Hi, we’re Fourteen Nights At Sea. We’re a five piece. We’re from Melbourne. We like making gloomy sounds. We have a new album, it’s called Great North (read the Tone Deaf review here).
What was your earliest musical experience that you remember? And what’s the most beautiful sound you’ve ever heard?
I have vivid early memories of family road trips soundtracked by John Denver, Midnight Oil, and Neil Diamond’s Hot August Nights. The final siren in the 2007 AFL Grand Final was the most beautiful sound I’d ever heard.
Who inspired you to start playing?
I don’t know if any one band or artist inspired me to start playing, but seeing the Dirty Three play live when I was 19 completely changed the way I thought music could be made and performed. I guess they inspired me to start playing more seriously, and to push the envelope a little.
You must answer this question honestly or we steal your rider. What and where was the first gig you went to?
John Farnham, Melbourne Tennis Center. From recollection, John’s work with the microphone stand was worth the price of admission alone.
‘Fess up. What records have you stolen from your parent’s record collection and why?
None. Although, I did steal the record player they never used. It’s a pretty good one too.
What’s on heavy rotation on your iPod right now? And how do you find new music?
A lot of Arab Strap and Stars Of The Lid at the moment. Great for those cold walks home from work at night. Kurt Vile’s Wakin On A Pretty Daze is also getting played a lot. He has a great sound.
Bandcamp is a great place to find new music. The ‘Similar Artists’ link on last.fm has also yielded a many winners.
Do you have any particular ritual before you go on stage, or even a lucky charm you take with you?
I usually empty all my pockets of any belongings before setting up. I don’t think of this as a ritual though, I’m just being practical. I’ve often wondered if other musicians do this, or if I’m just being weird.
Progressive instrumental music, post-rock – whatever you want to call it – covers a broad range of sounds. What attracts you to playing it? Do any of you also listen to it (it’s surprising how many bands say “no”)?
We all listen to post-rock, there’s no denying it. As far as playing it goes, for me, it’s just incredibly fun music to write and perform, and it gives you a ton of scope to mess around with all kinds of sounds and structures. Don’t call us prog though – Jake will bash you.
How and where was your latest record, Great North, recorded? (Live in studio, one layer at a time, someone’s bedroom, an iPad?) Why did you go for that approach?
We recorded Great North at Headgap studios with Neil Thomason. We recorded each track live with the full band, and then added a few more guitar layers and effects to that base recording. By doing this, I guess we were hoping to produce a more “true to life” sound. I think at times, this style of music when recorded can seem a bit mathematical, a bit distant, but we wanted Great North to sound like there was a real life band playing the songs.
How did you come to release it through Hobbledehoy? Why was that the best move?
Hobbledehoy approached us about re-releasing our first album on CD, and expressed interest in releasing Great North as part of the deal. We’re all massive fans of Tom’s list anyway, and I think it was just an amazing honor that he offered. We couldn’t refuse.
What is your band’s music the best soundtrack for?
When I saw [2011 Liam Neeson-starring thriller] The Grey, I thought, ‘FNAS would be perfect for this.’
If you had a dollar for every time someone said “You should get a singer (back)”, how much money would you have?
$13, probably. Maybe $14.
If you were an animal, what would you like to be? What would you actually be?
I’d like to be bear. The eating/sleeping ratio is perfect. I’d probably just be a farm animal of some kind though.
Because it’s more fun to do things together, which living Australian artist would you most like to collaborate with? Tell us why?
I think Warren Ellis would be a pretty good fit for FNAS. Having him tinker away over one of our sparser songs would sound amazingly gloomy. Can you hook this up? Tell him to bring reverb.
If you could curate your own festival, where would it be, who would be on the bill, how many people would you let in and what features would it have (attractions/food/bars etc)?
The festival would be low key. I’d have it somewhere intimate, like the Old Bar (in Melbourne) or something, and I’d invite 100 people. The Boss would perform Nebraska. I’d ask Smog. Mogwai would probably play too. I dunno. Tough question.
When you’re Rolling Stones Big, what are you going to request on your rider: don’t be shy. We want specifics!
I think our requests would be relatively modest actually. We don’t need much. Some Melbourne Bitters maybe? We’re probably not going to be hanging out back there.
Where we can see you play next, what releases do you have available and where can we get them?
Our next show is at The Bridge Hotel in Castlemaine on May 31st, and we have another at The Reverence on Friday, June 14. We’re then heading to Hobart to play MONA’s Dark MOFO Festival, with Mono, Boris, The Drones and many others.
Head to the band’s Facebook for full tour details. Great North is available through Hobbledehoy Records or fourteennightsatsea.com
