Rrocklobster’s Interview 
with Leigh Stearne, 
88 To Yesterday

88 To Yesterday bassist Leigh Stearne talks to Rrocklobster about the local punk scene, jumping in the deep end, and his newfound penchant for organising themed punk shows.

Talking with Stearne on a sunny afternoon outside a pub in Freo, he seems laid back and optimistic. He’s definitely a glass-half-full kind of guy, and is willing to give anything a go. Being in a band has thrown him many challenges, and from the outside it appears he’s conquered them with aplomb.

His first challenges were learning to play bass, and finding the confidence to play in front of a crowd. “I picked up the bass four years before the band started and I was just in the bedroom randomly playing. When the band started I started playing regularly. I just wish I’d started earlier. Being in a band pushes you. You have to do it; you have to practice. When we started gigging we smashed about six or seven gigs within two weeks. It was insane but doing that was awesome. Smashing out so many gigs in quick succession, I was able to get the jitters out and now it’s fun. It’s not scary anymore.”

2014 has been tumultuous for the band, but they’re getting back on track now with a new guitarist and a positive attitude. “This year’s been crazy, we’ve gone through two guitarists this year and now it’s like restarting. It’s good; it’s exciting. We’re trying to figure out how to make music again”

As well as trying to figure out how they work musically, they needed someone to take the reins of logistics. “Our original guitarist Phil was our unofficial manager. He was in charge of taking care of bookings and all the behind the scenes things and now I’ve jumped into that role in the band. This is my first band as well, so I didn’t know what I was doing. I was winging it but I’m starting to get a feel for it now”

It’s helpful when the other bands are friendly, and that’s certainly the case in the Perth punk scene. “You’ve got to network and get to know other bands and make friends. Everyone I’ve met in the scene has been awesome. Everyone’s keen for a drink and a laugh. It’s not about outdoing each other it’s just about having a good time. There’s a lot of diversity within the one punk genre. Every band’s got their own thing that they bring to the table so it’s good. You haven’t got two bands that are exactly the same, competing with each other”

They’re finding out just how diverse the punk scene is, and where their sugared-coated pop-punk fits into that. Stearne reflects on the Chaos Club show they played earlier this year where the crowd and the other entertainers reminded him of GG Allin. “That would definitely be the most out there night we’ve played. It was really different but good! A couple of the guys were not really our scene but it was good. I like to see all sorts of subcultures of different things that that was really eye opening. We felt so far removed from the punk – we felt like One Direction!”

It wasn’t long after this that Stearne started to organise shows himself. “I was finding it difficult to book shows because I didn’t really know how to go about it, so I put a show on myself. I’m a Breaking Bad fan, so I went with the theme and people liked it. The first one was really successful we got 50 people through the door, which was sick for a Tuesday night. That was awesome. If the next one’s successful hopefully I can do more Breaking Punks, because it’s an excuse to play a sick show and get people on board. The next one’s on a Friday so I’ve got to try and get 100 people through the door. It’s a pretty solid line up, I think.

Punk isn’t the only thing on Stearne’s mind. “I love all music. Ska, pop-punk, straight up punk, everything! Even hip hop. I love Seth Sentry.” He has a soft spot for Australian bands. “Violent Soho and The Smith Street Band are my two favourite Australian bands. When they announced that double headliner..! Wil [Wagner, of The Smith Street Band] is so energetic. Within one song he’s doused in a pool of sweat and you can see they’re having fun.”

"He’s walked out of the door just as we’re dropping our friends off and I said ‘Oh that’s Phil fuckin’ Jamieson, what the fuck?’ and I’ve called out ‘Phil! Good luck tonight mate!’ full fan boy, and he’s stumbled over. He was blotto!"

Clearly an avid lover and follower of music, he has a few stories to share, including the one about the time he met Grinspoon front man Phil Jamieson.“They played Groovin’ The Moo a couple of years ago and we were dropping off some friends at a hotel. He’s walked out of the door just as we’re dropping our friends off and I said ‘Oh that’s Phil fuckin’ Jamieson, what the fuck?’ and I’ve called out ‘Phil! Good luck tonight mate!’ full fan boy, and he’s stumbled over. He was blotto! I don’t know if he was on drugs or not but he was stumbling around, it was like ten in the morning, and he’s walked over to the driver’s door and stood on my cousin’s foot, and he said ‘Ahh I’m just gonna go and pretend to bloody like people now aye,’ and then he just staggered off. I tell everybody that story.”

Interview and article by Rrocklobster of Perth. Photos by Shoot The Wicked Witch.

Live Review

Bad China

Velvet Lounge
Wednesday 20 August

with Tell The Shaman, Sprawl and Crow Jones and the Lonely Bones.

Rrocklobster and photographer Chris Webster went to check out some local bands at Velvet Lounge, just next door to The Flying Scostman. If you’re a fan of bluesy rock, this would have been a great gig for you and with a meager $5 door charge these four bands provided a great bang for your buck!

Punters settled into the couches with their $10 jugs of beer ready to enjoy Crow Jones and the Lonely Bones’s diverse mix of country, rock and folk. Vocalist Crow Jones appeared earthy and grounded, and so happy to be on stage playing her acoustic guitar with its feather and beads hanging off the top.

Curly-haired trio Sprawl started out quiet and quirky, but got louder and louder until the sound was delightfully deafening. Full of shrieking, frenetic gritty chords, crazy distortion and crashing drums, their hard and heavy rock bounced off the concrete walls. Ben Claessens’ expressive eyebrows and his ability to simultaneously play keyboard and trumpet provided some visual entertainment. Edric Matviev’s awkward stage banter added to their endearing peculiarity. “We have an EP,” announced Matviev. “Aside from that, you can find us all on tinder.”

"Have we got scissors in the bar? I need to cut off this guitar string or it's gonna fuck me up." Just a few songs in, and Tell The Shaman guitarist Dennis Kooij had already broken a string. Oops! The rest of the band jammed seamlessly in the mean time, and a loan guitar was offered. The rest of the set went off without a hitch, full of heavy bluesy guitar chords and disco-esque drum beats and bass lines. People were grooving in their seats, just on the verge of jumping up to bust a move.

The alcohol kicked in just in time for people to get loose with Bad China. They have lots of character and know how to work up a crowd. Their fuzzy guitar progressions and frantic screeching set the punters off! It was way too rad for a Wednesday night! Thrilled punters dangled about like marionette puppets, and thrashed out some mad air guitar. A drunk guy in red plaid who had been dancing vigorously for a while jumped onto the stage to dance with the band, then pounced back onto the floor and very successfully started a mosh. More sober crowd members may have noticed the intricate bass work of Michael Mcintosh, who could probably wow a crowd with a whole set of solo-bass tunes.

Review by Rrocklobster of Perth. 

Photographs by Chris Webster Photography.

 

Live Review

Dan Cribb and The Isolated 

The Newport Hotel

Sunday 10 August

with Mezzanine, The Disappointed and White Oak and Stuyvesant

The Decline’s own Dan Cribb has side project, Dan Cribb and The Isolated, and it has been steadily maturing over the last few months. Equipped with a new drummer, he’s taking the band on a national tour later this year. Over the weekend they played a run of shows in Perth, Mandurah and Fremantle. Rrocklobster went to check out the Freo gig.

It was a Sunday evening and a small crowd in the band room of The Newport Hotel found solace listening to the comforting guitar riffs of White Oak and Stuyvesant. Their strong post-rock sound deserves the attention of a larger crowd. Tell your friends. Buy their records. Go to one of their shows.

Members of The Disappointed were among the punters enjoying White Oak and Stuyvesant. After calmly sipping their beers empty, they took to the stage and got stuck right into their upbeat tunes featuring four-way group vocals lead by Michael Strong. Extra depth in their sound was added by intriguing and sometimes ominous keyboard effects and catchy rock guitar riffs. Songs from their new Weird Peace EP sounded fresh, and older songs have evolved a little with new twists and tweaks. Every song is an earworm!

Mezzanine was the catalyst for a grungier mood. Vocalist Cory John Rist sang out from behind his fringe, and was backed by plenty of reverb and crunch from the guitars. A cover of The Pixies, Where Is My Mind, slotted so perfectly into the set it could have been their own song. A photographer rocked out in the lighting box while punters’ heads nodded and their toes tapped. Hearing the strong bassy title track of their album Strange Paradise, the relaxed Sunday drinkers must have been tempted to get their hands on a copy of the CD. Mezzanine plays solid, accessible rock and should have more of a following. Get into it, Perth!

Hosts of the evening, Dan Cribb and The Isolated, were up next. If you saw them play earlier in the year, you may be surprised that Cribb has replaced the acoustic guitar with an electric. There were more vocal contributions from bassist Ray Chiu and guitarist Scott Connor and overall the band now seems to make more sense. The used-to-be-folky tunes from last year’s The Memories Last EP were given a new lease on life, and a few skate-punk chord progressions crept into newer songs. Cribb’s trademark youthful voice was less audible over the extra fuzz, but overall the band has gained more energy and spunk.

Review by Rrocklobster of Perth.

Rrocklobster's Interview with The Disappointed

A few weeks ago, Andy, Mark and Michael from The Disappointed caught up with Rrocklobster for cups of coffee and a chat.

Being in such an isolated location, the Australian market can be difficult for Perth bands to tap into. The Disappointed have worked hard to build a following on the east coast. “It took us a while to make friends over there. Now in every city we’ve got a group of bands that we like playing with and hanging out with. We’ve got some good friends in Melbourne so whenever we go there now it’s like a big hangout.” They toured and hung out with those good friends earlier this year. "We got drunk - that's important. We didn't lose anyone in an airport!" The entire east coast tour was a super-party for the guys, with a huge turnout in Brisbane and enjoying the King's Cross nightlife in Sydney. "Our drummer always gets super loose in Sydney!"

Things have really come together for The Disappointed this year with triple j airplay, the release of their second EP Weird Peace, and their debut overseas tour. “WAM sent us to Singapore and helped us get there. It was incredible. We played a beer festival and we got to play on the Formula 1 track. Singapore was amazing. We got a really great response and feedback since has been really good. We had a great holiday and a really successful run of shows.”

Now that they're back home it's time to start working on new material, and after two EPs the five-piece are keen to write an album, but are adamant that it needs to be top quality. Whether they release an album or an EP "will depend on if it’s is good enough to fill out a whole album. We won't put out anything second rate if we don't have the songs."

Collaboration and cooperation is what moves the band forward. "There's a lot of give and take and everyone's really happy to do it. We've been really goal-oriented rather than anyone having agendas of their own." Everyone's involved in the creative process. "We're definitely a jam band. The first two EPs were 80% jams." Lead singer Michael Strong summarised the band’s feelings. "I've always felt you get better material that way. I can't even sit down to write a song by myself any more, I'm instantly bored. I have no interest in writing without these guys - it just doesn't appeal to me."

Jamming keeps things fresh for The Disappointed, who constantly reinvent their sound and don’t feel held back by the past. “We have an album sound and a live sound. If you start imitating your own records it never sounds as good as it does on the record. You never get anywhere new doing that either – you’ve got to keep experimenting and changing and trying new ideas or else you’re just going to repeat what you did on the last EP.”

They like to keep things fresh on social media, too. “I think people are bored of seeing bands plug their own stuff now. You just see the same posts over and over again. I think it’s going in one ear and out the other; if people want to see a show they’ll look it up. Constantly promoting stuff is important but you’ve got to mix it up with stuff that people actually want to read.” The idea, they say, is to create an honest conversation with their fans by sharing their opinions on current issues. “You really need to elicit an emotional response from these things otherwise it’s not worth doing. Part of the fun of having fans is that there’s a whole dialogue of people that dig what you do that you can then talk to, that you wouldn’t have met otherwise, so having conversations with them is part of the fun. If you post something about you as a band in particular I don’t think people feel free to say what they think.”

Band members feel free to say what they think too, even if their opinions differ from each other. “People know when you’re just protecting your brand with what you’re saying and when you’re telling the truth. It’s a bit of a risk to tell the truth because it doesn’t put across the squeaky-clean image of the band. We’re people and things affect us and we’d like to talk about that stuff.”

Keep your ears open for The Disappointed in the coming months, because they’re on a roll after their recent touring. “It would be good to do some extra shows while the set’s still in its prime.”

Interview and article by Rrocklobster of Perth. Photographs by Shoot The Wicked Witch.