Neu Vaults: “Right from day one, we were gonna make it hard for ourselves”

Vaults’ collective sound is one of simple, affecting songwriting linked up with dramatic but not overbearing backdrops. Every song they’ve released so far sounds like a hit, by intention or default, and for everyone involved this looks like the beginning of a bright new chapter.

In this month’s lead Neu feature for DIY’s September issue, the London trio discuss how they set a few simple but strict rules before making their bold first steps. “Right from day one, we were gonna make it hard for ourselves,” jokes Ben Vella, referring to the meticulously-arranged string section Vaults boast when playing live.

“We knew we were gonna have strings at every show. It was so integral to the ethos of the band. It’d be such a shame to have a backing track or none at all. It has to be done.”

Forming at the tailend of 2013, the trio have since inked a deal with Virgin / EMI, and they claim signing to a major’s had no detrimental effect on their grand plans. “We’ve been really lucky with the label. They haven’t led us in the slightest musically. We were all really surprised. We almost thought as soon as we went into the A&R meetings, we’d be told to scrap this and that. But they were excited about us doing what we wanted to do,” says Ben.

Tonight (3rd September), Vaults cement their fledging live rep with a sold out show at London’s ICA Theatre.