
Well for me it all began playing guitar at 14, that was it. I don’t think I’ve put it down since. Other things in my life have come and go but music has been my best pal the whole way through.
What had you first interested in music?
I reckon it’d be MJ, he grabbed me ( and maybe a few others.. ) as a kid. I’m still a huge fan, you can’t really beat him. Maybe Prince tops him, I dunno know, it’s a tough call and I wouldn’t want to put money on it. Excuse the child abuse joke earlier, I reckon he was innocent myself, just misunderstood.
Jeez, I guess everyone else who makes great music. The Beatles set the benchmark and people have been keeping up with that ever since. I saw Rufus Wainwright recently in Melbourne and he just laid most people to waste. Total bad ass, such a high level of musicianship, a consummate performer.
Do you have any planned tours coming up?
Just doing a little one around Australia at the moment, hitting the big smokes. Once the album is out though we’ll be keen to go everywhere, I had a lot of fun touring with Miami Horror so keen to get this show on the road too.
What are some of your biggest goals you hope to accomplish as an artist?
I guess you just want to make the best music you can make and have it out to as many people as possible. I just always want to make things the best I can make them, if I do that I’m happy.
What can fans expect from you in the coming months?
Success, what is the secret to it and what has been your biggest career highlight so far?
Work hard and don’t let people tell you that you’re no good. It’s cheesy but self believe really is super important. A career highlight for me was swinging from the scaffolding at Governors Island in NYC playing with Miami Horror to 10 thousand people, singing my arse off and swinging precariously while the crowd screamed. You can’t buy that experience.
Which stars of the music industry do you find inspiring?
There are a lot of stars I love, I’ve already named a few, Paul McCartney still rocks, Harry Nilsson was brilliant, Queens of the Stoneage don’t give a fuck about anyone and I love that, Noel Gallagher always has something insightfully ridiculous to say. Nina Simone, Sam Cooke, the list goes on.
How would you best describe you and your music to your fans?
Progressive vintage, borrowing from the old but trying to create something new.
What can you tell us about your latest album?
We have two singers in our band, both of us having different timbre’s. There are lots of harmonies, strings, horns, piano’s, rhodes, wurli, lots of guitar solo’s, soft 60/70’s production, but fresh new ideas.
Are there any new exciting projects in the works?
Working on the new Miami Horror album myself at the moment, I think that’s gonna turn out nicely. It’s still a long way off though. Aaron and Ben from Miami Horror have a new project called Honeymooon, check it out if you get a chance, it’s awesome.
The music industry is huge, where do you see yourself a few years from now?
Fitting in somewhere..
Name a few of your favourite Aussie artists.
Kimbra, Tame Impala, Brous, World End Press, there’s lots of great stuff coming out at the moment, it’s a flavoured scene.
The shape of the music industry has changed significantly over the years, including the use of social media, how do you feel about the industry as a whole and what does it mean to you in getting your records out into the public eye?
I think people just need to be a little cautious not to give too much away, more so in the social media setting of tweeting everything that pops into their head and answering every fan question, that sort of thing. I like a bit of mystery to artists, I don’t know much about Prince and it keeps this aura about him because he keeps everything so tight. If he tweeted his breakfast cereal the veil would fall and that would be like finding out Santa isn’t real.
Thank you for the interview! What can you leave fans of theaussieword.com with here today?
Their first taste of “progressive vintage” our new single Second To None!