We championed the successes of some of our local guitar pop acts in early December with our writer stating it had “been an absolute ripper Aussie musicians in 2014, and despite there being only mere weeks left in the year, the gravy train of success just keeps on steamin’, the victors this time four local bands who have just landed themselves on of the raddest lineups on the US music festival circuit.” Well it looks like that gravy train is definitely not slowing down in 2015 thanks to Sydney’s Big White.
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Just one of the many Aussie acts currently slaying at South By Southwest right now, the Sydney five piece have just recently signed to the legendary indie US label (and creators of Burgerama Festival) Burger Records, the US home of fellow Aussies (and garage rock kings) Step Panther and Wax Witches.
As well as signing to the label, the band will be playing as apart of the Burgerama Festival 2015 later this month alongside Weezer, The Black Lips, Ty Segall and Arial Pink – a pretty impressive feat for a group of guys who only came together in 2013. Gearing up to release what promises to be a killer debut record later in the year, we took a moment to chat to the guys before they become your new favourite band. Check ’em out!
The Beginning
“We came to really know one another through the house that most of us all currently still live in. Through various parties and charity gigs its become to be known as The Surgery.
Tucked away in Dulwich Hill we started playing together every now and then in the lounge room, which then became a regular thing. That was about a year and a half ago, but we didn’t really start playing live with the band as we know it until about mid way through 2014 when we put out the track ‘I Can’t Tell’.”
Recording In A Berlin Bomb Shelter
“We had all convened in Kreuzberg last year for various reasons, but it was decided on the first freezing night in Berlin that seeing we were all their together we’d look around for a nice old analog studio to lay a song in. What we found was a cold war bunker insulated with guitars, and an engineer swearing in Bavarian. Jack reckoned he’d started writing a good one with ‘I Can’t Tell’ so we went with it and it worked.”
On Teaming Up With Burger Records
“Well it came about from an uncanny show at the Beach Rd hotel in Bondi. A long haired American bloke called Lee with a large smile and glasses, called us over and gave us the rest of his chicken wings. After we played the show he came right up to us, said in his quaint Californian accent, ‘Say how about you come play my festival Burgerama next year?’. We said ‘yeah sure’. And thats that.”
Favourite Burger Records Acts
“It’s a pretty heavy line up of interesting and mildly erratic bands. It’s a great mess of every genre that has ever grown out of the West coast in the last 50 odd years. I really don’t think I could pick a particular favourite. Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segal, The Black Angels, and the late Pop Zeus agh really the list goes on, and it literally does with over 700 releases in the last five years I think anyone would have trouble picking favourites.”
Favourite Local Acts
“We are digging a few, most notably Flowertruck and the singer Charlie’s spin off Greenwave Beth. The Ocean Party are a class act coming out of Melbourne, and of course those individuals making headways in their own right Kirin J. Callinan, Jack Ladder, and Alex Cameron are all undeniably triple entente of their own.”
On Getting On SXSW
“We were kind of lucky with the process so far, I suppose you could say we are being air dropped like nervous parachuters. We came late to the line up, so it has been quite a timely opportunity. With the help of Onward Indian a new touring agency that Burger put us onto, they have been doing lots of work with a great tour lined up for us.
We are playing about 12 shows in 14 days. Starting from Austin we make our way back across the mid South West, through the desert and into the Casino town, down back to LA to land finally at Burgerama.”
SXSW Predictions
“The whole of SXSW looks to be crazy raging affair of booze and industry talk. I’m sure we’ll be crashing into a few great gigs while we are there. Set times have come out for the Aussie BBQ and we’re squashed in between Kirin J, and Jack Ladder which will be a cracker of a show.”
What’s In Store For 2015
“Our debut record Teenage Dreams comes out through Burger in the States on Cassette and iTunes in the US only, we then return back to Australia where we undoubtedly have some big things to get straight back into on our return.”
