Ryan Potter, lead vocalist of the feel-good indie band The Hunna, is far more soft spoken than the hard-hitting, hormonal lyrics of the band’s belters suggest. We’re meeting to discuss their first ever EP, Blue Transitions, ahead of its release this November. He is thoughtful and slightly bashful as he recalls the craziest incidences of back-to-back partying and performing on the Australian leg of their overseas tours; including pre-gaming their shows with shoeys.

Like Potter, the group’s latest musical venture is surprisingly pure, particularly for a band whose sound typically straddles indie-rock and strays occasionally into metal. Out on the 14th of November, the EP reflects on the “natural ebbs and flows of both life and relationships”. Through a five-song musical journey, it articulates the ideas and feelings surrounding the decision to stay committed to a relationship as it transitions out of the “honeymoon stage”.

Sound-wise, the EP pulls influences from Bombay Bicycle Club, Kings of Leon, and from their first album, 100. It reflects on the relationships of the band: with each other, with partners, and with the industry; pulling lessons learnt from the professed “rollercoaster ride” of their career and transcribing them to five songs that reflect their growth. It is pleasing, refreshing in its emotional honesty, and still classically The Hunna. For Potter, the EP is a nod to each member’s growth over the ten years that they’ve been together. He muses that: “We’ve grown and changed [at least somewhat as people] over the years… I’m not sure if we are that much wiser but we’ve definitely grown”.

“The result is pleasing, refreshing in its emotional honesty and still classically The Hunna”

According to band’s frontman, Blue Transitions speaks to those “transitional points” in relationships, and choosing to continually make the same commitment to a relationship when “the going gets a little tougher”. The album is an exercise in thinking about how to move forward from such moments. Each song figures as a jigsaw piece within the puzzle of uncertainty, doubt, and eventual clarity about what next step to take.

‘Bloom’ muses whether to stay in a relationship at a crossroads and aim to “bloom and breathe,” or whether it’s better to go separate ways. It’s tone is similar to their earlier track ‘Lover’ off the Dare album, and pairs beautifully as an updated follow up to the conundrums of love. ‘Tough Love’ feels more quintessentially The Hunna, with a mood-elevating soundtrack while musing on the “gritty part[s]” of a relationship. Jack Metcalfe’s drums shine in ‘Hide & Seek,’ which feels like their most alt-rock song. Overall, the EP offers more emotional maturity and lyrical elegance than their previous work, without losing The Hunna’s classic indie edge.

Each song on the EP has an accompanying music video, whose linked storylines reaffirm the motif/idea of the songs and videos as threads in an episodic tapestry. Each video was shot by the New York filmmaker Will McCauley across the pond. On my first watch, I’m immediately reminded of Conan Gray’s Wishbone trilogy of music videos, featuring actor Corey Fogelmanis.

After ten years together, Potter describes his fellow band members as “brothers and best friends”. All three were born in the same hospital and grew up together through the messiness of school and adolescence in Watford. Potter credits their “fraternal-adjacent” bond as the key to surviving the music industry and to creating their art. He maintains that their closeness has allowed them to consistently and successfully create in “collaboration not competition” and recognises the rarity of their dynamic in an often cutthroat industry. The years they’ve spent as best friends mean that “we understand each other, who does what, and who won’t do interviews et cetera”.

“Potter credits their ‘fraternal adjacent’ bonds as the key to surviving the music industry and to creating their art”

The central question of the EP – whether a relationship can bloom after it changes – reflects a plethora of shifts in The Hunna’s personal lives. The album grew out of a decision to step away from both their old label and management to go independent. After collaborating with labels who urged them to be more hands-off, the band took a collective decision to try their own hand at production. Potter explains that: “[We] dropped everything and went for the unknown… changing our management, label and booking agent in one”. He explains that they felt a new maturity as musicians and felt ready to take on the production themselves rather than rely on a label and its visions “put onto you”. He jokes that: “You don’t want too many cooks in the kitchen,” and affirms that after going independent, “we are now in a place to create from the most real place that we’ve ever been in”.

“We are now in a place to create from the most real place that we’ve ever been in”

Though they’ve completed several albums now, Blue Transitions is their first EP. Potter says that they were not mentally or emotionally ready to create an album after a whirlwind of tours and the last album. To me, The EP is a reflection of a very grounded band, who, despite completing several packed out tours and partying away the nights as one might easily envision, are rooted in wanting their music to work through and reminisce on their own challenges of personal growth. Indeed, Potter brands the songs as: “a collection of reminiscing,” trying to make sense of experiences that are relatable and universal. Its themes of emotional struggle and honesty are refreshing to a pop world dominated by songs about sexual gratification, the heady pursuit of a crush and the undying love of someone. Although all of these have their rightful place in the music scene, it’s reassuring to find a band so open to discussing the tribulations of love.

The Hunna are bringing Blue Transitions and their usual repertoire of mood-boosting indie bangers to Cambridge Junction on the 24th of November, as part of a five-gig tour of the UK. Will they do more shoeys on stage? Potter makes no promises. The Hunna might be growing up, but they’re not slowing down.