Vigilantes

 

 

What can I say but I love Vigilantes. When I first heard them a few weeks back I was totally hooked. With a sick remix of their song Elasticity by Joy. I knew it was time to find out more from this incredible two piece act.  These cats are going places.

https://www.facebook.com/vvvigilantes

1. What was the inspiration for the song Elasticity?

The financial market. Jks. Elasticity was inspired by the natural rhythm of relationships and how we drift apart and come back together.

2. How did the songwriting process go for the song?

Dave was on tour in another city and had been texting me concepts for lyrics, this one really stuck so we decided to flesh it out via the magic of sms. I’d send shitty piano and vocals from my phone, then Dave would add beats and the rest,

3. What was the recording process like for the song?

It was pretty gradual, it went through a few different versions. Our friend Ross aka Laterns jumped on board and contributed a lot to the production. We’d make changes and see how we felt about them the next day. It’s always better to sleep on things. The sax line though, that didn’t need sleeping on.

4. Did you prepare for the recording process or what is it a case of see what happens in the studio?

We are incredibly spoilt by the fact that Dave has his own studio. Ross and Dan (who played sax) are in there too, so recording has never really had that pressure of ‘You only have this one, very expensive day to get everything down’. The morning we recorded the vocals, I had been trying to sing Mariah all morning and smashed my voice, by the time I got in front of the mic I was a lil apprehensive, but hey, when is it ever perfect right?

5. How did the remix come about and why do you think remixes are so important to the scene and as a artist?

Dave met Liv (Joy) when he was playing with Nicole Millar at Splendour last year. Liv is so talented and I love her ear for production. Naturally, we had to work with her. That and she is a massive babe. Liv actually sent about 8 different versions before the she was happy with her mix. Remixes are a great way of getting out to different audiences. There’s also this really nice warm sense of community when you’re working together and remixing each other tracks. You end up with these different versions of your song, which are kinda like different flavours of ice cream.

6. What did you learn from recording the song that you will take away for future releases?

Aaron Cupples is a mixing behemoth. He brought out the gloss in our track. Also, as someone who struggles with writing lyrics, having a really clear concept of what you’re writing about can be the key!

7. Are you happy how things have gone so far for you guys?

Definitely. We just won a spot on the Converse Rubber Tracks program. Gotta be happy with that!

8. What buzz do you get out of playing live?

At the last gig we played, supporting Asta, there was this lone guy who danced the whole set. Sure he was high, but he was also having a great time. That’s what it’s all about. When you play live it’s like you’re all in this thing together, sharing an experience, making memories, surrendering your body to the beat.

9. Do you have rituals before playing a show?

Dave, Mikey and I all have different coloured Brita bottles, which we use to keep our fluids up before a gig and on stage. It’s pretty cute. We seem to always be eating corn chips before a gig too. Bloody Dave. Other than that, one of us will say ‘Alright, let’s do this!’ (and we all high five and it freeze frames on us as the camera zooms out).

10. Why do you think the electro scene is Australia is so strong right now?

Music sharing communities like soundcloud play a pretty strong role. Also the technology is so accessible. I can carry around a mini studio in my backpack, and I usually do. It’s so easy to carry a laptop, and a usb midi controller and mic. If I were a more ‘traditional’ musician, I couldn’t carry around a piano and write a song where ever I was, but now I can be working on the train etc. It’s also tied into our culture of festivals and going out, instead of importing the soundtrack to it all, we’re doing it ourselves, and we’re damn good at it too!

11. Who would most like to work with if you have the chance?

I’d love to work with HTML Flowers from Melbourne, he was in my dream last night and it was that thing where I felt like we were really good friends but then I woke up and I was like ‘oh no wait, we’ve never even met’. I’m also pretty obsessed with Brooke Candy, I might have to move to LA so I can join her FAGMOB.

12. What does the rest of 2015 have in store for you?

Writing, recording and christmas!

13. Is there an album in the works?

Not at album, but we are working on an EP!