If you haven’t heard of The Pink Tiles, you’re missing out on some of the best garage pop coming out of Australia right now.
The Melbourne based bubblegum rockers were chosen as one of PBS fm’s most promising acs of 2014 by Stone Love’s host Richie 1250, who said “they are so immensely likable on stage you want to hug them all at once. They have a new album almost ready and I am scared to listen to it cause if I am disappointed I just don’t know what I’ll do with myself.” Don’t stress Richie, the album is almost out, but it’s killer.
The self-titled debut LP was recorded at the end of 2013 at A Secret Location studio by Paul Maybury (King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard, Graveyard Train, Rocket Science), and mastered by Casey Rice (Dirty Three, Pony Face).
Set to launch into the world this August 25th on hot-pink vinyl, the record is available for pre-order Monday August 11th via Cobra Snake Necktie Records. To celebrate its release, the band’s chief singer/ songwriter/ bassist Mara Williams gave us a track by track run down of the LP.
Agony Aunt
“A song about seeing your friend go as nuts over a stupid boy (just as you did once upon a time) and an attempt to offer some practical advice “It’s time to move on in your mind!” A song for anyone who’s going crazy for someone they dig, where the love is unreciprocated.”
State of the Nation
“A protest song penned in 10 minutes post election 2013, post long-haul flight on a Vox teardrop that has its own speaker, beats and a tuner inbuilt.”
Ordinary Girl
“A song for ordinary girls everywhere. The key message is find what you love and then things will flow from there.”
Stood Up
“One time I was stood up by my beloved. They didn’t tell me directly. I found out from a third party source. Naturally I was seething thus I wrote a song about it. I played it for said beloved upon their return from bowling. And they picked up a guitar and started playing along.”
Mourning
“When Pink Tiles first started, it was a vehicle for Victoria and I to learn an instrument. Each week we’d get together to practise our favourite songs, and occasionally visitors came along to play with us.
One such visitor was Parisian exchange student Arnaud Theibault and friend of Cozi (Victoria’s sister and flatmate). We didn’t know he could play guitar, but he attended, learned the songs, and became our first lead guitarist and we loved him and his melodic licks. When he left Australia we took a month off to mourn, thus this song followed.”
Steph Brett Fanclub
“Steph Brett is one of the most overlooked and under-rated genuine artists in our lifetimes. We just want her to be the biggest star and that will probably happen in time. In the meantime though, we wrote this song to let the world know we are in the Steph Brett Fanclub. If you don’t know who she is you should! You can see her in Sugar Fed Leopards, Empat Lima and more.”
There She Goes
“Is about our friend (coolest rock chick ever) Viktoria Wolff who had to leave Australia quickly. It was a sad day, but the first time we got to play it was the day of ShitFest (the Bits of Shit gig), and Viktoria walked into the Tote bandroom at that moment!”
You Don’t Own Him
“A cautionary song about getting possessive about a silly boy.”
It’s Difficult
“A song about missing your boyfriend/girlfriend.”
Emergency Room
“A protest song about picking the lesser of two evils (written inside an emergency room when I desperately needed to see a doctor about 3 weeks prior to the federal election). My beloved asked me to call it ER. First performed the night before the election.”
Gold
“My beloved told me they’d go away with me, then later on took it back. I wrote this song following that experience.”
The Pink Tiles’ debut LP is out August 25th via Cobra Snake Necktie Records.
