Central Coast indie-rockers Elliot The Bull have just dropped ‘Think About It’, the final track from their new EP Beast.
Having slowly drip-fed the previous five tracks in previous weeks, beginning with its moody title track, we knew we were in for a treat with each of the remaining songs. The band haven’t disappointed, and ‘Think About It’ offers up a powerful but contemplative final volley to close out the conceptual release.
Below, the band talk us through each of the tracks on the now-complete collection, produced by Nathan Sheehy and recorded by the group at their NSW Central Coast home studio. You may recall that this was the same studio that was robbed of thousands of dollars’ worth of gear, jeopardising their EP release and tour plans.
Thankfully a close friend stepped up to the plate to coordinate a crowdfunding campaign to replace most of the nicked gear, and the band will be heading out on the road to launch the record, with upcoming dates in Brisbane, Port Macquarie, Thornbury and Marrickville. With everything they’ve gone through to get this album out there, we’re sure it’ll be a glorious run of shows.
Track By Track Through Beast
‘It Doesn’t Feel’
“This song has been around for quite a while, but always kept coming back in pre-production as the drum beat was so catchy. I wrote the lyrics a couple of years ago when I was in New York and about my experience there, which really shaped the way the track turned out.
“Our producer, Nathan Sheehy, really tapped in to some synthetic sounds throughout the track, which we were stoked about! I dig this one and thought it would be perfect for track one.”
‘Standing On The Sea’
“This song was written by Simon (Guitar) and from word go we knew it would be a definite on the record. Originally recorded in our bedroom, the song didn’t change much, though I think we captured the live energy of the song quite well.
“The song has shaped some weird connection to the 2002 single ‘Me Julie’ by Shaggy and Ali G… I guess It’s complicated.”
‘Beast’
“There are obvious influences on this song. I wrote ‘Beast’ after listening to ‘Rumours’ by Fleetwood Mac, three times through. It wasn’t going to be an Elliot the Bull song but it naturally took form and when I showed the band, we all felt it made sense to include it on the record and I’m very glad we did.
“It definitely showcases some of our earlier roots as a six-piece folk/rock group. ‘Beast’ underwent some epic changes in the studio which helped it come alive and I think Simon did an incredible Job at mixing this song. Amen!”
‘Lizard Queen’
“Definitely the heaviest strummer we’ve ever written and strongly inspired by the likes of ‘War on Drugs’ and ‘Gutter Twins’. It’s somewhat a love song with real passion filled music.
“I named the song ‘Lizard Queen’ as the words kept coming up in my day-to-day doings and I also definitely know a Lizard Queen. I’m pretty sure we tracked this whole song in one day which makes the song the rawest on the record, and definitely the most energetic and fun to play live.”
‘Labour Labour’
“This was probably the newest song written before pre-production, we took some huge influences from Aussie bands such as Midnight Oil and The Drones on this one. I wrote the lyrics after watching a documentary on Australian prisons and the struggle and hardships people face.
“This is another heavier track, and it is probably my favourite song on the record. I hope you can enjoy this one as much as I do.”
‘Think About It’
“‘Think About It’ is one of the oldest songs to make it onto this EP. I remember hearing the music that Simon had made through some shitty speakers and falling in love with the vibe and melodic drone.
“I tried to make this song capture a lot of who we are as a band, adding elements of everything we do i.e. Harmonies, group vocals and long bridges. This is a pretty sing along kind of song as it’s got pretty typical lyrics, but that kind of makes it what it is… A simple Elliot The Bull styled sing song.”
