It takes a certain amount of mettle and chutzpah just to start a band in this day and age. Some readers will recall recently surfaced footage of Tame Impala struggling to draw a crowd at a Perth festival as recently as 2008.
We now know of course that the young band on stage in that video would go on to be one of the biggest exponents of Australia’s music scene. But what the video shows is just how much toil and struggle is involved in getting that big.
Between dwindling music sales and the irritating spectre of the ‘exposure economy’, the odds are certainly stacked against musicians in 2015. To make matters worse, there’s some unscrupulous figures out there who think it’s okay to steal from hard-working musos.
If you’ve been following Tone Deaf for a while, you’ll know we regularly give signal boosts to beleaguered bands who’ve had their equipment or merch money stolen. It is, we’re sad to say, a semi-regular occurrence.
Most recently, we were alerted to a break-in experienced by Melbourne band Hollow Everdaze, who had their car broken into last week. The thief or thieves made off with several pieces of valuable equipment, including a Roland Jazz Chorus 77 amp and a Fender Jazzmaster.
The band are appealing to fans for help and any readers with information can reach them on 0419 480 811 or hit them up on Facebook. Alas, it’s not the first time that Hollow Everdaze have been hit with misfortune.
“The fire really sucked. But none of the stolen gear was any of the replaced gear from the fire, which is a plus.”As Tone Deaf reported last year, the band were the victims of a backyard fire, which consumed all of their musical equipment, as well as some collective possessions. However, the band managed to dust themselves off and even launched a crowdfunding campaign to help them recover from the loss.
“The fire really sucked. But none of the stolen gear was any of the replaced gear from the fire, which is a plus,” Jackson Daniel, guitarist for Hollow Everdaze, who will henceforth be affectionately known as Australia’s most unlucky band, tells Tone Deaf.
“I really didn’t want to make a post about what happened, but there would be less of a chance of seeing the gear again. I really want to get my friend’s amp back to him,” Jackson explains, adding that the break-in is small potatoes compared to what the band has been through before.
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“The break-in didn’t cost too much,” he says. “Some smash repair place in Coburg replaced the back window for half the price of what it would have cost and I found out yesterday my bass guitar was insured, which was a relief, I must say. The keyboards are also insured, that’s about it.”
The amp, meanwhile, is a Roland JC-77. “It has a step-down transformer attached and the Roland logo on the face is missing,” says Jackson. The band are also missing a 1960 Silvertone U-1 bass with an “all black neck” and a missing pick guard, as well as a Mexican Fender Jazzmaster with a black body, aged white pick guard, and a missing volume knob.
“Our car was parked out the front of our violinist and drummers’ house in Moonee Ponds from 2am to 6am on Thursday night. We had just gotten back from doing some mixing. No idea who did it, really. I’d say it was some people passing by, judging by what they took. It didn’t seem pre-planned or anything.”
No doubt, the band won’t be letting this setback stop them from doing what they do best. After last year’s devastating fire, the band stated: “We look to take this terrible event and use it to help us rebuild and refine ourselves into a stronger band than ever before.”
Hollow Everdaze will be appearing at Melbourne’s Howler alongside Hideous Towns, Galaxy Folk, and more on Tuesday, 8th September.
