges creatives not to force themselves to fit into the industry model, as it can lead to a loss of creative transparency. “Create things you want to create and enjoy creating. If you make something you like and think is cool, just share it, and keep doing that consistently. Small bits of momentum will build if you stick with it, and when you do something good, the industry will come to you. The only thing that should really be evolving and changing is you, as a creative.” Stansall hopes listeners feel stirred emotions from experiencing their music, and receiving messages from fans about their songs helping them through tough times makes it feel worthwhile to the Ruen Brothers.

On October 17th, the Ruen Brothers release their fourth studio album, Awooo, three days after their single “Sitting at the Station.” Check out ruenbrothers.com for upcoming shows this fall!