Concrete examples of cohesion in Australian band culture today aren’t as common as you’d first consider. Gyroscope however is one band who fit the category perfectly. Together 12 years, they found their beginnings as 17 year old school mates. Hailing from the Eastern Suburbs of Perth in West Australia they’ve worked harder than most to establish themselves alongside heavyweight Oz rock acts such as Wolfmother and Grinspoon. Today, they remain as the original outfit (minus one), something the latter bands cannot boast. A gradual ascendancy over this period has afforded them a significant following; particularly among the valuable Triple J live music listener and the pub-rock patrons. This appeal has allowed them the grace to evolve and experiment with their sound. They themselves are critical of their variety-filled career, conceding that 2008’s offering Breed Obsession could have been from a variety of their previous work, the result fragmented direction.
According to Zoc (Zoran Trivic), the guitarist in the band, the lads were so comfortable with the idea of cohesion, especially as being representative of both their performance side and personal lives, they decided to adopt it as the title for their upcoming fourth album.
“Cohesion was with the song writing between the four members of the band and our lives in general,” says Zoc.
“I just got married, Dan’s married, Rob’s got his girlfriend and we’ve all got friends and family back in Perth and to take off three months at a time, to the UK or US, you’ve got these extra stresses. We’re not 17 anymore, so cohesion was about making sure everything in your life - the music and everything – was working together,” he continues.
Seated and enjoying a well-earned afternoon Corona on the deck of their Brisbane-home (The Point Apartments, Kangaroo Point), Brad Campbell (bassist)and Zoc aren’t showing signs of fatigue. This is despite day one of the five day, fly-by-night promo tour (taking in Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Alice Springs, Brisbane and Perth probably should have left them bleary-eyed from lack of sleep. Take the freak storm which left them grounded on the tarmac at home for three hours to their less welcoming delayed arrival into Brisbane at three in the morning – no cabs at the closed airport, aswell a day spent trekking across town and to the Gold Coast for commercial radio promo and other press engagements, the two present as remarkably composed creatures.
Laid back, these instantly likeable guys, settle quickly into a very ‘cohesive’ conversation style, bouncing from one to the other with ease, at times it’s as if they’re one person in speak-sync. Clearly no novices to the game they play, both are image-aware, while remarkably individual in their looks. Zoc as the immaculately dressed, beret to the side and sunglass affixed, contrasted alongside the wild and wiry (Sideshow bob-like) mopped Brad whose piercing blue eyes are intent on maintaining eye contact there is never any question that these two aren’t sure who they are or what they’re about.
The intensity and passion the close like brother musos emanate serves them well both in their on-stage and off- personas. Visibly upbeat and excited to tell the journey behind this album, their pride for it is immediately evident. And why shouldn’t it be - their personal sentiment is it’s the best thing they’ve produced yet. Fortunately this time around the four were lucky enough to be offered a salary by their newest label recruit, so the pair admit the ride is one they are completely appreciative to be on.
“People go you know we’ve seen you on tele and on the radios and you’ve got a couple of successful records, you guys must be raking it in, but well the story of Australian music is you’ve got to work so hard for so long for so little return. You’ve just got to love the music you know and we’re not rich or famous or anything but to be able to make music for a living is all we’ve ever wanted to do,” Zoc says sincerely.
The group, who share studio quarters with Perth all-stars, Karnivool, and End of Fashion, were disciplined in their approach. Seeing their reprieve from their ‘boring’ day jobs as time to get serious and treat the making of their music like a ‘real job.’
“We were fairly strict on ourselves, which is good, because otherwise it’s pretty easy to get lazy and drink beers every day, but if you treat it like a job it was worth it you know,” says Brad.
Amidst the long hours spent writing and demo-ing in the studio – a flurry of chicken feathers escaping through the window of the nearby chicken factory - the band produced at least 30 quality tracks which gave them as Brad suggested room for b-sides if they needed them.
The progression then from demo to recording presented an unbelievable (even to the group) opportunity, one which they dreamed of as school boys when first starting their band. Gil Noughton, producer to bands including Queen, The Pixies, Coldplay, Oasis and idols to Gyroscope the Foo Fighters, had agreed to take on the boys and their project.
“He’s been on our list since we started, to get him on this record was pretty special,” says Brad. “He’s the one producer ever since we were kids (Foo Fighters: Colour and the shape) favourite records, so one day if we can make a record with this guy, “ Zoran adds.
Absolutely over the moon with their new producer, the boys hopped a plane (at Gil’s request) to Wales and found themselves entering the renowned Rockford Studios, a music museum for any avid music fan, none of it’s memorabilia and heritage was lost on a zealous Zoc. “It was cool. We’d be working away and someone would go, ‘Oh yeh, you know that tree out there, that’s where Coldplay came up with Yellow on their album Parachutes. And that wall over there is where Liam used to sit and write his lyrics and we call it the ‘wonder wall’ because that’s where he came up with Wonder Wall.’ You know there was just so much history.”
The pinnacle of this nostalgic studio for Zoc was in fact playing keys for a couple of the songs on the same piano Freddy Mercury had done for Bohemian Rhapsody. A solid eight or nine weeks in the studio (with the exception of one night out to London to be Gil’s wingman to the touring Pixies who’d requested Gil to attend their show) and the band’s dedication to the record was beginning to pay dividends. Praise from the taskmaster and ‘dad figure’ Gil unexpectedly delivered the lads to top two bands to work with.
“He did tell us that we were the most hardworking band, most prepared band that he’d ever work with and we were like, are you serious – actually second most, equal first with Dave Grohl.”
As the cloak is lifted on Cohesion the album the lads remain firm that they’re committed to Australia because their Australian fanbase is established it doesn’t make sense to leave that all behind. Besides it adds to the overall sense of cohesion of the band is shooting for
“That’s the whole idea of the album, feels like everything is working properly now, everyone knows their role sort of better at what they’re doing and I don’t know everything just sort of seems right at the moment.”
Gyroscope’s fourth release: Cohesion is available through Universal, www.getmusic.com.au
Sid O’Neil is as typical Gen Y, as they come. Creative, artistic and entrepreneurial he’s also susceptible to losing motivation and struggles to pay attention to the things that don’t matter to him. As the front man to original Melbourne-based trio The Vasco Era he’s currently erring on the side of stimulated, but it’s not because of the music he and his band mate’s brother Ted O’Neil and Michael Fitzgerald recently produced. Rather it’s the shift in perspective he’s undergone while waiting for their latest album to be released.
At just age 23 Sid claims to have undergone a quarter-life crisis attributable he believes to the sophomore album (recorded almost a year ago) being delayed for release. Too much time spent wondering how it would pan out prompted him to make some radical life decisions. Those choices have proved to have profound implications on his day-to-day to living.
“I thought maybe I should quit being a musician and do something meaningful with my life and I just took a plane to Queensland the next day stayed on people’s couches and stuff, then I ended up with a girlfriend and I’m studying social work now, by correspondence from a uni just near Byron so I’m a bit more balanced these days,” he said.
It’s obvious as he speaks in a dopey, freshly woken voice he’s recently enjoyed either an afternoon kip or a ‘morning’ wake-up call mid afternoon. Sid oscillates between excited and apathetic when he’s asked about The Vasco Era’s latest record Lucille. “We recorded it like a year ago, so it’s a weird thing, our excitement about it isn’t so relevant anymore.
“All of the responses we’ve had and the reviews about it so far have been really good, so it’s kind of exciting to get that, to get some credit, cos our last one didn’t review nearly as well.
Sid is fairly impatient for the release to occur so he and the lads can get on and start a new project.
A brief history lesson for those unfamiliar with The Vasco Era’s catalogue, they released a debut LP : Oh we do like to be beside the seaside (no doubt referencing their Apollo Bay roots) back in 2007 and then have not really been heard of since, reasons for which Sid is matter-of-fact in explaining. Basically his creativity was being compromised.
“I was homeless in Melbourne, trying to write songs, getting really pissed and taking lots of drugs and those things don’t go together cos you’re not that creative when you’re taking heaps of ecstacy unless you’re the Happy Mondays.
“I have spent a lot of time not making anything good up, so that’s why it took so long really.”
Lucille (as an album) takes a narrative approach, following the lives of two central characters, Lucille and Sam. The idea for this record he claims was generated by a chance visit to a town in Northern NSW at again a time when he was struggling to come up with ideas for songs.
“I went there for a party for two days, cos it’s like a place I wouldn’t usually go and it was something different, and I met this couple.
“She’s a stripper, and I don’t know if he was like religious or priest dude and he was acting fairly jealous and he didn’t act like he liked what she was doing but he liked her and that’s where the idea sort of came from.”
The fruits of his findings are cleverly expressed via a bluesy baseline and rockabilly sensibility. Despite Sid’s noticeably laconic nature, he’s assured of his ability to make good music. Though he will admit the ability is spread evenly amongst the three members. “Ted’s [older brother] got better general knowledge and he’s probably academically a little bit more talented but musically I’m more creative than him.
“If you ask him any question about anything he’ll know the answer but … I’m better at making up songs,” he laughs.
Whereas, Michael, he’s completely different, he’s technical, he went to the conservatorium in Melbourne, to learn about the f…cking xylophone and I don’t know, triangle or whatever you do in the orchestra, symphony and stuff. “He’s obviously talented in a whole other way, the technical kind of way so it works pretty good the three of us, cos I’m not technical by any means.”
When broached with the concept he’s talented, Sid pauses and after some protesting awkwardly accepts the compliment. Choosing instead to reference musical genius, John Lennon’s belief that there is no such thing as talent you just do things for a long time and you end up pretty good at it. “I was good at drums when I was a kid but I didn’t think I’d be a good guitarist which is what I do in this band, it’s more just that keeping on doing it, for ages.”
As the trio prepare to tour their record, he’s at peace with fame as a concept, and reveals he’s not so much interested in being recognised, but that he’s keen to be recognised for his music and has adjusted his expectations for his musical career trajectory. “I’m not so reliant on what people say or how the music goes really, which is a better balance especially in Australia to try and be a musician for a living, it doesn’t work, unless you want to make music to deliberately sell records, like deliberately cap your music which I really don’t want to do.
“Unless you’re one of those that makes music by compromising what you want to say and I couldn’t live with myself if that happened, so I’m going to be a social worker and help other people that take drugs.”
The Vasco Era take their new album, Lucille on the road throughout April /May. Visit www.myspace.com/thevascoera for dates and purchase their album via Universal’s www.getmusic.com.au.
The saying: ‘life’s a beach’ easily applies to Nick Warren DJ producer of one of the UK’s top progressive music acts – Way Out West. He’s lucky enough to have enjoyed longevity in a musical landscape which changes it’s allegiance like people change their hairstyles.
He’s probably best known for his early career-makings as tour-dj to the seminal trip-hopsters (from the early 90s) Massive Attack. He has since carved his niche as a producer/dj under the guise of Way Out West. Along with his buddy in producing Jody Wisternoff they are now enjoying their sixteenth year of success which he attributes to the nature of their relationship.
“We don’t see that much of each other outside of the studio, so we don’t sort of go to the pub together or have nights out together and wake up feeling like shit, so it works really well. We’ve lasted longer than most marriages, he laughs.
“People have asked me before if I’d like to work with someone else it’s kind of like asking me if I’d like to sleep with someone else if I was with my wife, you don’t do that do you? So no, I’m more than happy with Jody, so while it works well we’ll stay together. “
On the eve of their imminent tour to Australia (where they’ll play as headliners for the Future Music Festival) Warren is mindful that a resurgence in progressive – house and trance is well and truly underway and thinks it’s got everything to do with the fact they play their own music live but also the crowds are more discerning these days.
“I think it’s a Backlash to the whole minimal sound which appeared. I think people wanted some melodies, some bass-lines and some energy back into it without it being cheesy,” he concludes.
Currently reaping the rewards of their latest offering, We love Machine (Warren believes has been received really well and is reflected in sales) the duo have decided to get the whole album remixed which promises some surprises in itself.
“I think we’ve got something like 15 remixes coming out in either March or April, as well our track The Gift – Sony is re-releasing that I think in April so there is some new mixes, some new dub-step mixes, Logistics (producers) have done an amazing drum and bass remix.”
Warren eludes to more studio time once the European summer is behind them because there’s no point waiting another three years in his mind if you’re inspired right this minute.
“I think we’ll make some singles, which will take like two tracks and much less time to do, we’re going to do some movie stuff, I’ve got some best-ever solo material this year to release and, Jodie’s got some solo stuff coming out also.”
Returning to the opening statement ‘life’s a beach’ if you’re perplexed because Warren appears too busy to be relaxing beach side, fear not he’s found the best blend of both worlds.
He’s recently completed a deep-sea fishing expedition (his other love) at the base of Argentina (near Antarctica) but manages to combine this r and r with work, hardly hard work, a show in Buenos Aires on his way home and he’s not in any hurry to give up his current lifestyle.
“Music has been my career for so long, I think I’m a better dj now than I was ten years ago.
“So while I’m still enjoying, while I think I’m on top of my game, I’ll keep going. I think that’s when I realise that my interest is waning that I’ll stop but I still love it at the moment.”
Dan Coop and his best friend James Rushent are two stalwart members to five piece British electro-rock outfit Does it Offend You, Yeah? They found their beginnings uploading bedroom produced songs, from their Reading home, via Myspace. The group whose name was borne from scribbling on the table after being signed to their current label, never even contemplated the idea of being successful and playing as part of a band seemed, distant.
“We just thought we were a couple of guys messing around when we got signed we wrote that on the studio table saying we could go anywhere from this, we could become really famous or we could fade into obscurity or we could be doing what we’re doing now, we could hover somewhere in the top middle echelons – playing festivals. We’re not exactly headlining yet, but hopefully we’ll sort of step up,” says Coop from his base in London.
And step it up they have. They’ve been chosen not only to play as part of the Future Music Festival line-up but they’re well chuffed with their choice to support other main headliners – The Prodigy on their round of sideshows nationally.
“James did some production on their last album, he did Omen and Raiders must die and we’ve done about five gigs with them so far – they’re all really nice guys so we’re kind of looking forward to spending a lot more time with them, when we’re in Australia we’ve got about 12 gigs and we’re really looking forward to it cos we’re massive fans.”
Drawing inspiration from The Prodigy’s own style of music, edgy rock, with synthesisers and electronic drums Does it Offend You, Yeah? are as Dan speaks putting the finishing touches on their own second album, aptly titled: You don’t know what you’re getting yourself in for.
“We’re a very electronic band, if we didn’t have synthesisers we’d sound quite grungy I suppose, especially on this new album, I mean synths and electronic drums, make up a whole lot of our sound really.
“We just love dance music, then we gradually faded into doing band stuff as well without the synthesiser we wouldn’t have really existed really,” he ponders.
The band are friends Matt, Chloe, James Rob and of course Dan and according to Coop they’ve always been dance music fiends. In fact he places touring partners The Prodigy as top of mind for their influence in shaping their sound because of the act’s tendency towards cross-over tracks rave tracks. Heavy electronic rock and a full-blown band grew out of their ideas around what would work well live.
“When we got the chance we thought well we might as well make a sort of whole band, just having two guys in front of laptops on stage, can be a bit stale unless you’ve got like amazing visuals and million dollar light show, which we can’t afford we thought we’d just go down the band route, just ah have fun that way and people have latched on, so all the better really.”
Coop believes Australian fans will dance harder than they ever have with Does it Offend You Yeah before.
“A lot harder than they’re used to, cos we’ve just sort of stepped up everything especially as we’re playing a dance music festival, going to play more of the dance-y type stuff so get a really full on type of assault, quite a lot of loud music, especially cos the new album has a few heavier dance tracks on there so we’re going to be playing quite a few of those as well.
In fact the dynamic duo James and Dan even decided to split the preparation of both the live show and the album release.
“I was in the studio today, in London and James was in the studio in Reading. I was with a guy laying out the samples of what we’ll use in the live show and laying out all the live tracks and stuff and James was in the studio finishing off final bits of the album and doing mixes and stuff like that and making sure everything is ok before the record goes to mastering next week. “
Whilst Dan gives the impression this gig is everything he’s dreamed of and more, there is one thing he thinks could improve his rock-star image: crazed fans.
“Two or three crazy fans, we’ve kind of sort of had to avoid them, but we don’t live in places where people can really recognise us, no one is really that sort of insane to recognise us that much, everyone seems pretty friendly but I wouldn’t mind having a couple of stalkers to be honest. Laughing…”
Does It Offend You, Yeah?’s latest album: Don’t say we didn’t warn you is available through EMI Music.
Danny Howells’ name is one synonymous with the London DJ scene, specifically the house genre, and has been for many years, almost twenty in fact. Ask him then what he’d choose to do as a career and a lifetime in nursing was what he’d have told you. However a fortuitous discovery of decks at a birthday party celebrating Prince in 1990 helped him to unleash his hidden talent.
“I’d never actually mixed before but we hired in decks, and from that first night (I actually played on these decks which were really old, belt drive, or even six speed maybe didn’t have controls in them) I found that I was able to mix and I think that was from doing mix tapes when I was a kid, doing the pause button bar structures and I was able to mix, pretty much straight away.
“I knew then that I wanted this to be my hobby that I wanted to have decks at home, that I wanted to be spending all of my spare time doing mix-tapes for my friends and stuff, but never actually at any stage did I say this is what I want to do.
“I just sort of kept hacking away at it and things sort of really fell into place for me.” He says modestly.
As 2009 comes to a close and 2010 (another decade opens) Howells has seemingly never looked back. His non-acceptance into his chosen career way back when and an uncanny ability for mixing music today see him as a master at his craft.
He’s made a healthy career out of laying down danceable progressive house tunes the inspiration for which can strike at the most ordinary of moments.
I remember I was in the kitchen at home making dinner one night, I was struggling to get the bass-line (for In Black his latest single) and then it hit me, I rushed upstairs and layed it down.”
Howells believes there is no specific formula he follows to arriving at his anthems.
“I’ve found with certain tracks, that you have an idea for a sample or a bass-line, or chords or whatever suddenly you can be just fiddling around on your computer using different sounds and you realize you’ve got a certain track there and where did that come from?
That one came together really quickly actually I was really pleased in the space of one evening, I got the bulk of it together and I was very happy with it. Other times you’ve got one and you find yourself labouring over it for so long you end up destroying any sort of spontaneity any sort of like, you once had, you sort of have to go straight in there and whack it out and um… hope for the best.“
Despite this casual approach he can sometimes adopt, he’s very much about pushing boundaries. So much so, bored by continually creating sets that spanned 45 or 90 minutes for festivals and club gigs he pioneered a new concept in gig times - introducing crowds with stamina, to mammoth 12 hour sets. These days the key he feels to maintaining his interest is variety in what you’re doing.
“I just got back from the States – fifteen dates in over two weeks, and I did a real a mixture, I played tiny events, I played one room in San Francisco which held maybe max 180 people mind-blowing and then doing a festival on the same day which was like a love parade kind of thing and then doing short set here and doing a really long set in Montreal in Canada which was 12 hours, keeping it all sort of mixed up for me gets me really excited.
“Not doing the same thing two times in a row,” he muses.
His Australian fan base will have an opportunity to share in this variety when he joins the other top heavyweights of house, at Fuzzy’s Field Day, and SummaFieldDayze as well as a couple of club gigs, for good measure.
“I don’t really think you go into festivals thinking oh you know I’m going to create a 12 hour sonic sound-scape you’ve got a lot of different artists on at the same time and then you really give it your best for sort of like 90 mins or two hours but then you’ve got the bonus, you finish your set, you can go listen to sound-system or you can go listen to Carl Cox hang out with the crowd. Or you can go and get a burger joint, or whatever, it’s just a different sort of thing.
“When you’ve got a sort of tour like this, when you’ve got a lot of guys doing the festival together you hopefully get that sort of comradery together you have a great time getting sort of too and from the gigs. “
Catch Danny Howells when he plays at, Field Day in Sydney and SummaFieldDayze at the Gold Coast. Visit fuzzy.com.au for ticket and event info.
A five year hiatus from performing at sell-out festivals could make some bands nervous, unless of course you’re phenomenally successful Australian band Powderfinger. Jon Coghill (long-serving drummer to the five -piece) is excited about the prospect of the band being back on the road where they will join the stellar line-up for next year’s Big Day Out national tour. Even if, the excitement is fuelled by their desire to create better memories this year. The last time Jon and his band mates joined the Big Day Out bandwagon they found themselves as Jon recalls a little out of their element.
“We were playing with all these heavy metal bands and it was a horrible atmosphere, back stage with all these unfriendly people. So when this line-up was announced we were like ‘ooh yeh’ we’ll be able to get along with them.”
2010’s Big Day Out tour happens to time perfectly for Powderfinger (who comprise, Bernard Fanning, Ian Haug, Darren Middleton and John Collins and Coghill) because they’ll be touring with brand new fodder for their fans.
A seventh studio album – Golden Rule has been released to national acclaim and whilst it’s written everywhere about the ‘Finger’s’ many achievements over their illustrious twenty year journey, numerous Aria Awards now collect dust at the band’s studio space (located somewhere in industrial Albion, Brisbane) and it’s here again the magic for this latest album mesmerised.
According to Jon the stand out differences between this album and that of 2007’s Dream Days at the Hotel Existence are that this time around he and the lad’s were less focused on achieving perfection and more on just getting along and having fun. He also attributes a positive difference to their decision in welcoming back a trusted friend in Nick DiDia who truly grasps what the band is about.
“We let Nick take control of what was happening, and it took away the whole negotiating between each other how we should be doing stuff and usually five sort of opinions turns into something that is not very productive.
“We wrote the songs but the whole idea of the way the album sort of flowed and the sentiment, feeling underneath it was very much Nick’s doing.”
Not shy in admitting Hotel Existence’s producer didn’t quite gel with the band’s own vision for making music, ‘he was all about creating the perfect pop song’ he credits instead, Nick with the foresight and ability to shape a fantastic album.
“He’s got a really similar philosophy with music as we do it’s not as much about as selling as albums as trying to write the perfect pop song, it’s about making something aurally stimulating.
“It’s sort of like I don’t know you try not to get into that sell-out territory and you just sort of let the music speak for itself. “ Jon says.
And speak it shall, released in mid November the album has already enjoyed unprecedented sales (debuting at number one in the Aria Charts for a fifth consecutive time) possibly this is because the band decided to harness the online momentum generated by social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook. A forward thinking move, from them, which has been exceedingly well embraced by their management.
“The internet is evolving and the way that you market on the internet is evolving so quickly and I think people are always looking for the next thing so it’s probably a lot of opportunity out there and there is a lot of scope provided by the internet but you have to be wary of it…” Jon warns.
A specific element to the social media strategy employed was for the band to perform and trial their new material on the sometimes unsuspecting public (busking outside the Beach Hotel in Byron Bay) and again under their band moniker – Adult Baby. The anonymity attached to performing this way, gives, Jon believes, the band a chance to perform without expectation.
“It’s pretty good actually, it frees you up, it’s good in different aspects when we did adult baby we just played the album from start to finish and we hear about four or five old songs that we don’t usually do so with playing under Adult baby there is no expectations of what you’re going to play so you can play whatever you want.
Where as with Powderfinger, sometimes there are a few songs that people like you to play where as you also like to get the crowd into it, it changes your set pretty much.”
Powderfinger play the Sold out Big Day Out Festival tour nationally in January. For more information visit bigdayout.com. Their album Golden Rule is available via getmusic.com.au and powderfinger.com.
If you are frequenting the festival scene at the moment you’d be hard pressed not to notice one universal act - Art Vs Science. Their music fits within both the rock spectrum and electro gamut, hence their appeal to any festival promoter. Dan Mac (keyboardist and guitarist and vox player) to the Sydney trio considers it wasn’t all that long ago he was a fan on the other side of the festival fence. In fact the transition from punter to performer has been somewhat surreal.
“It is interesting seeing all the machinery behind the dream factory you might be able to call it.
“When you see everyone on stage it looks like some sort of amazing, magic thing sometimes, when they do it right, but then you get back stage when you see all the generators behind it all but it’s kind of not all that different I suppose, I don’t know though there is a serious side behind it all and that there is hard work involved.” He said.
Along with band mates Dan W and Jim Finn the 25 year old has journeyed further than many aspiring school-band musicians ever dream to and the comet’s tail attached to Art Vs Science continues to gain momentum and shine brightly. A recent Aria nomination for ‘Best Breakthrough act’ in the bag as well as a swag of festival dates still to come this year and into next, the band are quite unbelievably still to even produce a first album.
Together since high school the three lads were like any other muso kids. Spending their youth as part of garage rock bands and performing at friend’s patio parties. The discovery of an old keyboard and a desire to coin a track reminiscent of their fave electro artists proved the accidental impetus for Art Vs Science being borne.
“We decided to plug in this keyboard we found from Dan W’s house, into one of our guitar amplifiers and see if we could play like a Justice kind of song, or Daft Punk and we booked a gig later when the normal band wasn’t available.
“We booked this new gig with Art Vs Science and we didn’t actually have any songs written when we booked it and so we had a bout a week to write our set and so we wrote a set’s worth of material in about two days including Flippers and Hollywood,” recalls Dan.
Despite the constant touring and growing popularity the life of a rock-star has so far proven fairly unglamorous. Dan is circumspect when he retells some of the trials and tribulations encountered thus far (usual for many bands) and laughs when he admits to still eating bake beans (on occasion) and two-minute noodles because they’re content to save all their touring dosh to prepare for studio time. Mac who comes across as remarkably grounded in his demeanour, still spends time working the gardens of the Northern Western Sydney suburbs of his adolescence and chatting to his pet galah when he’s out that way, is reluctant to predict what lies ahead for his band.
“I’m not sure to be honest it’s something I haven’t really, I haven’t been peering too far down the track just because I don’t know.
“I think we’ve been pretty lucky up to this point and we try to remember that it’s a lot of good luck and good timing and that sort of thing I don’t want to jinx it, by trying to predict it either way.”
While they’ll take their time to determine which label is right for them, the upcoming festival circuit has Dan excited for the next few months as long as the promoters heed his pleas for later timeslots in the festivals, he feels whilst it’s an honour to play the early 2pm timeslot they’ve paid their dues and as well the rush of playing the early evening is what he’s chasing.
“One movement festival - Perth, we actually got to play at night time, I think it’s one of the first times we’ve ever done an outdoor stage at night.
“It was something else again, it was a different kind of energy it was really intense, really cool hard to describe, it was good though.”
Regardless of their timeslots over summer, one thing is for certain, Dan and his bandmates will be giving it their all on stage.
“It depends on the crowd the vibe they’re creating each set we try to do a different cover from time to time boom shake the room by the Fresh Prince and we played where’s your head at by Basement Jaxx for the Parklife shows – just things like that and just having fun with the crowd really is what’s going to distinguish one show from another, it’s the same as one conversation from another, different people, at least there’s a different kind of show, so it’s quite fun in that respect.”
Art Vs Science play:
The Falls Festival: Marion Bay (Tas) and Lorne: (Vic)
Sunset Sounds: (Brisbane QLD)
Southbound: (Perth WA).
They’ve also been named in the Good Vibrations line-ups nationally this February.
