Rules is a UK-based electronic music artist recognized for warm and ethereal sounds, blending house music influences within an emotionally driven and euphoric soundscape.
Photo credit: Rules – Official
With the release of ‘As Soon As I Get Home’, Rules opens a personal chapter shaped by travel, memory, voice, and the idea of returning to a place of comfort. Across six tracks, the EP connects dancefloor energy with intimate songwriting and a strong sense of nostalgia.
In this conversation, Rules speaks about the meaning of home, his relationship with melody, and how his background as a saxophonist, pianist, producer, and DJ informs his approach to electronic music.
EG: Hi Rules, welcome to EG. It’s a pleasure to have you here. How have you been, and where are you speaking to us from today?
Rules: Hey, thanks for having me. I’m currently speaking to you from a cafe in the heart of London, Fitzrovia. I’m feeling really good, thank you. I’ve been doing a week of writing sessions in studios here this week, which is where you’ll find me at my happiest.
EG: Congratulations on the recent release of ‘As Soon As I Get Home’. The title alone feels intimate and reflective. What does that phrase mean to you personally, and why did it feel like the right name for this chapter?
Rules: ‘As Soon As I Get Home’ felt like a moment and feeling I’ve felt increasingly while working and touring away from home, and I feel like the music I listen to during those times traveling really connects deeply in my memory and associates with all the places I’m visiting.
EG: Throughout the EP, there’s a recurring sense of nostalgia, transition, and emotional longing. Was there a particular moment or period in your life that inspired these songs?
Rules: There’s a specific feeling I was definitely chasing, and that is definitely connected to certain moments and events I’ve had over the years. If I can summarize those together, they are the moments, often with close friends, where everyone is present, connected, in the moment, and there is this excitement within that, with a combination of euphoria, pensiveness, reflection, and joy.
EG: As a saxophonist, pianist, producer, and DJ, do you experience those different sides of yourself as separate creative identities, or are they all part of the same conversation? Do they require different mindsets?
Rules: That’s a really interesting question. I would say that early on they were definitely all quite separate identities, but as I’ve been experimenting more with my music, especially on the live and touring side, this is something that I am striving to bring together and connect. It’s something I’m really aware of going into working on my next album and tour, and seeing the whole project as a whole representing all sides of me.
EG: All six tracks feature vocals, which give the project a very human and personal quality. What role does the voice play in your music, and what can a vocal communicate that an instrumental track sometimes can’t?
Rules: An admission I have is that as I grew up listening to music, lots of soul, R&B, Motown, etc., I didn’t listen to the lyrics of those records at all until I was well into my teenage years. For me, the melody was what made me connect with the songs. It was always based on emotion, and as a saxophone player, maybe that makes even more sense. So I think the voices that feature on those records, and mine most importantly, hold a unique tone and quality that has such deep emotion and soul within them, and that’s what connects for me. When I’m producing around those incredible voices, it’s always to try and reinforce those emotions in the deepest possible way. And so I believe an instrumental track can absolutely deliver this if it has melody. I just think that the human voice is the most real and connecting instrument for me.
“Where ‘As Soon As I Get Home’ focuses on being away and missing home, perhaps my next album can explore the opposite side of that”
EG: Many producers begin with machines and later introduce live elements. Your relationship with instruments came first. How has that shaped the way you approach electronic music?
Rules: Coming from a writing background, I often approach writing and producing my music from the ground up, often with piano and vocals, and endless voice notes. Because I believe that by doing that, even when it’s produced up, if you strip it back down, it still has a strong identity, and for me those are the characteristics of the best songs that stand the test of time.
EG: There’s often a tension between making music for the dancefloor and making music that reflects genuine personal experiences. How do you navigate that balance when writing?
Rules: I think it goes back to presenting the same feelings in both places, something I’m definitely aware of when writing. I’m always imagining it, without being cliché, but two people dancing together in the middle of a dancefloor with the rest of the world blurred out around them. And at the same time, it’s also tied for me to the same feeling you can have when you have your headphones on on the tube, or driving on a road trip somewhere without a destination. If I can make a record that fits all of those experiences, then I feel like that music has much more of an impact and a stronger connection with the listener.
EG: The title track, ‘As Soon As I Get Home’, suggests ideas of belonging, comfort, and perhaps even escape. What does the idea of “home” mean to you today?
Rules: Home for me is definitely friends, family, and comfort. It’s a balance I’m always trying to tightrope with while being away from home, as within this industry you are often outside your comfort zone doing things you wouldn’t normally do with a lot of independence. I absolutely love both of these sides of my life, but there has to be a balance in order to be able to stay centered and fulfilled. Where ‘As Soon As I Get Home’ focuses on being away and missing home, perhaps my next album can explore the opposite side of that.
EG: A lot of contemporary dance music focuses on immediacy and impact. Your work often feels more patient and emotionally driven. Do you consciously resist certain trends, or is that simply where your instincts lead you?
Rules: I think this is just me being authentic and following my genuine love for the type of music I’m making. I have felt pressured in the past to change things, whether that’s following current trends or sounds, etc., but I have tried my best to stay true to myself. I’m quite a patient and emotionally driven person, so maybe that’s also a reflection of my personality.
EG: As someone who performs, produces, and writes, what part of the creative process still excites you the most after all these years?
Rules: Definitely writing and producing. Coming up with those ideas and getting there with a song is the best feeling in the world. When I’ve got there with a track and “finished” a demo, you’ll often find me at 2 AM dancing in my home studio with a massive smile on my face.
“The human voice is the most real and connecting instrument”
EG: Finally, when listeners reach the end of ‘As Soon As I Get Home’, what do you hope stays with them after the music fades out?
Rules: I think that the combined feeling of warmth, euphoria, and emotion. Also, a familiarity. I often get people messaging me about how certain songs connect with them to the point they keep coming back to them in certain situations in daily life, and the fact that these tracks can have a place and home in people’s lives for me is the absolute reason why I’m doing this.
EG: Thank you so much for your time. We wish you all the best with the release and everything ahead. Take care!
Rules: Thank you so much! These questions already have me thinking so much about what’s next following this chapter.
Rules’ ‘As Soon As I Get Home’ is out now. Stream and download your copy here.
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