Roswell is one of the local Lebanese bands that I listened to during my teenage years. One of the very first rock gigs I attended was an event that they were a part of. After over 10 years, I am very proud and happy to see that they have come this far!
Ghaith El Horr, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of Roswell, has been with the band from the start. Over the past 10+ years, a lot has changed for the band, from lineup to popularity. They have grown big, playing handfuls of gigs across Lebanon and the Middle East. In 2006, they released their first album, "Reflections". Their second release came in 2011 and is entitled "Out of Reach". Back in October 2012, they opened for Keane, the legendary international Rock band, for their concert at Forum De Beyrouth. Most recently, in 2015, came their third release, "Unravelling New Beginnings".
With a vibrant history and a bright future, Roswell is definitely one of the best, most humble and loyal local bands out there. After attending their latest gig in Dubai, at the Music Room (which was awesome!), I got in touch with Ghaith. Here's what he had to say...
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| Roswell live at the Music Room; Dubai; May14 16 |
• What moved you to start in the music industry? How old were you when you decided this is what you wanted to do?
Personally, I've been into music ever since I was 3 years old. It is all I wanted to do. At the age of 14, I started playing drums and guitars, but I really wanted to sing, and I didn't have the opportunity to do so until I was 19 and we were forming Roswell. Singing in a band has always been a dream to me, yet when we started Roswell, it wasn't a very serious project at first. That came later on.
• How did Roswell start? Tell me a little bit about your history to date.
As I was saying, it was a fun project, we just wanted to participate in a competition. That was back in 2005. We weren't really ready but we were so excited that we ended up winning the competition, and that's when we decided to go on with it. We released our first album 8 months after that.
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| Roswell opening for Keane; October 2012; Forum De Beyrouth |
• Where do you get your music and lyrics ideas?
I have no idea. I really don't… We're not really inspired by certain situations or incidents, we just write stuff whenever we feel like it. Sometimes it's the lyrics first then the music, and other times it's the other way around.
• Is there a main message you’d like to get across through your work?
There's never one message to what we do, we just want people to enjoy our music as much as we do. Everyone can interpret each song in a different way, as long as they enjoy it. That's all what matters to us.
• How would you define your technique as a band when it comes to writing originals?
Again, no technique. Whatever happens, happens. Sometimes it's the music first then we write lyrics to it, other times it's the other way around. We don't work on themes. We write whatever comes on our minds.
• What pushed you to relocate to Dubai?
To clear that up, I (Ghaith) am the only one who lives in Dubai. Roswell is still a Lebanese-based band. I personally moved for work reasons, but i'm in Beirut all the time, and I see the boys all the time.
• What do you miss about Lebanon?
On a personal level, my parents and the food. On a band level… not much since we still do most of the things we used to do before.
• What is your favorite original song, so far?
I would have to say "This Day" from the second album. I don't know why, but I love that song. I wrote the lyrics to "This Day" literally an hour before going to the studio and recording it.
• What/Who is your inspiration?
So many inspirations, and the most important non-musical inspiration to me would be my parents. God knows what I would be doing now without them.
• What are you currently working on?
There are so many big plans for Roswell coming up, so many changes. Ever since we released "Unraveling New Beginnings" in 2015, we have been working on new material and new projects, some are big, and some are HUGE. Let's just leave it at that for now.
• What can we expect from Roswell in the near future?
As I was saying, we're already enjoying doing this. We've been traveling a lot lately, and much more to come. We are always writing new music, some to be released as singles, and others to be released as a full album later on.
• What is it like being a Lebanese talent in Dubai?
It was weird at first, but it's a really cool place considering you have around 200 nationalities. Meeting people from different cultures could be really awesome and it would help with the music on several levels. We are proud to say that we have a fan base in the UAE.
• What is something you miss about the Lebanese music scene that doesn't exist in Dubai?
Simplicity...To me music should be simple. In Dubai, I feel like there are so many rules and regulations that may take a part of the fun from the whole process.
• How do you view the Lebanese music scene?
There are always ups and downs when it comes to the Lebanese music scene. I always had something to say about it until I actually travelled and played in different other scenes...We should be proud of what we have; it's not the best, but it's really good, and I believe it's getting better… There are so many good bands and artists coming out everyday, and that's awesome.
• What words of advice can you give to aspiring singers and bands?
Very simple. Never quit. Wannabes quit; Real musicians don't. There will be soooo many ups and downs in your musical career, but you just need to embrace them all... One day you will be releasing an album in front of 15 people, another day you'll be supporting KEANE in front of 6000 people... Enjoy both!
You can check out Roswell's Facebook Page here, and their Official Website here. They're worth the listen!
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