Monique Pym - Reliqa 'You Only Get A First Time Once'
You always remember your first. First kiss, first car, first wall of death...But there's something extra special about releasing your first album, and this week Australia's underdogs Reliqa will unleash their debut Secrets of the Future unto the world via Greyscale and Nuclear Blast Records.Having followed the band's rise from day dot, it goes without saying this quartet have worked their butts off to get to where they are now, and in doing so, will not only pave the path for the next school of little fish in the big pond to follow but potentially draw inspiration from - to aid with their own musical conquests.Leading up to release day on Friday, May 31st, we've been sharing snippets of our chat with frontwoman Monique Pym as she offers glimpses into Reliqa HQ and how the band are not only preparing to release their first album but are also setting up the foundations for what's to come post-release.When quizzed about what she is personally excited to watch unfold with fans and critics alike (as they hear Secrets of the Future for the first time), Mon shares that much like "the nature of Reliqa's music" it's about diversity.
"Anyone going into the album - who knows who we are [and] has a little bit of a pre-existing understanding of who Reliqa are - will know to expect the unexpected. I think that it comes with the territory with our music; the sort of curve balls that we throw people.
But I suppose there will also be a lot of people who have never heard of Reliqa who are jumping into this album, which is very exciting as well. So I'm excited to see how people who don't know who we are respond to it.
I mean, obviously there's an excitement to see the OGs... That's always close in my heart. But the new audience, I'm interested to see if we win people over or if they sort of go, 'What the hell is this?' And they walk out sort of thing [laughs]."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8u5d3yOokgIt's no secret that Reliqa keeps us on our toes with every single release. We never know which direction they're heading in until the final note is played and it's something that's made the prog-metal-genre-blenders stand out amongst their peers. We asked how important it was for the band to stick to that mantra this early in their careers, to which Mon replied:
"It's super important to us to maintain this diversity and this unexpected energy because at the end of the day, our ethos as a band is open-mindedness. We like to be as welcoming of as many different ideas as we can, and that extends to our ethos at our live shows, welcoming as many different groups of people as we can. And because we maintain this open-mindedness in our music, it welcomes different fans of different genres into the listener experience as well.
There are so many opportunities in the heavy music space to bring in strands from other music communities. And that then hopefully (taking in the footsteps of bands Bring Me The Horizon), opens up the field to more mainstream spaces.
And I think that's such a great opportunity that needs to be grabbed with both hands."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHSNHHCFapAReliqa have always been ready to help the next generation take that big leap in their careers, and we turned the conversation to early advice that stuck with them, that's still as relevant now as it was in the beginning. Mon opened up about more her little fish in a big pond analogy and further expanded into where she is now as a musician.
"Honestly, something that I hold close to my heart... is to not take yourself too seriously. And it's something that I like to pass on to other people as well.
I think it's important not to be afraid to be the little fish... You are going to be feeling overwhelmed and out of your depth at times. But I think that's such a beautiful thing because there are so many things to learn from the big fish."
Historically, Reliqa made HUUUGE jumps of their own when they were included on lineups like the Full Tilt and Monolith Festivals as well as recently supporting mega acts BABYMETAL and Spiritbox - all of which are a long way from their first show we covered in 2017 at The Rhythm Hut in NSW's Central Coast town Gosford. But those offers and experiences are all part of a band's journey and every second should be lapped up according to Mon.
"Tying that into not taking yourself too seriously is just finding the joy in those rites of passage and not being afraid to be the little guy in the room because that humility and excitement to be there is infectious - it's something that spreads and people do take notice of that.
If they can see that you are genuinely stoked to be there and you're not afraid to have a little bit of a smile on your face wherever you go, they will invite you back to those spaces. And then the little fish becomes the big fish inherently. It's just about wearing your heart on your sleeve and being authentic."
[gallery type="square" ids="https://wallofsoundau.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Reliqa-6.jpg|,https://wallofsoundau.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/big-sound-reliqa.jpg|,https://wallofsoundau.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Reliqa_02.jpg|,https://wallofsoundau.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/00005_Reliqa.jpg|,https://wallofsoundau.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Reliqa-13.jpg|,https://wallofsoundau.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Reliqa-Brisbane-June-2023-12.jpg|"]The thing about Reliqa that's authentic AF is their passion and drive to release music that hits hard and from early on, they've been breaking moulds by making music THEIR way. If you didn't know, the group first burst onto the scene with 2018's Afterlight EP (nope, NOT Eventide kids!) and despite coming so far in that time, they're not afraid to remember where they came from.Much like most bands in the music business; your earliest releases can cause even the most experienced musicians to "cringe" or just straight up avoid discussing - due to the progression from where they started to where they are now. I personally think that all of Reliqa's discography fits well within their ethos of releasing diverse and unexpected music (even in the baby years), but there was a time when the group considered removing their earlier work online to shift focus onto their later material.
"We had the conversation just after, I Don't Know What I Am, when we said, 'Do we want to leave our first EP up on streaming services? Is that something we want to do or do we want to remove it?'" shared Mon before proudly exclaiming, "I have absolutely no shame or disrespect. In fact, I respect the decision of a lot of bands who do remove their early catalogue, because it is difficult to listen to [and] sometimes it doesn't reflect who you are anymore..."
Ultimately, the band agreed to keep their music online to stay true to their identity and encourage other bands to follow suit.
"Even though it's cringeworthy and painful to go back and hear your old material - and know that people are listening to it actively. While it is scary, it is kind of beautiful as well because you can only hope that they hear that and then they see the tangible progression that you've made.
And it just shows young bands, this will be your case as well. You may release something that two years on you're going to hate or you're going to think it's just so cringey. But I think that's the beauty of it because it shows you are moving, it shows you're progressing and you're never standing still.
Following the release of Secrets of the Future the band will head off on an intimate headline tour with an all-new setlist to boot. We asked Mon which song she was most excited to play live for the first time, and she pinpointed 'Sariah' as one we should learn ahead of time.
"This is the first time that we will be playing these songs live. So it's scary, but it is also super exciting. I think the song I'm most excited to play would probably be 'Sariah'. Weirdly enough, it's one of the more intimate, softer, more moody songs on the album. It's going to be something new and I'm excited to see what kind of relationship we can build with our audience through new songs like that.
It's going to be a wild ride, having all these new songs on there. The only thing I can really say is come and watch us for the first time. You only get a first time once, and I'm sure we'll be talking about this tour for a long time to come.
First headline tour. First debut album. It's a big deal for us."
Like I said earlier, you always remember your first...Interview by Paul 'Browny' Brown @brownypaul
Follow Reliqa on socials via LinkTree
Pre-order/save Secrets of the Future here
Reliqa – Secrets of the Future tracklisting
1. Dying Light2. Carve3. Killstar (The Cold World)4. The Flower5. Sariah6. Terminal7. Keep Yourself Awake8. Crossfire9. Physical10. Two Steps Apart11. A Spark12. Upside Down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rB0itFqVsTI
