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10 things I learnt from my interview with Yacht Club DJs

Yacht Club DJs interview

Back in August, it was announced that party duo and mash-up maestros, Yacht Club DJs, were calling it quits. Since forming in 2008, Gareth Harrison and Guy Chappell have entertained crowds with their unique mixing style and mash-up techniques, as well as their on-stage antics, which in the past have included nudity, crowd invasions and riding over the crowd in an inflatable boat. To celebrate almost eight successful years in the music industry, the Ballarat locals are throwing 14 massive send-off parties around Australia, beginning in Hobart and ending in their hometown, Ballarat. I was lucky to speak to one half of the super duo, Gaz, in one of their last interviews ever. Here's what I learnt:

1. Music goes in circles

“When I first started DJing, literally the biggest thing was deep house, pushing that sound all over the world, and then everyone went really backwards with it and didn’t want to listen to it, it was all too serious, and then it went ultra, ultra party and everyone was listening to hip hop and party jams. And when we came along, the whole mash-up thing happened, what with 2manydjs, and then that moved into the indie-electro sound by Justice, and then Daft Punk happened. And now it’s all come back round again and everyone wants to listen to deep house. It all happens in circles. Everyone out there is like, “I’ve got a fresh new sound!” and I’m like, “Bullshit! it happened in 2000!” It’s cool, though, there’s always going to be new discoveries. That’s music, that’s what it’s there for."

2. Mumford & Sons and The Prodigy go surprisingly well together

“Guy was obsessed with playing a Mumford and Sons song in our set and I kind of hated it. I like Mumford and Sons but I came from this really serious band background so every now and then we’ll do something that will make my skin crawl. I had to do things to get my head around it so I started mixing Breathe by The Prodigy into it. This really anthemic Mumford and Sons song with this really garage thing (laughs). So like injecting that kind of sense of humour into it got me past the skin crawling phase because it was just so preposterous and funny. But that sort of thing still backs the spirit of the house party vibe we have. It’s like the kind of shit you’d put on your iPhone with your friends, like playing ridiculous song after ridiculous song.”

3. Australia’s killing it in the music scene

“There’s so many good dudes in Australia now, we’re taking over the world. Just to see people do what they do, like Chris from What So Not, Flume, all those guys, are absolutely taking over the world. And then there’s dudes just killing it, like Paces and Spenda C. Also, Yahtzel, I love that kid. He’s unreal. And he’s such a good DJ, it’s ridiculous. Australia’s scene is really, really strong.”

4. Their onstage antics are unplanned

“People make it sound like our shows are really planned. We just go on stage and do our thing. One time, I got this really intense cut on my back and was bleeding everywhere and it just got written off that I had planned it. And I was like, ‘I’m really hurt here?’

Another time in Byron Bay, I broke my leg. These things don’t get planned. This shit just happens. If I get naked, I get naked. If I accidentally break my leg, I accidentally break my leg. We’re never going to go on stage and be like, ‘Alright. 10 minutes in, I’m gonna do this, you’re gonna do this.’ Who even wants to plan that shit? It’s so ridiculous!”

[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/yachtclubdjsmusic/hooroo[/soundcloud]

5. They hate the lockout laws

“Last time we played, we had to play so early so everyone could go out afterwards. And then I couldn’t go out afterwards! I went on stage, got a beer and was like, “Sweet, let’s go out,” and then it was like, “Nup, can’t go out.” Fuck the lockout, I hate that stuff!

It doesn’t work. Ballarat, where I live, is the first place that ever did it. And if they looked up what happened here, they’d know it doesn’t work because everyone goes out on the streets and fights each other. No lockout, it’s a shit idea.”

6. They really, really love Meredith Festival

When asked about one of his favourite moments of his career, Gaz replied, “I’d have to say the very first Meredith we’ve ever played. I worked at that music festival for so long and I absolutely adored it. I always said that if I ever got on stage there, I’d take a shovel and just bury myself out the back...and then we got to play it three times.

I’ve walked on stage at a lot of festivals and and there’s nothing like the rush when you walk on that stage there. And that includes all the stuff we did over in America, which was a huge rush and such an incredible experience, but there’s just something about Meredith. I think also having my best friends in the front row just giving me shit the whole time is good. It definitely holds a special place.”

yacht club djs

7. Gaz wants to be a fortune cookie writer

When asked to choose between professional sleeper, dice inspector or fortune cookie writer as his next career options, Gaz was quick to choose the latter: “I love unloading truth on people.”

8. Their career was a huge surprise to them

“We only ever did this for fun. The whole career has been a huge surprise to be honest. We started this just for a laugh and like 8 years later we’re still doing it and we’re like, ‘holy crap, how did this even happen?’”

9. Gaz is taking a well-deserved break

“I don’t have any plans but I know Guy’s got some other stuff he’s working on. I just want some time off. I’ve been DJing full time for 15 years. I just want to do something else and I kind of like the idea of not knowing what I’m going to do. After 15 years of having a pretty regimented life, I think I’m just going to wander around and see what happens.”

10. They’re quitting the biz and there’s nothing we can do about it

It seems the duo are pretty confident there’ll be no John Farnham-esque comeback tour. “Definitely zero chance,” said Gaz. “I’m not as young as I used to be and who the fuck would want to see me when I’m 40 and playing party music at a nightclub? I don’t think that will ever work.

We never wanted to get what we do to get old. We always said, if we get tired of it, leave it where it is. We’re still doing really good things with it but at the same time we want to do other stuff so we’re like "fuck it, let’s just call it off." Let’s leave it as this thing. It was really good and never got old so let’s, yeah, move on.”

Yacht Club DJs' Hooroo! tour kicks of tonight, 31 October. See below for dates.

Fri 31 Oct - Republic Bar | Hobart TAS | Tickets

Sat 1 Nov - Republic Bar | Hobart TAS | Tickets

Fri 7 Nov - The Northern | Byron Bay NSW| Tickets

Sat 8 Nov - The Brightside | Brisbane QLD | Tickets

Fri 14 Nov - The Cambridge | Newcastle NSW | Tickets

Sat 15 Nov - Oxford Art Factory | Sydney NSW| Tickets

Fri 21 Nov - Barwon Club | Geelong VIC | Tickets

Sat 22 Nov - The Corner Hotel | Melbourne VIC | Tickets

Fri 28 Nov - Jive | Adelaide SA| Tickets

Sat 29 Nov - Lost at The Vic | Darwin NT | Door Sales Only

Fri 5 Dec - Amplifier | Perth WA | Tickets

Sat 6 Dec - 'Hooch' at Toucan Club | Mandurah WA | Tickets

Fri 19 Dec - Karova Lounge | Ballarat VIC | Tickets

Sat 20 Dec - Karova Lounge | Ballarat VIC | Tickets

interviews10/31/2014

DMA's on Oasis comparisons, Danny DeVito & other Little Bastards

DMAs

DMA's were hyped even before their debut EP was released. With a look that drew comparisons to English bands from Oasis to the Stone Roses, NME took no time in hailing the band as the next big thing and Aussie media has swiftly followed. Their self-titled EP ranges from firing bursts of angst to tender ballads that juxtapose their harsh image. Delete has become somewhat of an anthem in a very short time, with the Splendour in the Grass audience lapping up a chance to sing-along to one of the year's most poignant melodies.

We sat down with DMA's bass player, Johnny Took at BIGSOUND in Brisbane to chat about the copious comparisons, what's next to come from the band's tune-cannon and what DMA's stands for.

How’s it all going? Are you stoked about the tour selling out?

Yeah, it’s pretty crazy. I‘m looking forward to going to Adelaide in particular. Adelaide will be cool.

Have you been before?

I have, I’ve got some family that live down there. But I’ve only played a couple of random shows so I’m looking forward to really understanding the music scene down there a little bit.

Does it feel like it’s all happened quite quickly? I guess, to us, it looks like it did but was there a bit more going on behind the scenes before you got signed by I OH YOU and it all took off?

Yeah, a lot more, man. We were writing for a good couple of years. Between the three of us, we could record everything because Tommy’s a drummer, and most of the songs are just done with drum loops when they’re demoed. It kind of has happened quickly but we were writing and recording for quite a while before that, which is good because now that things have happened quickly, we’re kind of prepared for it and not completely freaking out.

Did you have a plan going into it? Was it like, “we want to release this music?” or was it just for fun?

We planned it about 3 years ago. So I wanted to hide away, record and then drop some tunes. We had about 50 or 60 songs.

Are there songs in the EP that were written really early on in the piece?

Yeah, like Delete was written six or seven years ago. Some of the next tunes that we’ll be bringing out I wrote when I was like 19, 20. So they’re all kind of picked from a six or seven year period.

Do you think they developed in those years?

Some of them have, if you ever heard the originals. Like, Delete is completely different with electric guitars and shit at the start and also an extra part added. When I think about it, Your Low, which is on the EP, has as well. Some of them have grown and some of them haven’t needed to. You know, a song is a song. In hindsight, growing up in the time I was in when I wrote it, it doesn’t need to change. It represents that part of my life and vice versa.

Did it feel like, coming from different musical ventures like Little Bastards, that you wanted to separate, in your mind, DMA’s and have a different sound? Were you trying to channel something different?

Yeah, Little Bastard is more a live band. Like people, wasted and shit, big hoedowns and whatnot. DMA’s was always meant to be more of a studio thing. Eventually we had to cater for that for a live audience.

The songs are kind of melodically strong and sound like, as you said, they’re meant to be played out loud. Was melody a massive thing going into it? Particularly, vocal melody?

Yeah, when I was younger and writing songs, I used to just do verse/chorus things and they quickly got boring so now, when we write, I always like to have a verse, a pre chorus, a chorus and then a riff. So as long as there’s five strong melodies in a song, I feel like that should hold it together. Tommy and Mason are both really strong melody writers and if Mason brings in the tune, a melody he’s been working on, that stimulates you to have an idea you never had and vice versa.We find that we bounce off each other really well in that aspect.

How did the three of you come together?

I met Mason when I was doing solo stuff, like folk music. I met him at a folk festival when we were about 21. And then I met Tommy when I was 19 and in a psych band. He was the drummer and I was playing bass. And then the other two guys were songwriters in their own right and there wasn’t really enough for space for us to write, so that’s when Tommy and I first started writing together.

So you’ve obviously been through quite a few genres. Was there an influence or certain music that you were listening to at the time that kicked off DMA’s?

Nothing in particular but between me and my mates, and I’m sure it’s with everyone with the internet, you listen to so much music. Like, one day I’ll be listening to Doc Watson and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, and then Neil Young and all of a sudden you start crossing into heaps of stuff like Primal Scream, Stone Roses (Tommy’s a big fan), Dinosaur Jr, The Jesus Mary Chain...all those noisy guitar bands but, like I said, the way I think of it, Little Bastards is classified as a country band and the only thing that makes it country is the arrangement.

The lines are a bit blurred.

Yeah, you can play any song. You can play Made of Stone by The Stone Roses and put a banjo over it and all of a sudden it’s a country song. A good song’s a good song, that’s what I’ve always believed. How you want to arrange it, that’s your prerogative.

Do you guys like reading on the internet “they sound like this”, do you find the comparisons interesting to have a look at?

I think it’s pretty funny when people say stuff like that. We get the Oasis thing a lot. I like Oasis but they wouldn’t be in my top 10, you know what I mean? It doesn’t really bother me too much.

I guess you get those comparisons because you’ve got a ‘90s aesthetic about yourselves. Do you think that’s because you’re drawing reference on growing up?

Yeah, I guess there’s a bit of nostalgia, like early ‘90s. I was in kindergarden in ‘94 and it’s just like all those tunes that were being played at the house while growing up.

Have you been surprised by the attention you’ve received overseas?

Yeah, it’s been surprising but at the same time, a few years ago when we started writing, we felt the songs were strong and we were attached to them. But like I was saying before, we never really thought or cared too much about what other people think. The beautiful thing about the internet is that anyone can have their opinion. It’s an amazing thing and also the beautiful thing about this world is that it doesn’t take a lot for it to go around. I’ve never really listened to other people’s opinions and I’m not going to start now.

So you’re headed off to CMJ this year?

Yeah, man!

Will this be your first overseas tour?

Well, I went to New Caledonia with Little Bastard one time, which was pretty cool. We’re apparently huge in New Caledonia? That’s the only time I’ve done it. I went to Europe when I was 19 and I came back and told myself I wasn’t going to go back until I was doing music. Because I felt like I was pissing my money against the wall, not playing gigs there and whatnot. That was about 6 years ago.

So I suppose in that way it feels like a massive achievement to be going back there and playing?

Yeah man, it’s exciting and the live set’s come together. So I’m just looking forward to going there and having a laugh really.

What’s the timeline then? The Aussie tour and then pretty much straight overseas?

Yeah.

Are you recording at the moment?

I’m always recording!

Do you have a next release in mind?

I think we’ve got a couple of things in the bag, but...we’re...actually, I don’t think i’m allowed to say too much about it.

We don’t want to get you in trouble.

*laughs* Yeah, I tend to do that a lot.

Is it sounding good, though? Can we ask you that?

I’m happy with it. It’s been a bit of a process. I love recording at home because you can take your time. But I’m pretty happy with how they’re sounding. I feel like I’ve been in bands before where people can get really precious about that stuff, I think you can get too precious sometimes. I’ve seen so many amazing, beautiful songs by friends that never get released because they think about it too much or they’re scared of what people think.

5 Wacky Questions

Your band’s name is an acronym. What’s your favourite acronym?

Oh, DMA’s isn’t an acronym! It doesn’t stand for anything. It’s basically a bunch of letters we decided on with an apostrophe.

Favourite Danny DeVito movie?

Oh, woah...Matilda!

Will you be purchasing the newly unveiled Apple Watch?

Nah, I think it’s a bit lame, huh?

If you had to merge into another band to create a super group, who would it be?

There’s too many. Maybe War On Drugs would be pretty cool. Big fan of Kurt Vile.

Favourite board game?

*pause* I used to play a little Risk when I was younger…that was pretty cool. Twister can get pretty whack as well. I’m gonna go with Twister.

DMA's have completely sold out their Australian tour.

features / interviews10/09/2014

Bluejuice on breaking up, the past & the future

bluejuice_interview

In a decade-spanning career, Bluejuice have become one of Australia’s most-loved bands. If you’ve been to a festival in the last ten years, chances are you’ve seen a vitriolic Bluejuice, burning up the stage in questionable gold leotards.

While their energy and humour was a big part of their appeal, behind them are three albums that showcase brilliant pop writing. As such, the band scored a platinum record with their 2009 track, Broken Leg and went on to have two albums reach the top 40 in Australia.

If you look at their Wikipedia page now, you’ll notice it says “Bluejuice was a musical act”. It’s not completely over yet but Bluejuice referred to in the past tense will soon be a reality as the band parts ways after one more tour and a greatest hits compilation, RETROSPECTABLE. We chatted to Jake Stone from Bluejuice for the final time on why it’s the right time to break-up, the highlights, the lowlights and what’s next.

Have you found the response overwhelming regarding the breakup?

Yeah, it’s been really good, actually. We’re going out on our own terms which is the right way. I’m glad that it’s working out that way and I wouldn’t have known how to do it otherwise. I think that by making that decision, while sad, we did the right thing.

[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/bluejuicemusic/broken-leg-3[/soundcloud]

Is there a part of you that’s like, "maybe I shouldn't be doing it" after all the positive responses?

We’re only getting that positive feedback because we’ve done something dramatic. It feels right to go out now. Otherwise we’d die a slow death, not because we wouldn’t be able to do good music, but because people wouldn’t care enough even if we did do good music. I think in a way it’s the right decision and we’ve managed perception in the right way. We’ve gotten on the front foot and done what needed to be done so people are happy and comfortable and we aren’t working against people’s perceptions. It doesn't matter what anybody thinks, what matters is how we come out of it. I’m not sure I'm going to be happy at the end of this but I’m happy that it’s working out now.

Quote1

Was there a specific moment that felt like the right time to end it?

When Jerry left, I thought there was a good chance that it might be the end of the band. That that was about a year and a half ago now. I knew it would be challenging to continue because of his talent but, in actual fact, we continued on and put out singles anyway and now the band is at a good stage where the people in the band are just as good as what Jerry was. But it’s kind of hard to continue because now we’ve got this great setup and can write good songs. But I don't think that it’s possible to do it under this name, in a way.

So do you feel like there are more projects that you’ll go onto after this that reflect a changing musical taste?

Yeah, I hope so. I’m basically writing constantly at the moment. I’ve had a lot of songs for a long time and it’s kind of like a long-standing accruing of tunes that I’ve been doing in my studio at home. I’ve got some songs there that are ready to go that I just have to figure it out because I don’t want to put them out in a way that’s going to be associated with me directly, as people can easily say something about it that’s negative. They can have a negative perception of it and not support it, both the media and the public, so I just have to just sneak the songs in someway that will be good.

quote4

So I suppose that’s kind of the flip side to dealing with media, that they can have perceptions of you that are hard to change. We’ve always seen Bluejuice in a really positive light and as a very fun band but have there been tough times as well?

Of course. For seven years we didn’t have a hit, so you can imagine. It’s been hard because you’re always kind of trying to make people believe that you’re something they need in their lives, but without sounding desperate, because people are very hard to pin down. You have to seduce them. Really, that’s what it is. You have to be seductive, in whatever fashion, whether it be sexually, comically or whatever it is that you have to do and for seven years, we were the ugly duckling of the Sydney music scene. Nobody wanted a bar of us and it’s hard to do that and get people on your side and draw them into what you’re doing, to make them believe in you and to think they’re the ones that made the decisions.

Luckily, Vitriol did that, seven years in. But seven years prior to that, we were working very hard. I was a music journalist, I worked at two bars, it was really hard. And we’ve been a band that fought with other a lot as well so it hasn’t been that easy. Nothing that’s worthwhile just sort of happens like that. I don’t think London Grammar, for example, just happened. I think they did a lot of stuff for a long time and people picked up on it. So perhaps they went from being small to very big really quickly and that might’ve been challenging for them and I think every type of career projection has its own challenges. Ours has just been really focusing on keeping that stuff happening and making sure that it continues that way.

quote2

Were there points early on before Vitriol where you were just like "this is a really hard slog, is it worth it anymore?"

Everyone was ready to break up the band just before Vitriol came out. Like, literally. I was never going to break up the band, I was never going to stop playing. It’s not easy being in a band. Some people have the stomach for what it takes and some people don’t. I don't mind because it’s my job, to think my way around it and to come up with good songs. It’s not just about the music - you’ve got to figure out how to get people into the thing beyond just the music.

Looking back in hindsight, is there a record where you feel like you really hit the nail on the head?

I think Company. All of the things that happened around that record, everything centred around it were sort of perfect. The relationship I was in was the most important relationship that I ever had in my life and probably one of the most dramatic I’ve ever had. So, whether it was healthy or not, it was making an impact on my writing. Other than that, we figured out how to produce it in a way that wasn’t shit. We were like, “oh, we can actually be okay in the studio now," be what we want rather than be completely be held onto a producer who might not share the vision for what we’re trying to do, which had been the case before.

On Company, Alex and I wrote Act Yr Age and Shock and those songs really galvanised the band’s reputation on the radio and continued to push forward and allowed us another three years of professional work, cementing our reputation beyond Broken Leg. In my opinion, Act Yr Age is the most sophisticated song we ever put out because it followed two big songs and continued to be able to be successful. When you play as a DJ, and put the record on, it still sounds current, it still has the production quality that cuts through next to music with modern production.

One of the songs featured (The Presets’) Julian Hamilton and it’s got a lovely quality that only that guy could lend to it. The design is also good. It’s very personal, taken from a photo of my ex from Skype that we then refigured and then re-cast.

Bluejuice_Company-500

Company was my proudest moment as a writer. It sums up the band’s interest and was the best thing we ever did. It’s not the best record I’m going to make, I hope, and it might be the most interesting album I’m going to make as Bluejuice but I don’t think it’s the most sophisticated or mature thing I’m ever going to do.

I still have a lot of those songs that are unreleased. A lot. And they’re all really good songs. I’m just keen to put out more music, that’s what I want. When the band ends, I want to figure out how to do that in a way that will work. We were much harder on ourselves as editors than you think. There are a lot of great tunes that didn’t make the record that weren’t Bluejuice songs that I wrote myself that, by politics or otherwise, never made it onto the album. Managers, they don’t know everything, they don’t all know what’s appropriate for the time. There’s all these songs flying around now that I want to put out.

Did you record I’ll Go Crazy with the knowledge it would be one of your last songs?

Yes we did, absolutely.

So you weren’t planning to record another album or anything like that?

Well, we had been writing so we probably had enough material to do a record but then we hit on the idea that we’re going to wrap up the band and will be doing our last tour, and we needed some singles to put out. And so then we thought we only really needed three good songs to be able to put out a greatest hits record with new material on it. And I personally need, as an artist, to have the last two songs tell a certain story.

So I need a pop song that everyone’s going to love, that kind of represents the pop band that we are, that we always have been. And then I need a ballad that’s going to close the band in a way that’s emotional for other people and connects them to the band’s history, to make them understand where we came from and tell that story in a sincere way. And that’s what the one after this will be. And that’s how I see the band wrapping up. It just makes it easier. Because I’m really proud of the songs so I think it’s worked out alright.

features / interviews09/23/2014

Perfume Genius on confidence, rage & hateful tweets

PerfumeGenius_interview

Seattle-born Mike Hadreas, most commonly known by his stage moniker Perfume Genius, is not your regular entertainer. After making an impressive debut in 2010 with his LP, Learning, Hadreas returned two years later with Put Your Back N 2 It, cementing his place as a revolutionary, emotionally-affecting showman. Delicate, yet emotionally intense in both their nature and delivery, these two albums were a beguiling introduction to the man that is Perfume Genius.

Two years down the track, and a controversial YouTube rejection in between, the singer/songwriter has made a bold comeback with the stunning new record, Too Bright. Its grandiosity and assertiveness a stark contrast from his previous works, Hadreas' latest offering generates a figure that is a far cry from the reserved, vulnerable artist that first entered the music scene four years ago. Confidently delving into topics such as gender, race and sexual orientation, Too Bright is a bewitching, emotionally intense journey that is sure to delve into the inner psyche of any unsuspecting listener.

Upon his return from a three week touring stint across Europe, Hadreas and I had a chat about the new album, negative feedback, his influences and everything in between.

You’ve just returned home from your first tour of performing songs from Too Bright. How did everything go?

It was good, although I’m not really used to it anymore. I didn’t really feel clicked into the whole routine- waking up really early, going to bed really late. There’d be a lot going on and then I’d have to do a photo shoot and try to look, like, cute while I’m sweating. I gotta up my game perhaps and have a beauty regimen. I feel like I need handy wipes or something.

Was it mainly new material that you were touring with?

It was a pretty equal mix from all three albums. I guess I didn’t want to play too many new songs because I didn’t want people to hear them first in a YouTube video. Not that I think anyone cares enough to put them on YouTube but sometimes they do that. Also, my drummer lives in Paris and my guitar player lives in the UK, and we now live in Seattle so we have really limited rehearsal time. I wanted to make sure we had time to rehearse the new stuff before we play it, especially since there’s more elements now.

quote4 Yeah, you have a lot more instrumentation this time around as opposed to your other records. Is it exciting to have a backing band on stage with you?

It is! I guess now it’s just naturally a little more complicated. I didn’t grow up in other bands so I’m not really used to it. It’s a little nerve-wracking because it’s not just me singing behind a piano anymore, keeping things really minimal. I feel like I know how to do that, whereas this is risky and new. As much as it’s nerve-wracking, it’s also fun.

There’s obviously a lot of difference in the stage set-up for your previous, piano-based material, compared to your new material that requires the inclusion of a backing band. How do you find it, alternating between such contrasting materials when you’re performing?

I kind of have to map the setlist out a little differently so none of the songs are mean to each other. I’m a fairly crazy person so it’s not that hard for me to go between moods. I can get there pretty quickly but I guess there are some songs that are similar in subject matter and mood to some of the louder songs so I try to pair them together. I don’t want it to be too manic-depressive for anybody. Or maybe that’s cool, I dunno.

How did the audience respond to the new material that you played?

The first time I ever played the song, My Body, I played it in Tokyo, and nobody clapped or anything afterwards...but maybe it was just because they didn’t know the song. It was the first time we had performed anything like that and it was pretty loud and dark and everyone was a bit freaked out and shaken up afterwards and when nobody responded I was like...erm...But then I played it over in a few other countries and it seemed to go well.

I guess some of the songs from the album have the ability to leave the listener a bit unsettled.

Yeah, one of my friends said that when I play that song they just put their hands over their face and look in between their fingers, freaked out.

I feel that songs from this album can shake up something from within, enabling people to kind of draw references from their own lives.

I really hope that’s what it is. I hope it’s not like, “who is this screeching weirdo on stage!” Like when they played My Body on the radio, somebody tweeted, “Just heard the worst song I’ve ever heard in my life,” probably hearing just a bunch of disgusting noises with just a screech over it...which I guess essentially is kind of what that song is.

quote3 So how do you deal with that kind of negative feedback?

With this music it’s very different. I’m really proud of this album so if people talk about the music and they don’t like it, it doesn’t really bother me. If people talk about how I look, however, like rude, grossly weird vain things like that, then I get really upset. It’s just really personal. Whereas when it’s about my music, it doesn’t really bother me that much. I’m kind of lying a bit because it essentially does bother me but not as bad as it used to.

I guess it’s quite confronting putting yourself out there creatively. Do you find you’ve become better at dealing with the feedback over the years?

I think so. And I think I feel really confident, beyond just the lyrics or what the songs are about. I’m confident the music is really good and this is the first time that’s happened. Not that I thought the music was bad in the other two albums, I really still think it was pretty and nice, it’s just that I was a lot more considerate and thoughtful about the sound on Too Bright, as much as the lyrical content.

quote5 Too Bright definitely does sound a lot more confident, a bit more grandiose. You’ve also described it as “an underlying rage that has slowly been growing since ten and has just begun to bubble up.” What made you draw upon these references of your past in this album?

I've always made music to process things, so if something was bothering me, or something needed healing or a relationship in my life was screwed up, writing was a way I could deal. But I kind of used up all the memories that I needed to heal on the first couple of albums and this one’s a lot more about how I’m feeling now and almost a projection of how I want to be, not so much looking into the past. That anger was kind of some of the more immediate things that I needed to process.

With your songs and the visual representations in your music videos, I feel that you’re drawing upon not only this anger, but also some of the other deadly sins; greed, lust, gluttony. Was this intentional?

No, but I like that. It perhaps wasn’t intentional but I like showing things that maybe I’ve been ashamed of or things I think are gross about myself. Or that I’m scared that other people think I’m gross or too ‘faggy’ or too feminine. I kind of like doing it defiantly and pushing it into people’s faces.

It seems you’ve managed to achieve this in the videos; kind of pushing it into people’s faces, providing an amount of intensity at times but then you manage to draw it back at just the right moments. You’ve carefully oscillated between the two ends of the spectrum.

Yeah, I never want the videos to be just pure rebellion, I want there to be a purpose to them, or have it be empowering or have some sort of importance. More than just giving someone the middle finger.

Do you have a lot of input of the content for the videos?

Yeah, especially this last one. Both of them are collaborations, but I feel like Queen was almost equal measure me and Cody Critcheloe (SSION), the director. I really trusted him and I guess that’s why I didn’t mind meeting in the middle more. I didn’t mind patchworking of all our zany ideas into one dream. I can come up with the ideas but I sometimes don’t know how to make it cool, you know? And the director I was working with was very cool.

It must be nice to tell people your ideas and have them filter it out into whatever you picture in your head.

Exactly, and that’s what she did. I sent her a bunch of weird, run-off sentences and words and then she sent me back this storyboard complete with pictures and visual references. Everything she had was exactly what I was thinking.

Speaking of collaborations, Too Bright was co-produced by Portishead’s Adrian Utley. What kind of influence do you think he had on the album?

Technically, he’s more capable than I am. When I gave him emotional descriptive words, he’d know what instruments to use, what knobs to twiddle and what cord to plug in where to make that sound. He understood emotionally where I was coming from and he wasn’t nervous about going too far or being too dark and serious, while also not being scared of being too patient or gentle or sensitive about the quieter moments. We’re pretty open and light-hearted while we’re talking but creatively, we’re kind of dark and wild so it was like a perfect relationship to be in the studio.

You wrote your first album while living at your Mother’s house. Where did you write your music this time?

This last one I wrote in a thick-walled apartment, so I could write when I felt like it and I could scream and be as loud as I wanted and I think that was the big help for expanding what I do. I could experiment with my voice in ways that could have potentially been really embarrassing or goofy, but I wasn’t scared of being overheard; I was screeching and screaming and squealing.

quote6 Your boyfriend sings and plays with you on stage. Does he contribute to the songwriting process?

Oh yeah. I come from an emotional place and he’s more musical. He went to school for music so his way of thinking is completely different. He would come home after I’d been writing and would listen to the actual song. Whereas I would only look into what the song meant, he would hear what it really sounded like, so that was really valuable.

Do you find he inspires you artistically?

Yeah, I would either take his advice or I would get rebellious and pissed off. If he said he didn’t like the song, I’d make it even worse.

How is it touring and being on stage with your partner? I can imagine there’d be friction at times?

It’s good, you’ve got to learn how to fight and we’ve learnt to fight really well because if you’re around each other 24 hours a day, it's inevitable. But we’ve learnt how to fight and almost laugh immediately afterwards. I can’t imagine leaving and being gone for all those months without seeing him.

Perfume Genius' Too Bright is out today in Australia, released via Matador Records / Remote Control. You can stream it here.

features / interviews09/19/2014

Nina Las Vegas on Emojis, Australian talent & her upcoming NLV Presents Tour

NLV_Presents

It's been a massive year for DJ and radio-broadcaster Nina Las Vegas, who has spent the past 18 months touring and working with the likes of Pharrell, Baauer, Ta-Ku, Motez, Wave Raver, Flight Facilities and What So Not (just to name a few). Also playing at some of Australia's biggest festivals in addition to presenting Triple J's Mix Up Exclusives, you'd expect that Nina has no time for anything else. Quite the opposite, actually.

Succeeding her sell-out inaugural tour in February, Nina Las Vegas has announced another instalment, this time focusing on representing international acts in her aptly-named NLV Presents Tour - International Edition. Featuring global up-and-comers, Eclair Fifi (LuckyMe -UK), Sam Tiba (Bromance - FR), UNiiQU3 (USA) and special guest SWICK (Mad Decent - AUS), the Sydney DJ and Twitter aficionado is pulling out all the stops to bring another throng of successful shows across Australia.

Nina took some time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions and to create an Emoji-inspired playlist for us.

What made you switch from promoting local talent to international talent?

After travelling for 3 months early this year, I got an insight into the rest of the world’s club scene. Australian’s dance music history is only just beginning, where European countries like France and England have been at it for years. Yeah, we’re killing it, but we need to experience different sounds, different acts and different vibes if we want the scene to grow.

I chose to book international acts that the Australian acts I care about look up to. People like Eclair Fifi and Sam Tiba have been in the game for years and play some of the most exciting music you’ll ever hear. It’s pretty easy to do the same thing hear in Australia, play the same set… I wanted to move forward and take a bit of a risk.

[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/eclairfifi/eclairfifitriplej[/soundcloud]

Which Australian artists have you enjoyed watching going up the ranks the most?

Seeing What So Not (especially Emoh Instead) tour so hard in America is amazing. Obviously being at some of Flume and Wavey’s first Australian shows is wild too.

I can’t wait to see people finally catch on to the crazy talent that is Melbourne producer Swick and also I have this sneaky feeling that Tkay Maidza is going to be huge in a matter of months.

How did you choose the four artists for the tour?

Each of these acts I look up to for different reasons. Eclair’s taste is never bad, Uniiqu3’s production can be heard in almost every one of my club sets, Sam Tiba is one of the best DJs you’ll ever see and Swick, well I just mentioned he’s the best.

To many people it seems like you have the dream job. What would you say your job description is?

OMG, it’s freaking hard. I jam about 7 days worth of work into 3 days at triple j. I am writing music at the moment too (!!!) which is taking up every other moment… oh and touring. I don’t sleep.

Emoji-inspired playlist

mouth1

"Anything by the Rolling Stones!"

monkey

"Arctic Monkeys' Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High"

alien

"Anything by Skrillex!"

bunny "Dubbel Dutch's Dip So"

suss

"Something sexy and naughty! 'Anaconda by' Nicki Minaj"

[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/the-in-terns/sets/emoji-playlist[/soundcloud]

NLV Presents | International Edition dates

FRI 10 OCT - Villa, Perth, WA tickets via Moshtix

SAT 11 OCT - The Hi-Fi, Melbourne, VIC tickets via Oztix
SUN 12 OCT - Zhivago, Adelaide, SA tickets on door

THU 16 OCT - Helm Bar, Sunshine Coast, QLD tickets on door*

FRI 17 OCT - Meanwhile at The Imperial, Sydney, NSW tickets via Oztix

SAT 18 OCT - The TBC Club, Brisbane QLD tickets via Moshtix

features / interviews09/03/2014

Banoffee: "I’m very much an internet artist"

Banoffee

Banoffee is Melbourne artist Martha Brown’s first solo project, after coming from the band, Otouto. Beginning as a bedroom project, Brown wrote personal songs she never saw going anywhere outside her bedroom walls. Now she’s gearing up to release a five-track EP with those songs and a little bit of help from fellow Melbournite, Oscar Key Sung.

As such, the EP meshes together delicate and personal songwriting with an RnB sensibility often straying into areas of electronica. Got It cleverly depicts two narratives with Brown dueting alongside a vocally manipulated male while Let’s Go To The Beach sees her embrace a deep-house instrumental. The rest of the EP sits in between those two with Brown’s organic voice and honest lyrics always in the spotlight.

We spoke to Banoffee ahead of her East Coast EP tour which kicks off at Brisbane’s BIGSOUND conference.

How did Banoffee come to be?

Banoffee started a few years ago when a band I was in called Otouto started to come to an end and I wanted to continue to play music. I wanted to start making music for me. It was a project to keep me entertained at the start. I wasn’t really sure I would release it. Alot of people have commented on it being quite an honest release. Alot of the songs are very personal to me. They were made in my bedroom for my own comfort at the time. I guess I kept making songs and started recording things and when people started showing interest I thought “oh hey, maybe I could make this a proper project”. And that’s where it started from there.

Are you finding it interesting to come from a band to do everything like shows and press by youself?

I think a bit of both. It’s pretty crazy being solo. In the band everything was split by three. Decisions were always split by three so there was always someone there keeping things in line whereas with me I worry I’ve lost perspective and I think “oh God, what if i’m writing absolute crap and I have no one to tell me”. But it’s also really enjoyable in that way because I get to make decision purely because they’re right for me. I have a lot more freedom and a lot more choice in that way.

Have you still collaborated with a few people for the EP?

I have. Four of the songs are co-produced by Oscar Key Sung who is also on the same record label as me, Two Bright Lakes, and we had a lot of fun with that. I wrote the songs but I wanted help with beatmaking and bringing a bit of his feel to the table. And then the last song, Let’s Go To The Beach, I actually co-produced with Sam Perry who plays for Architecture in Helsinki. That was a really fun song to make because I’m just starting out making more electronic music and that song is the most electronic on the EP. They put alot into that piece with me in making it danceable and what I really envisioned it to be. So, I did still collaborate and work with others along the way.

How did you move towards your RnB/Electronic sound?

I think I listen to a lot of music that is RnB and electronic influenced. More present people who are playing around now like AlunaGeorge, Pikachu and Jai Paul are that. I listen to that a lot and could hear the more soulful elements of their music coming through but I really loved the...I don’t know, there’s something about electronic music that is harsher. It doesn’t have the warmth that electronic music has and I really enjoyed adding that element to my music, especially after playing around with synthesizers a lot in the last couple of years and listening to a lot of synth music like College of Desire and ‘80s artists. I really wanted to bring those together. I’ve always listened to RnB growing up and I’ve always listened to country growing but synthesizers and electronic music is something that only came to me in the last five years. I was excited to bring those elements together and hearing other people do it, even older artists like Arthur Russell, I felt really inspired to mix it up and create something that brought together all my musical enjoyments.

[soundcloud width="750" height="200"]https://soundcloud.com/banoffeeme/reign-down[/soundcloud]

Are there certain records that you keep returning to for inspiration?

Love Is Overtaking Me by Arthur Russell is a big one. I listen to that a lot. There are songs and areas that I go back to more than albums. There are quite a few Mariah Carey songs that I think are written brilliantly that I listen to again and again for inspiration. Aswell as late 90s, early 2000s RnB that included people like Ne-Yo and Mario. I think a lot of people think that it’s kind of easy, sell-out, pop/RnB but the production is amazing and the songwriting is really well done. So, I got back to that to remind myself that songwriting is important and a very big part of music to me to have a thought-through structure that goes with the lyrics and the instrumentation.

Have you found that working on your music in Melbourne and being around that scene has been inspiring?

Yeah, definitely. I think any city will be inspiring musically. The community has had a huge impact on the way I make music. Just working with such an array of musicians who make really interesting music like working with Nick Cousins since I was very young, like 14 until now has really helped me understand the instruments I’m using and more of the technical side of music. Nick taught me that you can love more organic sounding music like country music and folk and mix it with synthesizers and sequencers and put a beat to it and indulge in the two sides. Being a part of Two Bright Lakes has really helped me do that. If you listen to alot of the artists they mix a lot of genres together. They are not defined by one genre or one area of music and that’s really helped me.

A lot of overseas media and the moment are talking about how Australia is in this golden period for music. Are you noticing that?

Yeah, I think Australia is killing it at the moment and it’s really exciting to be a part of the music scene here. In Melbourne and Sydney and Brisbane, it’s really exciting to hear friends that have worked so hard, getting the appreciation they deserve. Like, watching Oscar Key Sung go up the ranks and seeing how internationally he’s doing so well and girls like Chela who’s now living in LA and being appreciated for her art and her hard work, that’s fantastic. These people really deserve it and whether it is that Australia is in the zone right now, I’m not sure it’s that we have gotten any better, I think that people are noticing there is some really great stuff going on here.

Are you finding it interesting to see when you release a song how many different places it goes?

It’s weird. It’s really weird. Yeah, I do find it interesting. It’s great. How the hell did people survive without the internet. I feel like I’m very much an internet artist. I don’t play live very often so the internet has really helped me. You can go into SoundCloud and go into statistics and it shows you where your music is being made. I have more people listening to my songs in America than I do here and that weirds me out. I’m like, “I don’t know any of them”. They’re not listening to me because they feel like they have to because they’re my friends.

Are you excited to take the EP into the live arena?

Yeah, I’m looking forward to it. I must admit, I’m quite nervous to play, just because I’m quite shy. But I’m really looking forward to playing songs and saying, “this is on my EP and you can get it now”. Instead of having one or two singles in my set that people know. This is my first release and I’ve never been able to say “this is from my EP that you can get online”, so I’m excited.

Where’s the visual influence from Banoffee come from?

Me and Alice Glenn worked very closely on all the clips and it was really like a close collaboration between her and I deciding what we wanted to do visually. Each of the clips for me have an element of fun but also a hint of meaning towards what the song is about. The wigs and sunglasses in Got It were about the two narratives that Got It has which is showing people who are in their element and people who can celebrate something that they’ve worked hard to be good at and that’s sort of the clips that go on in the lenses. But the other part is realising that you don’t who you're close to and that can feel like a shock or a bit of an injustice. And the wig and the glasses was part of trying to communicate that sense of disguise.

Banoffee’s debut EP is out on Friday.

BANOFFEE AUSTRALIAN EAST COAST TOUR:

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 10

BIGSOUND Music Conference, Brisbane QLD

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 19

Shebeen Bandroom, Melbourne VIC

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 20

Goodgod SmallClub, Sydney NSW

interviews08/20/2014

Fractures on Bigfoot, Hype Machine & the Melbourne Music Scene

Fractures_Interview

It's been a big year for Melbourne-born Fractures. An EP released in July, internet success and a performance at Splendour in the Grass, made only bigger by his forthcoming EP launch shows and performances at BIGSOUND and LA music festival, Culture Collide. Though it hasn't always been smooth sailing for Fractures (AKA Mark Zito). Late last year, in the midst of increasing success, Zito was involved in an accident that caused him to, somewhat ironically, fracture his neck. Six months' recovery later, the multi-instrumentalist is back again, stronger than ever, fresh from his performance at Splendour and about to embark on his EP tour. We had a chat to him about his upcoming shows, musical influences and the truth about Bigfoot.

You had to cancel your debut show last year due to fracturing a vertebrae in your neck. How did the accident and subsequent recovery influence your music?

Initially it only stopped me making it. Purely because of the physical constraint of the situation I was in. Some slight mental boundaries in there too, but physical had already won the battle before they factored in. Ultimately, it gave me time to reflect on the songs I'd already written and how they sat side by side.

Basically, whether they complemented one another or not in some way and it resulted in me seeing that they didn't necessarily. At least not all of them so I was able to make a more conscious effort to add to the catalogue from that point on with that in mind and I think I've stuck to it.

How have your rehearsals been going in preparation for your EP launch shows? Are you feeling confident?

I've got a good band behind me so that'll rarely be an issue. Almost a case of us getting bored of the songs before the audience has a chance to. The EP shows won't feature a vastly different set list to what I've played before at my previous shows, especially given that there have been only two of them in Melbourne at least.

So I feel I can afford to milk these tunes for a little while longer but there should be one or two newbies in there, and half of the set is unreleased as far as the audience is concerned anyhow. So yeah, confident.

EW compared you to Alt-J. How do you feel about comparisons like this?

I'll take the comparison. They're not a band I've listened to all that much but when people speak about them so glowingly most of the time then I'm not going to complain about being mentioned in the same sentence.

I suppose the comparisons serve me well in gaining a new audience more than anything - it's not as though I like every artist I might be compared to but if someone else does and it brings them my way then I'm all for it.

The Melbourne music scene is particularly thriving. Do you feel you've benefited from it?

It's dense. Truly dense. I'm not sure if I can give a solid yes or no to that answer but once you dip your toe in slightly it turns out it's not as expansive as you might have thought. Everyone can be connected somehow which is definitely a positive for having access to creative people.

You're playing at Culture Collide in LA later this year. Will this be your first time playing overseas?

Yup. First gig on foreign soil. Should be a laugh. I know very little about it but that doesn't bother me one bit.

Are you surprised at how your music has spread internationally?

I'm still not totally convinced it has. Internet stats are one thing but until I set foot over there, play a show, and have more than 10 people turn up then I'll still maintain my scepticism but hopefully I'm proven wrong. It's still so early on in the piece that my expectations aren't sky-high, but they'll get there.

[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/fractures-music/cadence[/soundcloud]

Your music has been doing the rounds on Hype Machine. Do you attribute this as an enabler of your music growing to a wider audience?

Without a doubt. You chart there and it's pay day, figuratively, as far as streaming stats and the like are concerned. Get inside the top 10 and it goes a bit bananas for a few days which is nice but it doesn't necessarily guarantee retention of interest.

As far as giving music a platform, mine in particular, it definitely put the spotlight on me, even for that short period, and gave me a more solid foundation on which to build.

What producers are you influenced by?

Ohhhh, none in particular. I don't get too mired in the world of producers per se. I am a fan of Trentemøller, I'm not sure the influence is all too obvious with me though. None in particular come to mind.

Fractures_Interview_wacky

1. Would you rather be part of One Direction or Five Seconds of Summer?

Five Seconds of Summer. The homegrown aspect wins out - and they seem to actually play instruments live. As far as I can tell.

5s0s

2. If you could join one music act on stage during Splendour, who would it be?

Angus & Julia Stone and play blues solos over the top. Mash up, baby.

3. Favourite pizza topping?

Cheeeeeeeeeesssssseeeeeeeeee.

cheezy-pizza

4. If you were a box of cereal, what would you be and why?

Anything Home Brand, because I'm cheap and unreliable.

$honeyfractures$

5. Do you believe in Bigfoot?

I believe.

//Fractures - EP Launch 2014

FRI 8th AUG - The Vanguard - Sydney - Tickets

SAT 9th AUG - Northcote Social Club - Melbourne - SOLD OUT

WED 13th AUG - Northcote Social Club - Melbourne - Tickets

WED 10th SEP - BIGSOUND - Brisbane - Tickets

THURS 16th OCT - Culture Collide - Los Angeles - Tickets

interviews08/01/2014

Montaigne on Michel de Montaigne, dragonflies and being a t-shirt and shorts kinda gal

Montaigne Interview_Fantastic wreck_I am not an end

You only have to look at the top of the Singles and Album Charts in the US to know Australian females are killing it at the moment. Sia’s sixth album, 1000 Forms of Fear is the number one album while Iggy Azalea is holding the number one single in the country for the eighth week in a row. 18 year-old singer/songwriter Montaigne may be slightly more like the former than the latter, but she is nonetheless further proof of the healthy state of the Australian music scene.

Sydneysider Jessica Cerro has only just released her second single, I Am Not An End, and already she’s been added to high rotation on Triple J and become a buzzworthy name on websites around the country even before the release of her debut EP, Life of Montaigne.

[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/montaigne-music/i-am-not-an-end[/soundcloud]

Born from a diet of Owen Pallett, Arcade Fire, clouds and theatrics, Montaigne is crafting self-assured, pop-music with a grandiose far beyond her years. Speaking to the interns, Montaigne described her music as “Regina Spektor with the epicness of Coldplay”. The Coldplay reference comes from her first live encounter with the band whilst here on their Mylo Xyloto tour- a show she describes as “the best night of my life”.

She goes onto further cite her references as influences from Bjork to The National to Florence Welch and Marina and the Diamonds. This perhaps explains why her music sounds so epic for an 18 year-old singer who, two years ago, wasn’t sure if she wanted to be a musician.

In 2012, Cerro was a finalist on Triple J’s Unearthed High. While she didn’t win, she calls it a “blessing in disguise”. “I didn’t even know if I wanted to be a musician full time”, she said, continuing, “but now I am sure that’s exactly what I want to do for the rest of my life.”

She’s used the two years since to finish her studies, define her sound and find an image. “Everybody kept asking what my image was going to be and I wasn’t sure. I’m a t-shirt and shorts kinda girl”, she says. Since then she’s cut her hair off and found an image revolving around her “obsession of clouds”.

Both singles off Life of Montaigne, I’m A Fantastic Wreck and I Am Not An End have been picked up by Triple J. “It’s awesome Triple J and blogs are picking it up, it seems to be happening so quickly”, she says. Until recently Montaigne was managed by her Mum. She explains, “I’ve only just got a manager which is great because now I can go back to having a normal relationship with my Mum”.

[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/montaigne-music/im-a-fantastic-wreck[/soundcloud]

Cerro sounds genuinely giddy about her success and confident in talking about her influences both sonic and sociological. She says, “I’m more influenced by concepts than sounds”. In particular, she is most influenced by French Renaissance writer, Michel De Montaigne, who was known for his depictions of the human-race. His most famous phrase, “Que sçay-je?” meaning literally ‘What Know I?’ comes across in Cerro’s songs as she takes on a very personal self-exploration, particularly on the self-deprecating yet triumphant, I’m A Fantastic Wreck.

However, Montaigne says that Michel De Montaigne’s theories are not the topic of her songs, rather just a notion. “He’s not a direct lyrical influence”, she says, “I just kinda want him to be attached to my music, so people think of my music kinda like that”.

The EP, which is due out this year, is described by Cerro as “a mix of everything…a mix of the two styles of the singes”. She “just hopes everybody likes it”.

montaigne_wacky

1. What is the best end to a movie?

“That’s hard. Lord of the Rings: The Return of the Kings... It’s really cute.”

2. If you had to re-record an entire album, what would it be?

“ Bjork- Post. I just love that record.”

3. Describe your music with one animal?

“Dragonfly.”

4. Do you believe Shakespeare wrote his own plays?

“Yeah, I reckon he did.”

5. Your favourite trend from your childhood?

“Definitely tamagotchi.”

for more interviews, like us on

interviews07/16/2014

Allday on R&B, women & vegan hot dogs

Allday Allday (AKA Tom Gaynor) is the most hyped name in Australian hip-hop right now although it's not Aussie hip-hop as you've heard it. On hearing Allday's debut album, Startup Cult, it becomes clearly apparent that the young Melbourne emcee is inspired by rappers like Future, Drake and Yeezy rather than homegrown acts. As such he's ushering in a new-age of Australian hip-hop; one based on youthful lyrics, northern-hemisphere beats and a 'cult' that has quickly formed around him. As a young artist, Allday has become somewhat of a master at social media. He's amassed almost 100,000 likes on Facebook and 62,000 followers on Instagram. In celebration of his new album Startup Cult, he took a number of his fans on bus rides around Melbourne and Sydney to listen and chat about the new album.

Allday answered a few questions for the interns about what inspired the bus idea, his favourite R&B tracks at the moment and whether he would win a hot dog eating competition.

What inspired the "Startup Cult" bus idea?

At the moment with all the people messaging me it's very difficult to reply to every fan so I thought if the quantity of fan interaction is decreasing, let's improve the quality. At first I wanted to drive around with people 1 on 1 and play them the album but we settled on the idea of a bus. Next time I'm thinking a "booze cruise" around the harbour.

It sounds to us like your music sounds slightly more like American hip-hop than Aussie. Would you agree?

I think the line between Australian and American sounds is that Australian Hip Hop has branched off from 90s boom bap and developed in a certain way. I love and appreciate a great deal of Australian Hip Hop but my musical influence isn't really rooted in Australian artists. I think it's very cool Australia has its own sound, but I don't really consider myself a part of that (beyond the accent).

You’ve built up an impressive following without having an album out yet. How important is social media in that?

Social media has been the foundation of everything for me so far. If Instagram and Facebook were to close down tomorrow I have no idea what I'd do. On the other hand, sometimes people overthink social media, I just try to be myself and I think people can sense honesty.

What have you done differently from the mixtape to the album? Do you think the album sounds more cohesive?

Well the album took a lot longer. I thought about what I wanted to communicate and how. Whereas on the mixtapes I would usually just find a beat or whatever and write a rap in 5 or 10 minutes. Then record it in 15 or 20 minutes and that would be a song. For instance, some songs like Sick Sad World or Julia Stiles (mixtape songs) would have about 30 minutes total work in them. When they got to 100,000 views or whatever I realized "wow, I would have done a better job if I knew this many people would listen to it." So on the album, I tried to do a better job.

Is Right Now a good indication of what is to come on the album or are there some curve balls?

I think there's some curve balls.

How is the tour going? Is the crowd reacting to the new songs well?

The tour just finished up, the new songs weren't going amazingly actually but that always seems to happen with me. Maybe I need a bit of practise to perform them or something.

Name your five favourite hip-hop/RnB songs at the minute.

Partynextdoor - TBH

[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/partyomo/partynextdoor-tbh[/soundcloud]

Sampha - Indecision

[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/samphamusic/indecision[/soundcloud]

The Weeknd - Often

[soundcloud]https://soundcloud.com/theweekndxo/the-weeknd-often[/soundcloud]

Jeremih - Fuck U All The Time

Justin Timberlake - Not A Bad Thing

^ Wow these are all RnB, guess I'm going through a phase at the moment.

wackyqs 1. Would you be Jay Z, Beyonce or Solange in the elevator situation?

I don't know their personal lives and I don't want to weigh in on that really but I think I'd like to be Jay Z because I'm already a man and I don't want to have to get used to a whole different set of genitalia.

2. Do you believe you could win a hot dog eating competition?

I'm a pretty fast eater. The fact that I'm a vegan really holds back my hot dog eating (for the rest of eternity). Vegan hot dogs though, I'm keen to race.

3. What’s your least favourite Instagram filter?

Wow, so many of them suck. Hefe.

4. Money has been left in the ATM. What do you do?

If I was 16, I'd take that money and be buying something terrible with it before you could say "lack of morals". These days, I'd take it back into the bank and make sure the person got their money back.

5. What do you see in this inkblot?

That's clearly a woman's body right? Now I look like some sex-minded perve, damn.

inkblot Allday's debut LP Startup Cult is out now.

interviews07/08/2014

Yeo on Pharrell, Keith Urban and Koopa Troopa

Melbourne producer/songwriter, Yeo, has been kicking around on the scene for a while. Since the release of his first single, Girl, off his forthcoming EP, Come Find Me, his audience has boomed. His second single, Kobe has continued that streak, amassing almost 50,000 plays on Soundcloud and delivering a video directed by MOOP JAW.

We spoke to Yeo midway through his Kobe single tour, a show that brings together his diverse, RnB styles with an all-encompassing visual experience.

How’d the first show go?

Ah it was insane. It was crazy. So unexpectedly awesome.

Has the liveshow changed since you started?

It has. New members is one of them. But we’ve condensed the show down to a two piece, added visuals and also just recently we’ve started piping the set up so there’s not big spaces between songs and making it a real show. Making it an engaging experience more so than just a bunch of dudes on stage playing music.

Are people responding well to new material?

Four or five of the songs in our set haven’t been put out yet. Majority of it is from older albums but there is a big chunk that is new and people don’t seem to notice. Or if I do mention accidentally on stage that we are playing a new song, they get excited. It’s pretty cool.

I suppose you’re at that enviable point in your career where people respond well to new songs rather than going for a bar break.

Nahh. That happens. I feel sorry for bands that have to put up with that.

When you were writing and producing the songs for Come Find Me did you feel like you were onto something with Kobe?

I didn’t. Kobe is the one that is the most poppy and catchiest but I don’t necessarily like it the best. I think Girl is really interesting and then the other two are really quite catchy. It’s hard to explain. I didn’t get the feeling at the time. I liked it but I didn’t think this is the single.

Do you find Come Find Me is quite eclectic or is there a common thread that runs through it?

For me personally there is always a common thread. To everyone else I think they listen to what I do and think every song sounds different. I can see that too. A lot of things are different from song to song but where they come from, say my heart or the feelings that I have, they are all from the same place.

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Have you had a common influence since you started recording?

The influences definitely change all the time for me. I think a lot of the feeling, it makes sense when you put them in chronological order. When it comes to something like grief it’s followed by shock, followed by anger, followed by you know repairing yourself and then eventually happiness. It all makes sense in terms of that kind of thing. Talking external influences, I listen to a lot of different kinds of music, I read a lot of different books and I watch a lot of different movies.

Do you think inspiration comes from finding new instruments and new sounds?

Yeah definitely, everything I do is to not have a plan. I lock myself in a shed and play around with all the different musical toys I have. A lot of the time songs just form themselves.

Do you pull inspiration from obscure things like Nintendo?

I used to play video games a lot when I was young. I don’t keep up with the gaming trends these days but I still enjoy video games in general. But yeah It does come from obscure things. Anything from video games to the way the light reflects of a river. Sorry to sound wanky but that’s one of the things. Or how could it is in Melbourne in Winter when you wake up sometimes. Whatever.

I read that you have another EP ready for release after Come Find Me, is that still happening and is it a different kind of sound?

It’s probably a very natural progression from Come Find Me. Come Find Me has a lot of space, and dimension to it. The next one is a tighter, groove-based thing, possibly with a bit more emotion. Because the space has been taken away, it’s a little bit more confronting.

Do you have an album in the works?

I would love to do an album but I don’t think that I have the attention span nor does my audience. We’ll see. One day I would love to. A big concept one with massive story-lines and songs that run into eachother.

It sounds to me as if the visual output is just as important as the audible output for you. Is that true?

Recently it’s become that way. I think to standout from other musicians and acts you’ve really got to focus on the experience as a whole and realise that people need more than just their ears to be stimulated these days.

How’d the collaboration come up with MOOP JAW for the Kobe video?

Well my manager is actually really good friends with the director and the writer of the clip. He heard the song and he liked it so he said yes.

Are you happy with the clip?

I’m so stoked, I’m really proud of the clip. It took a long time to come out because there were some details we had to work out. But when it came out everybody said to me it’s beautiful. And I was like, “yeah, I’m glad it came across that way”. That’s all we wanted to do. Make it a work that both Rhett and I were happy with.

How do you go about incorporating the visual into your live show?

We just have a projector and we turn the lights down so you can see the projector. That’s what a lot of bands do wrongly these days. They leave the lights up and you can barely see anything. It’s all about making the crowd feel less self-conscious and giving them something to focus on other than people.

Was there an artists that influenced you early on to be a musician?

Not particularly. There have been a few key artists in my life that have made me or inspired me. Mostly my peers, seeing what they do and how things can be done push me along. Pharrell was a big influence back when I was starting out. It was like, hey he’s just one guy with these ideas and he’s just putting them on record. It’s hard to nail down influences because there’s so many and they’re always changing.

Do you feel it’s a good time to be a self-made electronic artist?

Ahh. What it does is if there’s a lot of competition around, you just get better at what you do. You work hard. Sometimes, it’s a little bit disheartening when you see these young kids who have produced one song in their bedroom shoot to superstardom whereas there’s guys like me have been kicking it for nine years. But it’s all about the follow-up. If they do a track after that that’s just as good, I’ll shut the hell up because that’s rad.

Do you feel like taking a while is a good thing?

I definitely feel that. My character is very densely built now that I’ve been gigging around for so long. And I don’t get phased by flashy offers or big city lights. I know what I’m good at, I know what I’m not good at and I know what I need to get better at.