The song draws from a significant chunk of the band's history. Guitarist Mathers and Firmin first started working on the guitar riff back in 2011, initially hoping to have it finished in time to support Russell Lissack of Bloc Party at a show at London's Scala. That didn't happen. Fast forward to Mathers sitting on a marble step near the Foro Italico in Rome, and suddenly the whole thing clicked into place.
Unquiet Nights spent six years based in Italy, and Rome clearly left its mark. The city's relationship with time, history, and art runs through "Last Days of Rome" from start to finish. Mathers has talked about how sitting on walls and marble steps around Rome absorbed him, describing it as a place where "you become aware of the vastness of time and how art lasts longer than cynicism." The song references William Wetmore Story's Angel of Grief sculpture in the Non-Catholic Cemetery, where Shelley and Keats are buried. The chorus encapsulates that feeling of standing at a crossroads with history: "This could be the start of an empire, or maybe these could be the last days of Rome."
The finished track was recorded at Credential Sound, the band's own studio in Northern Ireland. Unquiet Nights formed above Belfast's Limelight club in 2010 and picked up early support from BBC Radio 1 and BBC 6 Music. Their Italian years brought them touring across nine countries, national television appearances, and a devoted Italian fanbase. Sky Italia even used their song "George Best City" as the soundtrack to a recurring documentary series.
"Last Days of Rome" marks the first in a planned run of new singles from the band. You can find it on Spotify, YouTube, Soundcloud, Bandcamp and all the usual spots.
