EEP's You Don’t Have To Be Prepared opens with a compelling invitation, echoing the spontaneity and magic of its creation. Inspired by the serendipitous discovery of an old dictaphone recording from a woman named Anne, the El Paso trio crafts an album that embodies the mystery and adventure of taking leaps of faith.
The record feels like a tapestry of fragmented stories and whispered secrets, blending dream pop, shoegaze, and experimental rock. The band—Rosie Varela, Ross Ingram, and Sebastian Estrada—transforms their creative uncertainty into a captivating exploration. With no concrete plan and members doubling up on instruments after a lineup change, the trio weaves soundscapes filled with shimmering guitar lines, layered harmonies, and evocative textures that seem to unfold like memories.
We sat down with this unbecoming three piece to talk all about their new record, the story behind it and much, much more, exclusively for FLEX!
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Can you share the story behind discovering Anne's recording and how it influenced the concept of You Don’t Have To Be Prepared?
Ross: When we got the organ, I took the player home with me to make sure it worked. One of the reels it came with was Anne’s letter. When I heard it, it was such a magical window into a real life love story, that I knew I wanted to do something with it creatively. When we started writing the album, I decided to show the tape to Rosie and we used it as the central arc of the album’s storyline.
Rosie: The album is a bit like speculative fiction. We took some of the details of Anne’s recording and used that to create a storyline.
How did the absence of a drummer impact your songwriting and recording process for this album?
Ross: Without a drummer in the band, the responsibility fell on is us fill that role. We ended up playing drums ourselves in a lot of songs and sometimes sampling those drums into loops and augmenting with drum machines and samplers.
Rosie: One fun example is “Always” where we decided to play with delay on the drums to give it a Peter Gabriel vibe. On the second verse, the drums are not delayed but we sent the bass through the delay line to get a different feel.
You mention that the album incorporates dream pop and experimental rock. What were some of the key influences that shaped the sound of this record?
Ross and Rosie: There’s a pretty broad variety of influences on this record, including Karate’s album “Unsolved,” Björk, Pavement, and Portishead.
Can you elaborate on the evolution of the song “Ghost” and the themes it explores?
Ross: “Ghost” started as a lyrical fragment that I had written years ago. That fragment became most of the chorus.
Rosie: Once we got started on the verse, we wrote about the ghosts we had from previous relationships. The break feels alienated, as if the narrator is overwhelmed by the ghost and the memories.
Ross: And in the last chorus, finally finds a way to let go.
You treated the studio like a fourth member. How did this approach enhance the creativity and spontaneity of the recording process?
Rosie: One of the things I noticed is that little by little over time, we began to premeditate the the use of the gear we were using.
Ross: We tried to find the balance between inspiration and intent. We would plan and set up treatments and sounds but leave room for the performance to take its own shape. We lived by the Brian Eno maxim of studio as musical instrument without falling too far into the weeds.
What do you hope listeners take away from You Don’t Have To Be Prepared in terms of its themes of risk-taking and openness?
Rosie: I think the heart of it is that life isn’t happening to you, it’s happening for you, which is a great equaliser. Life can surprise you in ways you can’t even imagine. I think of this older woman getting a chance at true love later in life and I’m inspired by her decision to follow her bliss.
Looking ahead, how do you envision the next chapter for EEP after this album release? Are there any new directions or projects you’re excited about?
Ross: We have some big plans for album four, but album three needs to come out first.
Listen and buy 'You Don't Have To Be Prepared' on Bandcamp below:
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