PARKING LOT EXPERIMENTS, The Birmingham, Fitzroy 24/07/2010

Written by Kim Larkin

Photos by Timothy Casten

                                                 

In a small hidden band room, where the speakers are held up by milk cartons, The Parking Lot Experiments deliver what is to be expected from them; an intense combination of musical creativity and tomfoolery. Their high energy antics and friendly interactions with the crowd lead you to believe that the class clowns on-stage may not be able to pull off a show where the music is of similar quality to their dance moves. But it’s better.

The Parking Lot Experiments, take to the stage somewhat timidly after fighting off the previous weeks bad band ju-ju, “It’s basically the same set as before (last week at Ding Dong Lounge) because we didn’t expect to be playing this,” says Justin ‘Shak’ Shachter, guitarist, bassist and keyboardist, “but after this week I don’t think it will be that energetic.”

Collectively, the Melbourne quintet sport a fractured wrist, a squashed thumb from a car door, a semi-recovered instrumentalist from being violently ill to the point of graphic descriptions too gruesome to even type. 

This will be the last show for The Parking Lot Experiments for the next three months as they head to Sydney to record their first album, alongside Jonathan Boulet, and then return to Melbourne for the production and mixing process. “We are pretty excited about this, we haven’t done anything like it before, other than home live recordings, but it’s not the same,” says Shak.

Being well known around Melbourne for their friendly stage presence and support of the local music scene, The Parkinglot Experiments intend to bring their electric indie-pop to Canada and North America on tour after they release their first studio album early next year.
“We have only played internationally in New Zealand, at the CALH (Campus; A low hum) festival, which was only the coolest festival ever,” Shak animatedly explains.

After playing together for two years, the boys still find the same excited enjoyment of making music to make people happy, and their love of performing and music hasn’t diminished. Gelling together well, evident in the synchronised rocking out in the first song of the night, The Parkinglot Experiment’s adrenaline onstage, and their unique sound permits the conclusion that they are supposed to be making music according to Shak.“To be honest I hardly even know how this happened. This is going to sound really douchebaggy, but it’s really natural and organic, and it just felt like we had to get together and play together.”

The unsuspecting sight of self professed ‘childlike morons’ dancing just for the fun of it leaves you surprised with the complexity of the set, of the songs themselves and the driving talent of each member.

“We can get a bit obsessive with our music, and take it completely seriously, but the next minute we can just turn around and be the biggest idiots. We’re just like that.”

The Parkinglot Experiment seem to enjoy their sets as much as the audience does watching it, and as they quickly fill the small, sauna like room, packed to the walls there is little room for dancing, but the crowd and band alike are going to anyway. 

     

An Interview with Marcus Hobbs (East Brunswick All Girls Choir)

Written and Photographed by Timothy Casten

                                                                                      

So who is East Brunswick All Girls Choir? Well to begin with, they aren't from East Brunswick, they aren't all girls and they aren't a choir. East Brunswick All Girls Choir is Marcus Hobbs on guitar and lead vocals, Rie Nakayama (the only actual girl in the band) on bass and Robert Wrigley on guitar and an ever-changing drummer. This Melbourne four-piece released their debut EP "Dead Air" late last year to strong reviews. I had the pleasure of seeing the band play a few weeks ago at the Tote and was blown away with their reverb soaked and beautiful, somewhat haunting, melodies interwoven with 'noisy' interludes. It's these dynamics - the loud/quiet/loud, which make the band one of the more exciting bands around. 

I spoke to Marcus Hobbs about the band, their beginnings and plans for the near future:

So you used to be "Smokin Hot Bitch". What happened to that and why "East Brunswick All Girls Choir"?

I used Smokin Hot Bitch for a reason I can't explain, mainly being there was no reason. I had recorded some music and was due to play a fesitval in NZ so needed a name. I think I was a bit drunk and giggled that one out. All in all it was pretty stupid but when the name got changed to East Brunswick All Girls Choir I had a few emails of outrage, obviously there are stupider people than me.

East Brunswick All Girls Choir comes from when I used to visit my tasmanian housemate at Ceres and there was always a group of really young girls busking on Nicholson street singing these old religious hyms I remembered from my primary school. Thats more or less it.

Where are you all from and how did the band meet? 

Rob and I are from Bendigo, being the small as fuck town it is we were bound to meet. Rie and I are going steady, hot to trot and as for whichever drummer we've got, yeah. Yeah.

I've been finding it difficult describing your music to other people. I've heard some critics call your music "shoegaze" and others calling it "post-grunge" and even "bluesy". How would you describe your sound to people who have never heard your music?

I would prefer if it came across as sounding more blues than anything else. The Dead Air tracks were for the most part written when I was playing solo and were written from a folk/blues recipe. With the addition of Rob and Rie the songs have transformed to what I would call a filthy folk sound. I like it.

Who/what are some of your influences in songwriting?

Got to love and rip off Jason Molina, I couldn't help that one. Dylan, Cohen are obvious and easy answers.

I have found a lot of tracks amongst the Alan Lomax collections from the deltas blue to prison songs and even across to Thai Pop which I will probably inadvertanly steal things from. Velvet voices from the south.

I never sit down and listen to a song and go "Ok, I am going to write one just like that". Mainly because I probably couldn't but when you sit down and and mess around on the 6 string things just fall that way. Just like how I used to be a star at football and play like Gary Ablett Snr without even realising.

So your EP Dead Air has been around for a few months now. How do you feel people have taken it?

Some like it some don't. There were some nice reviews floating around though. There is nothing more that can be said on that.

Has anything changed since the release of the EP?

No particularly, just probably another 6 million drummers coming through.

How does the band work in terms of 'songwriting'?

Generally I'll get a few chords and vocalising things popping about and have a really basic structure of a number. Then we'll get together and just play it out. Rob and Rie are so good at shredding away and they'll bust out good ideas for how it should all run.

Are there any new releases to be expected from the East Brunswick All Girls Choir anytime soon?

We're in the midst of getting new stuff together at a very infant stage, by the end of the year something will be out though.

Finally, When i saw you guys play at The Tote the other week you said that your drummer was drummer number 6 and i hear that you had Ryan Caesar from Children Collide play with you guys when you played Brown Paper Bag. What's all that about? How many drummers do you really have?

I'll give you the run down

September 2008 - Ryan Ceaser

Ryan then has to leave for three months to go on a tour/recording trek in the states.

December 2008 - Lex joins as he is conveniently in New Zealand at the time we'll need a drummer for NZ. After that tour he leaves for Germany.

March 2009 - We ask Josh Lobley to play but he is going on a trip for three months with his father and brother across W.A so we bide our time. We get Rohan Robiero to play about 4-5 gigs. Rohan is too busy to keep so we wait till the return of Josh.

May 2009 - Lobley returns and we get cracking. It's time to fucking record these fucking songs we have already taught to a million drummers already. We record and play a quite a lot.

March 2010 - Lobley sends a text message 2 hours before a show stating he is not coming down to Melbourne and that he has to quit the band. We get his brother in law Steve to play. we wished to keep Steve but he is too busy with new war/teeth and tongue. He plays a bunch of shows with us and is keen to continue helping out.

June 2010 - A man named Liam Brewer, and old boy from Bendigo now joins the band. I had previously played with him in some kind of metal band in Bendigo. He has a golden ear for mixing. Which indeed becomes a new hinderence as he is asked to mix a 41 date tour over the states in August. 

July 2010 - Ryan Ceaser returns and is willing to help us out as much as he can but lord knows he'll be busy again soon enough.

Plus Rie and I are moving to europe for 7-10 months early next year. But that has nothing to do with drummers. We'll just bleed another continent dry.

______________________________

East Brunswick All Girls Choir play The Builders Arms Hotel on July 31

and at The Empress Hotel with Parades on August 20 

http://www.myspace.com/ebagc

A Chat with JONATHAN BOULET at Brown Paper Bag - Ding Dong Lounge, Melbourne 16/07/2010

Written by Sean Sebastian

Photos by Shaun Rawlins

                                                

The atmosphere in the Ding Dong Lounge was quite relaxed, and one could see the stars of the night wandering around the crowd, seemingly unnoticed by their chatty, awaiting fans. One by one the bands showed up and took a seat to enjoy the experimental sounds of their fellow acts. The lineup would be Northeast Party House, East Brunswick All Girls Choir, The Parking Lot Experiments, Rat VS Possum. However, my focus would be on the headlining act, Jonathan Boulet. 

In a chat with him briefly before the Parking Lot Experiments took the stage, he told me tantalizingly that he was working on a follow up to his self-titled debut album.

“I’ve demoed 8 new tracks and I’ve already got a name for the new album. I’m hoping to release it before the end of the year.”

Unfortunately, this is all he would tell me, as a coy smile spread across his face.

“I’m not telling anybody the name though! Not even a hint."

The 20 year old Triple-J featured hero of local music arrived nonchalantly with his band and pottered around the back of the bar. His name was plastered all over the venue and the bar had even named a shot after him, the ‘parlez vous boulet?’, but was able to glide seamlessly through the now bustling crowd. This show was to be his last in Melbourne for the time being, as he was headed off to Sydney the following day to play on FBI radio with the likes of Kyű.

Publicized by his label as a “jack of all trades”, Boulet’s solo work has only been a recent endeavour. Prior to September 2009, Boulet had been playing with Parades, the Triple J Big Sounds winner of early 2009. His solo work had snowballed in success and his first single “A Community Service Announcement”, was a runaway hit, receiving the recommendation from Kanye West: “PLEASE WATCH THIS IT’S FUCKING AMAZING”.

This praise and acclaim seemed to have reached everyone but Boulet himself. As he stood in front of the hundred or so fans with his band, he exclaimed: “Did you guys see the other bands? Holy crap! We should be opening for them!”

BLACK CAB, East Brunswick Club, East Brunswick 15/07/2010

Written and Photographed by Timothy Casten
                                                                               


 

I remember the first time I ever heard Black Cab. I must’ve been about 16. ‘13 Days’ was playing over the speakers at a local record store. I browsed the store as the song slowly built up to its climax. And then ‘Surrender’ started and that was it. I thought it was amazing. I walked up to the counter and asked what was playing and I bought the CD straight away. It was the only copy they had at the store so they had to take it out of the player leaving the store awfully quiet and somewhat awkward. 'Jesus East' is now one of my favourite CD’s of all time always seems to find itself on play.

Black Cab were kind enough to let me in during soundcheck last night before their gig at the East Brunswick Club.

Check out their single 'Sexy Polizei':

Sexy Polizei by Black Cab

THE SOFT PACK - East Brunswick Club, East Brunswick 08/07/2010

Written by Sean Sebastian

Photos by Timothy Casten

                                               

The East Brunswick Club is an intimate venue. The room can only hold about 150 people and the lights are akin to those present at any local house party. In the way of aesthetics, there was what looked like a sparkly bed sheet draped behind the drum kit. And that was about it. 

When it came time for The Soft Pack to begin, they had to worm their way through the crowd from the back of the room. The band seemingly wore what was the most comfortable; tracksuit pants, dirty polo shirts and ill-fitting white shirts namely. Once they'd taken to the stage, their first bars instantly filled the room with a painful pounding of the drums and bass and an incredible amount of fuzz that almost made the guitars inaudible. But then the band moves onto their second song, with not but a small smile and inaudible chatter behind the mics, and once your ears adjust, you realise The Soft Pack are an amazing live band. And it is the complete lack of showmanship or any aesthetic efforts that makes their gigs one of the best you'll attend. 

Their debut self-titled album has accrued favourable reviews for its raw, minimalistic energy and constantly gather comparisons to the likes of Eddy Current and the Suppression Ring and The Modern Lovers. And, to put it very simply, it boils down to their bare bones style. It's their droning melodies, particularly evident in 'Down on Lovin''. It's their twangy, distorted, almost ugly sounding guitars instantly recognisable in the opener 'C'Mon'. It's simultaneously refreshing and exciting to hear music totally uninterested in projecting an image. 

The gig had almost drawn to a close. They'd played through some newer and older tunes like 'Parasites' and begrudgingly banged out 'Down on Lovin'' at the request of a rowdy fan. "This our last one. It's all we got really," singer Matt Lamkin exclaims quietly. Then the band shuffle off-stage. There were no pyrotechnics. No multi-levelled stages. No sweeping fluorescent lights. And you're actually left dumbfounded and in awe precisely because of this. The Soft Pack are here to play music. Not to look cool.