theaussieword.com special interview with Dip Road Dogs.
How where did it all begin. What drew you to the music industry?
We were hanging out and jamming a lot and eventually decided we should do a gig. The local pub were good enough to give us a go and wasn’t a complete disaster so we did a few more. It a pretty typical starting point I guess, it happened pretty organically and soon enough decided we wanted to record our own music.
After a whirlwind trip to Nashville to where we recorded with producer Josh Frigo, our first EP was on the way!
What motivates you or influences you in your quest to make great music?
Jamming together and finding sounds that we each agree on purely for the enjoyment is how we started out. That hasn’t changed as we got into recording our songs and we think if we all like a song others will too.
What are your biggest goals you hope to accomplish as an artist?
As we are just starting out I think we are just wanting to keep writing and recording new stuff that we are proud of. Any success we have along the way will be a bonus!
What can we expect from you in the coming months? Any plans to Tour?
The remainder of our ‘Shakshuka’ EP will be released in early 2020 and a tour is in the works on the back of that. Beyond that we will continue jamming and writing until we are ready to get back in the studio and do it all again.
Tell us about your latest release and how would you best describe your music?
The songs from ‘Shaskshuka’ draw on a range of sounds from psychedelic to folk and country. We enjoy a wide range of music and enjoy bringing that flexibility to the studio.
Give us an insight into your creative process?
Working together in our home studio near Kerang, we get together as much as we can to throw ideas around until we find sounds we all dig. We took a bunch of demos to Nashville for producer Josh Frigo to put the finishing touches on. We couldn’t be more pleased with how they turned out. The songs gained extra meaning and layers we never knew they had!
What gets you writing songs?
Long days in tractors or harvesters gives us time to dream up riffs and lyrics.
Is there a hidden meaning in any of your music?
Not really, we certainly don’t write with the intention of having hidden messages in the lyrics or sound. If others find hidden meaning in them that’s great, we’d like to know!
Success, what is the secret to it?
It’s a boring cliché but just enjoying the music and the process of making it. We haven’t set out to make our fortune from music, we just wanted to record our work and have something out there that we were happy with.
What has been you biggest career highlight so far?
Our trip to Nashville to record the EP was amazing. We didn’t have as long as we would have liked so it was an intensive recording process but to work with so many great musicians in a short space of time was incredible. We’ve already discussed going back again if we get the chance!
What stars of the music industry do you find inspiring?
Artists that seem to be able to write epic, raw songs effortlessly and perform them even better than the recording. Jim James of My Morning Jacket comes to mind.
Any new projects in the pipeline?
We are always working on new stuff but for now our sole focus is getting the current release out there and some gigs in early 2020.
The music industry is huge, where do you see yourself in 5 years form now?
We have set ourselves no goals other than to enjoy making and playing music together. If we are still doing that in 5 years that will be enough, whether we are playing in front of 15 people or 15,000!
What is your favourite and least favourite part about this line of work and why?
We haven’t been in the industry long to enough to become jaded by the process and business side of the things. At this point it’s all a rosie!
Name a few of your fav Australian artists.
Hes an honorary Aussie (Melbourne based Kiwi) but Marlon Williams is on heavy rotation at the moment.
The shape of the industry has changed significantly over the years, including the se of social media, how do you feel about the industry as a whole and what does it mean to you in getting your records in the public eye?
We are new to the industry so its hard for us to comment on the changes over the years but obviously getting streams online is a major part of the industry today, pitching on Spotify etc is now as important as radio play we feel. I think fundamentally not much has changed in that you need to write quality songs to have meaningful and lasting success in terms of reaching a wider audience.
How do you plan on cracking the international market?
Its not what we have set out to do but writing the best songs we can and are most proud of is all we have planned.
Do you collaborate with others? Who is on you wish list?
Not as yet but Andrew Coates from Black Cab would be someone we would love to team up with.
What advice do you give for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?
Start writing and find an awesome producer to help turn your ideas into something more. You wont know unless you give it a go!
A message for your fans? How do you best interact and respond with you fans?
Stand by for the remainder of Shakshuka and gigs in early 2020!