Rikas are going back to where it all began. After a decade of writing, recording, rehearsing, and playing to sold-out audiences, the globally beloved German alt-pop quartet and childhood friends have unearthed and polished up some of their earliest recordings and arranged them on a brand-new EP, fittingly titled Bedroom Tapes.

The band’s trip down memory lane comes on the heels of another celebration of rock nostalgia. In summer 2025, after the release of their riveting sophomore album, Soundtrack For A Movie That Has Not Been Written Yet, Rikas reconvened in their hometown of Stuttgart for rehearsals. Amid recording new material, Rikas began filming themselves playing a series of vintage rock covers, including ELO’s “Last Train To London” and Wings’ 1980 classic “Goodnight Tonight.” The latter quickly went viral after Florence Pugh shared it on her Instagram story, and soon it earned praise from Sir Paul McCartney himself. Soon, Rikas were being invited by McCartney to record a full “Goodnight Tonight” cover.

“We were very flattered,” says bassist Sam Luca Baisch. “We hadn't recorded an official cover before, so it was without pressure. And to have Paul McCartney’s team say it's cool, and we want to support you guys on it, was a great feeling. I think it gave us confidence.”

This nostalgic moment pairs perfectly with Rikas’ next chapter, which revisits a handful of their first recordings as a band. Friends since childhood, Rikas is the long-running project of Baisch, guitarist and keyboardist Sascha Scherer, drummer Ferdinand Hübner, and guitarist Chris Ronge, each of whom contribute equally with an emphasis on creative egalitarianism. After high school, Rikas literally took to the streets, buying rail tickets and traveling all over Europe, where they busked and opened for bigger acts. 

Over the course of two LPs (their 2019 debut, Showtime, and follow-up Soundtrack For A Movie That Has Not Been Written Yet) and three EPs (2021’s Short Stories, 2022’s Goodbye Sunshine, and 2025’s Last Train To London), Rikas have built a loyal following around their busking roots and brisk, easygoing harmonies, anthemic choruses, and egalitarian style, where every member contributes equally to songwriting and shares the spotlight both in the studio and on stage.  

“They're called 'Bedroom Tapes’ because we actually recorded them in my parents’ bedroom,” Sam says, adding: “Back then, my dad had a really small office, and we had an interface where we would record the songs. We always really loved the recordings, but we never put them out.” In recognition of it being a decade since Rikas wrote these tracks, the band pulled up their old sessions and recorded live drums over them for a bit of polish. “It's a special feeling to share them with our fans. Maybe our first 100 fans and our families know all these tracks by heart, because we used to play them every time we toured, but we never formally released them.”

Sascha adds that Bedroom Tapes offers a snapshot of the band at their most carefree. “The songs have a naiveness to them. They're not like overthought in the production or the songwriting. We still put a lot of effort into every song, because we did it by ourselves. But there was no budget behind it. It was like just, ‘let's write music that feels good to us.’ That was a nice feeling back then.”

A breezy, seamless blend of vintage pop, rock, and alternative melodies, the five-song Bedroom Tapes indeed captures Rikas’ essence of tight, upbeat tempos and laid-back melodies. Foot-tapping lead single “Tequila Shots,” one of the first songs Rikas ever wrote as a group, beckons listeners to the dance floor with fluttering guitar and a call-and-response chorus.     

“‘Tequila Shots’ is kind of a story of how people tend to get married with a very romantic vision of how a wedding day can be, when in reality anything could happen – like, it could rain,” Sam says. “It's also funny because now we have a lot of friends that are getting married in our age group. A lot of people that listen to the song take it more as a celebration, but actually if you dig deeper, we’re questioning the whole concept of big-scenery weddings.” 

Another tongue-in-cheek moment arrives on the Beach Boys-esque “Mister Anxiety,” which finds Rikas working to de-emphasize their worries by making unease into a character. “Back then, it was especially about how my mom was dealing with anxiety, and how it was in my family,” Sam says. “We kind of always like to make songs that sound very happy but have darker lyrics.” Sascha adds: “To deal with anxiety, we personified it and gave it a name.”

Finally, the atmospheric surf-rock opener “Raindance” honors Rikas’ range of time-honored sonic influences. Written in the style of Manuel Galbán and Ry Cooder's 2003 album Mambo Sinuendo, “Raindance” evokes imagery of ‘60s Volkswagen busses against the California shoreline. “‘Raindance’ is a soundtrack song for a ‘70s movie – maybe an old Western, or a Tarantino film,” Sascha says. “We were also listening to a lot of Ry Cooter’s Mambo Sinuendo, which has that twangy guitar sound. It's very vintage and has a nostalgic feel.”

As Rikas prepare their full-circle moment with Bedroom Tapes, they are savoring a rare opportunity to spend time with their younger selves — the musicians bursting with energy and enthusiasm but who also just played music together because it felt good.