Bringing A Tidal Wave Of Energy With STEVEN & VERONICA From AVALANCHE

Interview by Kris PetersThe Hard-Ons are the ultimate Aussie punk rock larrikins and purveyors of great music.Over thirteen previous albums the quality of the Hard-Ons music has only been superseded by their attitude and humour inherent both in their songs, their general demeanor, and their now legendary live performances.At the turn of this decade the band welcomed in new singer Tim Rogers (You Am I), with the future uncertain in the fact that Rogers - while a great vocalist and frontman in his own right - was not the first choice for some of the band's long term fans.But, as is usual with the hard-Ons, they cared little for public sentiment and opinion and pressed forward into the unknown, confident that this would provide a new, successful chapter in the bands illustrious career.The ensuing album I'm Sorry Sir, That Riffs Been Taken was a breath of fresh air on the music scene, combining the punk ethos of the Hard-Ons with Rogers own unique characteristics to become one of the smash records of 2021.The tour that followed only solidified the strength of the Hard-Ons, with Rogers quickly dispelling any doubts over his ability to take the band forward.With the Hard-Ons to release the follow up album, Ripper '23, today, June 2 - the first album started and completed together by the new line-up - HEAVY caught up with guitarist Peter 'Blackie' Black to find out more."Every record is a step up (from the last one)," he explained. "If your records aren't a step up from your last one then you should give up. Wherever we are or whatever we do, whatever we do next is gonna be better than the one before. I feel really strongly about this one. It's a huge step up from the last one."HEAVY reviewed the album recently and described it as a catchy release with a bit of something there for everyone, a point Blackie agrees with."I think that also shows our age, because albums really excite us," he measured. "Just those old albums in our collection, and for us an album is a journey from beginning to end. So that's what we try to do as well. It's not a conscious effort of putting in a little bit of everything, but just having this smooth, flowing pieces of work."In the full interview, Blackie talks more about the album musically, if the Hard-Ons have their own sound by now, how Tim has settled into the band on his second album, if the process was different this time around, their upcoming Ripper '23 tour and what to expect, touring Europe for the 20th time and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

1 Juni 202315min

Interview by Erin EddyThere aren’t too many bands that are as Australian as Frenzal Rhomb. The tongue-in-cheek humour, the larrikin antics, the accented vocals, and the disorderly, rowdy energy are all traits synonymous with the punk rockers, who have been spreading their infectious high jinks and raucous music for 31 years now.Here at HEAVY, we took advantage of a moment with guitarist Lindsay McDougall while he was on the job at ABC Radio, Illawarra.“I’m speaking to you on the ABC’s dime; That’s right, this is taxpayer funded right now!” Lindsay cheekily told us.The purpose of our chat was to speak about the upcoming Spring Loaded Festival, which Frenzal Rhomb is featured on, as well as Lindsay himself being the MC for the event. But it’s hard to speak with someone like Lindsay, from a band with as much history as Frenzal, and not slide a little off track and reflect on days past, especially if you’re a long-time fan.In the following interview you’ll hear discussion on the 2001 Big Day Out, stealing Killing Heidi’s vodka, their VHS The Travelling Flea Circus and anecdotes about past experiences touring overseas.When we did speak of Spring Loaded, Lindsay expressed that the familiarity of sharing the line up with old friends is a definite joy.“It’s nice playing with a bunch of old pricks that have the same level of cynicism as us,” he jokes, “I do wonder where the high jinks on this tour will come from and from which bands will the nonsense originate from.”“I’m excited to see who in the Shihad camp gets unnecessarily drunk by the end of it!”Given that this festival is stacked with a line up to make any 90’s kid froth, we asked Lindsay whether Frenzal Rhomb’s set was likely to be more geared toward a nostalgic vibe.“Nah, fuck that!” He laughs, “We do a lot of new stuff. We love not relying on nostalgia. We use nostalgia, we’ll pull it out, but we’ve just put a new album out and we’ve loved playing songs from the new album at the last couple of shows that we’ve done. So if you’ve come to see us play just songs from Not So Tough Now, bad luck!”The new album Lindsay speaks of is titled The Cup Of Pestilence. It was released only last month, and Lindsay says the songs are more involved and complex than ever.“We wrote really hard songs to play and to sing. They seem to be only getting more difficult, too. Because we’ve all been playing instruments for long enough, Jason knows he can get away with writing these really hard songs for us to play.”If you’re in the area, make sure you head to Sandstone Point for the Spring Loaded Festival atSandstone Point Hotel this Saturday June 3. Tickets are still on sale and can be purchased via Ticketmaster or Oztix.And if you can’t make it to Spring Loaded, Frenzal Rhomb will be on the road across the country as they continue to tour their latest record The Cup Of Pestilence, so keep an eye out for dates near you.Have a listen to our full interview with Lindsay to get the complete scoop on all of this and more!Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

30 Maj 202330min

Interview by Kris PetersAfter being one of the many bands to have their plans thwarted by COVID, Swedish lords of riff Deville finally make their Australian debut when their tour kicks off in Adelaide on June 15.Blending a sublime mixture of rock, stoner and metal influences, Deville have managed to fabricate their own sound in a genre that is often tied down in its own self importance.They head to this side of the world celebrating their 20th anniversary as well as the recent release of their latest album Heavy Lies The Crown.Lead singer Andreas Bengtsson joined HEAVY earlier this week to share his excitement."It's starting to realise it now because it's going to be a lot of traveling," he replied when asked how the band is feeling as the tour draws nearer. "It's special to tour over there in Australia. There's going to be a lot of logistics but hopefully it will be fun. We're gonna catch up with some bands that we were supposed to go with last time - like Astrodeath - and we're going to meet some guys in Melbourne that were supposed to play with us last tour. It's going to be great. It's a new territory for us, so we're excited to do this finally."We ask Andreas if it is daunting at all, traveling to the other side of the world to play in a country you have never been to before."It's a very special feeling," he smiled, "because we've done Europe so many times and we know how it is in the US, but I think it will be... I have friends in bands that have been to Australia before and said it's quite fantastic. We're only doing the big cities so from what I can see in pictures and stuff (laughs), it's a mix of Europe and US cultures but it's also in another climate. It's gonna be real nice."In the full interview, Andreas tells us what to expect from their shows, what they are expecting from Australian crowds, what special anniversary surprises they have in store, some of the band's highlights from the last 20 years, how Deville has changed musically over their career and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

29 Maj 202312min

Interview by Kris PetersWhen Grinspoon burst onto the Australian music scene with the sensational debut album Guide To Better Living in the late 1990s the whole rock/punk landscape in this country changed forever.Here was a brash, outspoken, talented as fuck group of individuals who showed no respect for the conventional laws of music and were more than happy to break the rules whenever it suited them - which was often.That album was followed by Easy in 1999 and then New Detention in 2002, both of which were more accessible than the band's debut offering, but still with enough angst and attitude to captivate a youthful generation.Last year saw the 20th anniversary of New Detention so Grinspoon have decided to revisit both of those albums by releasing them for the first time on vinyl on September 8. It is testament to the enduring quality and legacy of both of those albums and what would a release be without a tour to promote it?Never ones to shy away from time on the road, Grinspoon have announced their Easy Detention National Tour which kicks off at the Miami Marketta on October 29.Joining them for the tour will be Private Function and Cupid & The Stupids, both young bands who obviously remind Grinspoon of themselves back when they first started.Guitarist Pat Davern sat down with HEAVY to chat about the tour and the vinyl releases, starting with just how much the band are looking forward to celebrating on the road."Yeah definitely," he smiled. "We did the Spring Loaded tour last year, which was a three year tour - it was 12 dates in between COVID and everything else that happened. As far as club shows go or our own dates it's been a long time. I think the Chemical Heart Tour - which was the end of 2021 I think - so, yeah, it has been quite a long time. Once again we're kind of doing a retrospective of Easy, which was our second album, much loved by fans but not so much by critics, and then New Detention which was obviously our biggest selling record and our crossover into more commercial radio after coming from the Triple J scene of the 90s."The tour is also celebrating the release of both albums on vinyl, which Davern admits was not as simple as you might think."It's amazing that it takes 20 years to get a record out on vinyl," he laughed. "Who would have thought? It's funny. Easy was recorded a bit of an old fashion way with two inch tape, straight from the desk and it actually transpired onto vinyl very well - like it was made for it. We really set that album up to have an A side and a B side and on vinyl sounds amazing. With New Detention, which was the first ever record that we recorded with pro tools, took a bit of work getting there but it's sounding great. Me and Phil had a bit of a listening session in a hotel in Sydney a couple of weeks ago and had a real deep dive into the sound and we're really happy. All the secret tracks turned up - not in the same places as they were. On Easy the secret track was six minutes and sixty seconds after the last track - geniuses we were back then (laughs) - but it comes straight in now. So, yeah, you get a bit of extra stuff on the vinyl as well and obviously the gatefolds are really great. The artwork is the original artwork from New Detention and the Easy one's great. I think there's a giant used ashtray as the centrefold, just to get everyone into that 90s feel (laughs)."In the full interview Pat reveals what the setlist could look like, goes through both albums in more detail, picks his favourite, extra pressure after the success of Guide To Better Living, how tempting it was to rehash that album for the follow up, why Grinspoon didn't go as hard on those two albums as the first, the band's enduring popularity, possible new music and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

28 Maj 202315min

Interview by Kris PetersAfter a long period of member changes - including around 40 in the first two years of the band - Berlin progressive metal outfit The Ocean have finally had a settled lineup for a prolonged period of time and the results are clearly evident in the consistently high quality of releases enjoyed by the band in recent times. Following the universal success of the Phanerozoic double release of albums, which was meant to close the conceptual trilogy started on 2007's Precambrian, guitarist and surviving original member Robin Staps found his mind wandering back to that franchise during the writing process for their latest album Holocene, and as such the trilogy was extended by one to make it a four part concept.Holocene sees the band add a closing chapter to their paleontology-inspired album series, presenting a gear shift towards the electronic world while reaching new depths of heaviness at the same time.Staps sat down with HEAVY to bring us the latest."It has a bit of a different emphasis than previous ones," he began talking about Holocene, "more electronic but still heavy."With the album coming out back on May 19 we ask Stap how the early reception to Holocene has been."It's been quite overwhelming," he smiled. "There's nothing but Holocene in the feed for a week now, and I think people are very enthusiastic about the record. We weren't sure - we're never sure - because each one of our records takes a bit of a different direction while staying true to the essence I hope. We like to challenge ourselves and our listeners and not just repeat the same formula each and every time. You never really know how people will react, so it's always interesting. This one has been exceptionally well and we can't wait to actually play it live."In the full interview Robin explains the electronic element more and why they have gone down that path, the conclusion of the paleontology inspired album series and what might come next, getting atmospherics in your music and how difficult that is to do, the pressures of a successful album, their upcoming live shows and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

28 Maj 202317min

Interview by Kris PetersIn just six short years UK glam metal outfit Midnite City have forced themselves to the top rung of hair metal bands in the world.They have released three critically acclaimed albums - with the fourth, In At The Deep End set for release on June 23 - with their second album There Goes The Neighbourhood being voted one of the best albums in the 35 year history of Burrn magazine in Japan.Through relentless global touring and an infectiously buoyant approach to music, Midnite City are a band only now starting to realise their full potential.Which is pretty scary considering the success they have already had.Frontman Rob Wylde joined HEAVY to discuss the album and Midnite City's growing stature."We're so excited, mate," he enthused talking about the impending album release. "We put a lot of work into this album - we spent about three months recording it - and to us it's definitely our best album. It's almost like a throwback to our earlier stuff, a lot of people are picking up on the fact it has a similar feel to our second album There Goes The Neighbourhood. It's the ultimate feel good, happy, hair metal album, which is so exciting. For once we're absolutely 100% happy with it so that's a good feeling."We ask Wylde to outline the musical aspect of the album in more detail."In terms of the musical direction, like I said I think it's a little bit back to our earlier sound," he measured. "I think on the last album Itch You Can't Scratch, which came out two years ago, there was still a lot of fun party rock songs on there but there was also some heavier songs. It was a little bit darker, a little bit heavier and edgier and I think that all had a lot to do with the fact that album was written and recorded during the whole COVID thing. Obviously now we're out of COVID everyone is in a much better mood, I think. People can go out and go to shows and hang out with friends and we also switched our drummer on this album. We parted company with our old drummer and the new one has brought a new musical life to the band. So he's one of those guys who is such a positive person to be around and he has given the band a new lease of life. It's almost like we're starting out again, really. There's just a good feeling in the band and we're really optimistic about the album and the future, and you can hear that on the album. Like I said, it's the ultimate feel good hair metal album."In the full interview Rob talks us through the singles released and how they represent the album, developing their sound and finding their musical identity, adding an intro track to the album and why, the focus more on keyboards on this album, their upcoming UK tour, coming back to Australia and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

28 Maj 202324min

Interview by Kris PetersBrisbane indie guitar pop outfit Screamfeeder are another band from the 1990s that is still commanding attention on the national touring circuit.The band has released a total of seven albums - the most recent of which was Five Rooms last May - and are one of the few remaining bands from that era that are still producing regular content as well as playing live.They will form but one cog in next weekends Spring Loaded 2023 Festival at Brisbane's Sandstone Point Hotel, reuniting with fellow 90s classmates Spiderbait, Frenzal Rhomb, Magic Dirt, Ratcat, Bodyjar, Shihad and Eskimo Joe for a trip down memory lane and also one which proves the timeless nature of good Australian music.Bassist Kellie Lloyd joined HEAVY to discuss the show and revisit old memories."We've actually tried to broaden our set list a little bit for this show," she offered, "because Spring Loaded in particular is all about the 90s, so we tend to play songs that the audience will know. Not like stuff from our newer albums - because we've been continuing to put out albums - we brought out one last year, so we're not playing new stuff. We're playing all older stuff. We wanna make sure that we're appealing to the audience and what they are after."We mention the line-up and the old school nature of the bands, pointing out it's almost like a family reunion of sorts."We've played gigs with all of those bands," she nodded. "In the 90s we toured with Spiderbait and Magic Dirt and we've played with Shihad and Bodyjar and Ratcat. All of those bands we're all friends, so yeah, it is like a... it's not like a family reunion, it's more like a reconnection of people who are doing what they love. The audience is there to relive that part of their lives, and a lot of people might bring their kids along who are now teenagers or twenty - something's who grew up listening to this music. I call it a Nostalgia Fest because that's exactly what it is. It's really nostalgic, but it's also completely relevant. It's not like harking back to the past. All this music stands today and is still as vital as it was."In the full interview, Kellie discusses the importance of all Aussie festivals, runs through her best memories of each band on the bill, tells us what we can expect from their set, the early days of Screamfeeder and where they fit in, maintaining a musical presence and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

28 Maj 202320min