Outland Brothers
Outland Brothers are great Melbourne Alt Country band doing good things. This is what they had to say about it all.
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Outland-Brothers/183430815041436
1. What was the inspiration for the up coming album?
I’d been to Australia a number of times before I actually emigrated here and life seemed so easy I did wonder from where I’d draw inspiration. Then I got a good old fashioned bout of unrequited love which got the songs flowing alright. So far it’s my only bout and I finally found out it wasn’t quite as unrequited as I imagined.
2. How did the songwriting process go for the album?
Except for a couple of songs they all came from that period. I then slyly introduced them to Matthew ( Aulich ) and Paul (Shilton ) as an accompaniment to our South Australian Alcohol sampling sessions, and I just happened to have some instruments lying about.
3. What was the recording process like for the album?
Fairly organic I suppose, whatever that means. We’d all been in bands with a drummer beforehand, so as we were without a rhythm section we made the schoolboy error of recording without a click track which on some tracks led to a few headaches. You can hear quite a few tempo malfunctions.
4. Did you prepare for the recording process or what is it a case of see what happens in the studio?
We had things pretty set structure wise and how the three of us played live. But when we got in the studio Paul and Matthew were both struck by inspiration and added overdubs usually as the idea struck them on the day. We recorded it on 16 track one inch tape on an Otari machine, so it soon all filled up.
5. How was the recording process different to earlier material?
Like I said all our previous bands ( THE PARADISE MOTEL, QUICKSPACE, PENTHOUSE ) had drummers so we just didn’t take that into account. We added drums to two tracks afterwards and had to use a program called Beat Detective to create a click track.
6. What did you learn from recording the album that you will take away for future releases?
While I really like recording on analogue, I think next time we’ll record on tape but dump it onto the complicator for the mix. It just saves so much time. We’ve actually recorded at least half of the new LP on top of a mountain in the Yarra Ranges. The first one took so long that we’re really on the front foot with the second.
7. Are you happy how things have gone so far for the band?
I’m amazed it’s still going on in any form. The Universe has given me a lot of opportunities to give up on it, but I’ve refused. I think I’m now officially bloody minded. We thought of calling the LP “Carry On Regardless”. If I ever got around to writing a book on the history of the band so far, I reckon it would be a pretty entertaining read. Nice to get on Triple J after all these years in Oz. I can die a happy man.
8. What buzz do you get out of playing live?
I like the Bob Dylan angle of playing as much as possible to chase those moments of communion between audience and performers that are nothing short of spiritual. It doesn’t always happen, but when it does it’s pretty damn special.
9. Do you have rituals before playing a show?
I like to put different clothes on about 15 mins before the show to get into a different zone; usually a fancy shirt and waistcoat. It takes me back to my PENTHOUSE days when at least 3 of the four of us would do quite a bit of work pre gig with hair grease and combs; we used to do a bit of work with whiskey as well.
10. What do you love about playing live?
It’s much more nerve wracking as a singer than just as a musician, but if I can hear my voice really well and the harmonies are flowing it just becomes a luxurious experience.
