TELL US ABOUT YOUR NEW ALBUM/ PROJECT?
Steven Campbell (lead vocals/bass): We just released our debut Double EP SENT FROM HELL it's a wild and raw rock n' rock record about sin, sex and good times. It's a mix of 4 studio recordings, including our 2 single releases, and 4 live recordings taken from one of our gigs in December. It's fast and it's heavy and it's LOUD!
WHAT INSPIRED ANY CENTRAL THEMES ON THE ALBUM?
Well it wasn't until after we recorded the bulk of it and put all the songs together that we realised there was a bit of a theme to it all. All the songs centred around hell, sin, sex and rock n' roll itself, and there's a real rawness and energy to it, it was like an avalanche and it was brought straight from the devil himself so we thought Sent From Hell would be the perfect title, and then we came up with the postcard cover art idea of us as skeletons and demons playing a gig in hell. So it all came together quite well.
HOW LONG DID YOU SPEND RECORDING?
We recorded the EP at South Street Recording Studios, we only spent about 2-3 days recording each song, but it was spaced out over a period of about 5 months, between gigs and other stuff. Mixing and mastering also took a bit of time as well. The live tracks were recorded at a gig we did at The Bull and Bush Hotel in Dec, but overall it was pretty smooth, we had spent months prior to recording; writing and rehearsing all these songs so we weren't building anything up from scratch when we got in there, and all we had to focus on was just getting the best sound possible.
HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT THE SONGWRITING PROCESS?
It's pretty collaborative. Usually one of us will come up with a riff or a title or some kind of idea and bring it in to rehearsal and then we’ll work on it with the rest of the band. Sometimes its very spontaneous and we can work out a whole song together on the spot, other times, one of us will go home and work on it by ourselves and structure it in our own time and then bring it back to the band to complete, and were constantly trying to get it as close to perfect as possible. We just think if you go through the trouble of writing a song, why not try to make it the best song it can be? Why write filler material?
DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE TRACK FROM THE ALBUM?
I think we all really like Get Back (to Fuckwit City), and that seems to be an audience favourite as well.
WHO ARE YOUR BIGGEST INFLUENCES?
As a band, it's definitely 70s/80s Aussie rock bands like AC/DC, Rose Tattoo, the Angels, Stevie Wright, the Easybeats, and my dad's band Avalanche. We're also inspired by all the big rock and metal bands like Guns n Roses, Led Zep, Metallica, Sabbath, Motörhead, as well as the Rolling Stones, The Who, Chuck Berry, and we also have a lot of blues influences as well.
HOW DID YOU FORM THE BAND?
We started in Sydney at the beginning of last year. Our drummer Ryan’s Dad owned a steel factory that he and Veronica, our guitarist, used to rehearse in. Between them, they knew how to play every AC/DC song and would jam on a mix of blues, rock and metal songs every weekend. Eventually, Veronica brought me into the mix as they needed a lead vocalist. We went through a whole mess of bass players and rhythm guitarists until I took up bass and we decided to just continue as a three piece for a while, and then eventually we found Arthur to take up rhythm guitar.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO ANYONE STARTING OUT?
There’s only one thing you need to know about music, what you put into it, is what you get out of it, if you’re willing to put in the time and the effort, in all areas, it will end up taking you places you never thought you could go. Just stay persistent, and always keep learning.
WHAT IS NEXT?
We'll be gigging non-stop all over Sydney over the next few months to promote the EP, we're already booked out until the end of July and are constantly booking more shows and working as hard as possible to make them our best shows yet. We're working very hard with several promotion companies and advertisers as well to just push this EP as far as it can go. Veronica just bought a beautiful new Gibson SG, she has 2 now, as well as a Marshall JCM2000 stack that she got last year that she can wait to play the shit out off live. Arthur had to buy a stack as well just to compete with her! So if you're in Sydney anytime soon, be sure to come along! Apart from that, we're already working on a new release and a tour for towards the end of the year, so stay tuned!
ANYTHING ELSE YOUD LIKE TO ADD -
Be sure to check out the EP on Spotify and all other streaming platforms! We hope you enjoy it as much as we do https://open.spotify.com/album/5EbExbWVWFealYCQjlGzHT?si=qbdyqeYjSpuGEgZF_ex4xw