The Royal Landscaping Society started in Seville (Spain) in 2012 as a solo project, then expanded into a band and eventually shrunk again into a duo with Cris Romero (vocals, guitar, synths and machines) and David Vidal (bass, bass synth). With an obvious love for the breezier side of indiepop, The Royal Landscaping Society mix crystalline guitars and primitive electronics in a sound described as “shimmery romantic pop” that has earned comparisons to The Cure and Sarah Records legends Brighter and The Field Mice, among others. The story so far includes an eponymous debut mini-album on Beko Disques in 2014, a series of compilation appearances on Little Treasure, La Souterraine, Cloudberry, Beko, February and TBTCI. In 2022 Matinée Records released brilliant Means of Production collection, that includes remastered versions of six tracks from the band’s 2014 eponymous mini-album on French label Beko Disques, a song from a special Beko Olympics compilation, the auspicious Matinée debut from the ‘Matinée Idols’ compilation in 2017, and their incredible contribution to Matinée’s World Cup EP in 2018. It also includes eight tremendous cover versions of indie classics including songs originally performed by Adorable, The Cure, Etienne Daho, Harper Lee, McCarthy, Slowdive, The Softies, and They Go Boom!. The Fractals EP, out in February, is their new three tracks single, once again on Matinée Records.

What They Say: “We started recording these songs around 2017, almost around the same time Matinée told us they were interested in releasing our music, and it was supposed to be out before Means of Production or even all of our label compilation appearances. But somehow, I was never happy with the vocals and redid them many times and that kept delaying finishing the songs. Last year, I just realised I needed to sing them in a higher key, and we decided it was a good idea to simply record everything again and redo a lot of the arrangements just to make us connect with the songs again in a fresher way, and it was the best idea ever – lots of the prettiest details came with that.“

“I guess a lot of what we do comes with repetitive simple bits that play along with each other drifting in and out of sync, it’s all a bit like clockwork, and I’ve always been obsessed with music or literature or films that work like that. The theme here just fits – every love story repeating the same patterns once and again, for better or worse.“

Their MIxtape:

Slowdive – Andalucia Plays 

Slowdive was already one of my fave bands when I was a teenager but I’m loving their comeback stuff even more than their original releases – it’s like we all grew up in parallel, and I connect with them even better with every record. This song sort of visits the softer parts of The Cure’s Faith which were also a big part in our ep, like All Cats Are Grey or The Funeral Party – and it takes place in my own part of Spain, even mentions St Christopher, which is a character I always loved apart from giving me my name.

 

The Cure – To Wish Impossible Things 

Impossible not to mention The Cure, especially Wish, which really got obsessed me enough when I was 16 to make it my first tattoo 25 years later. Untitled from our ep is very obviously influenced by this or Trust, even though it stole its name from a Disintegration song.

Corook – THEY! 

My latest obsession, it treats a topic that’s important and personal for me – “well, now I go by they” – in a sweet, fun, dorky and hopeful way with a mix of lo-fi sound and bright pop vocals that should have been part of an imaginary Indietracks 2025 lineup. Please bring back Indietracks!

Amaia – Tengo un pensamiento 

She won the biggest music talent show in Spain years ago, but she consistently keeps showing how she’s deservedly a star. This was one of the advances for her new album, a gorgeous song and her pristine, clearest voice in the world that just makes me happy every  time I hear and see her sing.

Harper Lee – Autumn 

Keris Howard is one of my fave bands/singers/songwriters (duh! As if you couldn’t tell by listening to us!), and this was the instant obvious choice to do when we got ask to be part of Matinée 100 (still upcoming!), but it ended up being in Means of Production before anything else. Again, I LOVE how the banging, mechanic beat plays with the pretty guitars, the bass and the synth strings, as if everything is going to the same place at a different pace.

Alpaca Sports – No Place I’d Rather Be

Only a totally amazing band can have the luxury of having a song as perfect as this and using it as a single B side. I’m very lucky to call them my friends and that they often let me and David be part of their live band, but there are always so many of their songs I wish we could play!

Chairlift – Bruises

I was in a moment of intense life change some years ago, right after a big personal crisis, and probably the best idea I could have was joining an amateur pop choir in a cute local music school as a way to regain the love of making music just for fun. This ended up being just an essential moment in my life, bringing me joy in so many levels, especially as new friends who I love dearly and who have changed my life for the best. This is one of the songs I discovered through them and it definitely makes me instantly happy,and I was surprised they had avoided me for so long – especilly given Caroline Polachek was one of their members.

Lightning In A Twilight Hour – The Pattern Room 

I probably don’t need to say how necessary Bobby Wratten is for me, and I’m loving to see LIATH get closer to the Broadcast/Ghost Box sound with every release. This is probably my fave of their songs, taken from their first album, and I’m already excited that there’s a new one coming hopefully soon! 

The EP:

Lead track When There’s Nothing Left To Look Forward To is a brilliantly hypnotic heartbreak song layering multiple guitars with twinkling keyboards and electronics to produce the most captivating few minutes from the band so far. Fractals perfectly incorporates the mathematical concept of repeating geometric patterns in recorded form, and was written immediately after watching a documentary about the relationship between math and nature. The EP concludes with the stripped back Untitled combining piano, six-string bass guitar, and vocals in an especially simple and effective song that will have you reaching for the replay button straightaway. The single channels the usual influence from fellow heartbreak champions Brighter, Harper Lee, and The Cure in exceptionally warm recordings with a beautiful record sleeve with a design based on the Fibonacci sequence. 

Fractals EP is out now via Matinée Records. Look HERE for more information on The Royal Landscaping Society.