Hunting Grounds (02/08/2012)
From their humble beginnings as the band formerly known as Howl, Ballarat’s Hunting Grounds are all grown up. They’ve just released their killer debut album, In Hindsight. The 59th Sound caught up with lead vocalist/guitarist, Michael Belsar for a discussion about everything from ironic album titles to sleeping in strip clubs.
The Ballarat boys made a splash for their notoriously riotous gigs, after the releases of their two 2010 EPs Howl and Brothers in Violence. Raw and volatile, their music was brimming with angst, cut by disjointed melodies and chunky guitar. Now, they’ve turned down the distortion, amplified the keyboards and sharpened their melodies. The album introduces the more atmospheric elements of shoegaze and the aesthetic charm of pop, but the restless energy and spirit of Howl hasn’t been completely quashed. Still present on a number of tracks, it creating and effective light and heavy dynamic that gives the album a compelling edge. This should be considered the point where they’re no longer referred to as Hunting Grounds (formerly Howl) and finally become Hunting Grounds.
“We sort of got thrown into a pigeonhole of being this heavy rock band, which was really fun, but it got to the point about six months into writing the album that we realised that we just didn’t want to write those songs anymore; they weren’t very true to us,” admits Belsar. “We just started writing songs that we wanted to listen to, as opposed to writing songs for a genre that we’d been pigeonholed in.”
The album title reflects this evolution from their former selves. New beginnings? Perhaps, but that doesn’t mean they’re letting go of their Howl days for good. “It’s an ironic thing,” muses Belsar on the album name, In Hindsight. “I guess we feel like a new band now, with totally different music and a new name. It’s the idea of looking back on something that hasn’t really happened yet. Even though we’ve been around for a long time, this seems like a fresh start.”
The band had spent more than a year penning an album that took roughly two weeks to record. Expecting it to be an arduous process, Belsar was surprised at how easily everything came together, especially considering the potential for difficulties that having six collaborators creates. “I really thought we’d go into it and there’d be a lot of crazy arguments and everyone would have separate ideas, but everyone was on the same wave-length, which made it really stress free. I think that helps any form of creation; having no stress. Without pressure, it’s much easier to create something.”
According to the singer, the biggest surprise of the recording process was the dramatic transformation undertaken popular single, Flaws, which was intended to be a b-side, thanks to producer Paul “Woody” Annison (Children Collide, Black Cab). “It was a really boring rock song with guitar, bass and drums, and Woody had this idea of turning it into this trip-out pop song. We experimented with a lot of different things. We used electronic drums, which was a first for us. There’s a full-on electro club beat buried in the mix there. There was a lot of experimentation.”
What’s his favourite track on the album? “I think Flaws, to me, is one of them, only because it’s so different from the original, so it’s still really refreshing to play. Also, one of the songs that Galen wrote, because I didn’t write it and that’s also refreshing; so maybe Wings or Clearly See I really like, because it’s always good to do a song that didn’t come from you.”
In Hindsight has also allowed Belsar the opportunity to personally develop as a lyricist. “With the EPs, the lyrics weren’t really about much. It was just partying and my friends. There’s no real depth. It got to the point where we decided to write music that we wanted to listen to, and I decided that instead of trying to write cool lyrics, I’d just say exactly what I thought.”
“I love the idea of honesty in a band,” pensively declares to songwriter. “I love the idea of being vague enough for people to take their own meaning from lyrics, which I think is really important. I love it when you can hear a song and you can turn that into something about yourself. For instance, when I listen to Grace by Jeff Buckley, that album in my mind is about me, because I just relate it to my own personal experience and I think that’s something really important for people who are listening to an album to take from it. The idea with the lyrics on this album was to be really personal and really honest, but at the same time, vague enough for people to relate to their own lives.”
Hunting Grounds will also be embarking on their first headline tour in two years to support the new album. “It’s going to be nice to be THE band for the night. We’ve done so many supports in the past few years - so many bands, so many shows. It’s always cool to watch them play to their own fans, but it’s really nice to play to the people who listen to your own music and who’ve come to see us. Of course, people will come to see Gung-Ho as well, who are a great band. It’s going to be nice to be, I guess, in the spotlight,” he thoughtfully chuckles.” The show we have lined up is pretty cool, so we’re really excited”
The boys are no strangers to touring life, supporting The Living End and Children Collide, amongst others. However, it’s the two tours with fellow Ballarat exports, Yacht Club DJs, which have produced a number of stories they probably won’t be telling their grandkids. “Both of our tours with those guys were fucking insane. One time we were in Canberra and we somehow slept at a strip club, because the lady let us stay in the beds upstairs. I think one of the guys slept on a mat that girls masturbate on, so it was really strange. When we left, they gave Daniel (Marie, drums) a sexy outfit, like a tight one, that all the strippers wear. It was new, so it wasn’t infected of anything. He ended up wearing it for the rest of the tour. That was really bizarre. At the encore show at the second show in Melbourne, DZ were playing and Shane threw his guitar in the air and it smashed on his head, then me and Daniel thought it would be cool to come in and save the day, so we ran on stage and played this really heavy version of Beautiful Day by U2 and the bands all crowd-surfed to it. It was just this really awesome live moment for us, because it was just the loosest thing for us. I think Gaz was shooting people in the crowd with a bag of goon, which was pretty hilarious. A lot of fun.”
Lara Moates
Hunting Grounds
In Hindsight tour, with support from
Gung-Ho
FRIDAY AUGUST 03
Elsewhere Bar, Gold Coast QLD
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
SATURDAY AUGUST 04
X and Y Bar, Brisbane QLD
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
SUNDAY AUGUST 05
The Hotel Great Northern, Byron Bay NSW
Tickets: FREE ENTRY
WEDNESDAY AUGUST 08
Plantation, Coffs Harbour NSW
Tickets: FREE ENTRY
THURSDAY AUGUST 09
Yours and Owls, Wollongong NSW
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
FRIDAY AUGUST 10
Good God Small Club, Sydney NSW
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
SATURDAY AUGUST 11
Transit Bar, Canberra ACT
Tickets: DOOR SALES ONLY
THURSDAY AUGUST 16
Prince of Wales Hotel, Bunbury WA
Tickets: FREE ENTRY
FRIDAY AUGUST 17
Amplifier, Perth WA
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
Moshtix: www.moshtix.com.au / 1300 438 849
SATURDAY AUGUST 18
Rocket Bar, Adelaide SA
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
FRIDAY AUGUST 24
Karova Lounge, Ballarat VIC
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
SATURDAY AUGUST 25
The Toff in Town, Melbourne VIC
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
Moshtix: www.moshtix.com.au / 1300 438 849
*GUNG HO NOT APPEARING IN SA & WA
The Ballarat boys made a splash for their notoriously riotous gigs, after the releases of their two 2010 EPs Howl and Brothers in Violence. Raw and volatile, their music was brimming with angst, cut by disjointed melodies and chunky guitar. Now, they’ve turned down the distortion, amplified the keyboards and sharpened their melodies. The album introduces the more atmospheric elements of shoegaze and the aesthetic charm of pop, but the restless energy and spirit of Howl hasn’t been completely quashed. Still present on a number of tracks, it creating and effective light and heavy dynamic that gives the album a compelling edge. This should be considered the point where they’re no longer referred to as Hunting Grounds (formerly Howl) and finally become Hunting Grounds.
“We sort of got thrown into a pigeonhole of being this heavy rock band, which was really fun, but it got to the point about six months into writing the album that we realised that we just didn’t want to write those songs anymore; they weren’t very true to us,” admits Belsar. “We just started writing songs that we wanted to listen to, as opposed to writing songs for a genre that we’d been pigeonholed in.”
The album title reflects this evolution from their former selves. New beginnings? Perhaps, but that doesn’t mean they’re letting go of their Howl days for good. “It’s an ironic thing,” muses Belsar on the album name, In Hindsight. “I guess we feel like a new band now, with totally different music and a new name. It’s the idea of looking back on something that hasn’t really happened yet. Even though we’ve been around for a long time, this seems like a fresh start.”
The band had spent more than a year penning an album that took roughly two weeks to record. Expecting it to be an arduous process, Belsar was surprised at how easily everything came together, especially considering the potential for difficulties that having six collaborators creates. “I really thought we’d go into it and there’d be a lot of crazy arguments and everyone would have separate ideas, but everyone was on the same wave-length, which made it really stress free. I think that helps any form of creation; having no stress. Without pressure, it’s much easier to create something.”
According to the singer, the biggest surprise of the recording process was the dramatic transformation undertaken popular single, Flaws, which was intended to be a b-side, thanks to producer Paul “Woody” Annison (Children Collide, Black Cab). “It was a really boring rock song with guitar, bass and drums, and Woody had this idea of turning it into this trip-out pop song. We experimented with a lot of different things. We used electronic drums, which was a first for us. There’s a full-on electro club beat buried in the mix there. There was a lot of experimentation.”
What’s his favourite track on the album? “I think Flaws, to me, is one of them, only because it’s so different from the original, so it’s still really refreshing to play. Also, one of the songs that Galen wrote, because I didn’t write it and that’s also refreshing; so maybe Wings or Clearly See I really like, because it’s always good to do a song that didn’t come from you.”
In Hindsight has also allowed Belsar the opportunity to personally develop as a lyricist. “With the EPs, the lyrics weren’t really about much. It was just partying and my friends. There’s no real depth. It got to the point where we decided to write music that we wanted to listen to, and I decided that instead of trying to write cool lyrics, I’d just say exactly what I thought.”
“I love the idea of honesty in a band,” pensively declares to songwriter. “I love the idea of being vague enough for people to take their own meaning from lyrics, which I think is really important. I love it when you can hear a song and you can turn that into something about yourself. For instance, when I listen to Grace by Jeff Buckley, that album in my mind is about me, because I just relate it to my own personal experience and I think that’s something really important for people who are listening to an album to take from it. The idea with the lyrics on this album was to be really personal and really honest, but at the same time, vague enough for people to relate to their own lives.”
Hunting Grounds will also be embarking on their first headline tour in two years to support the new album. “It’s going to be nice to be THE band for the night. We’ve done so many supports in the past few years - so many bands, so many shows. It’s always cool to watch them play to their own fans, but it’s really nice to play to the people who listen to your own music and who’ve come to see us. Of course, people will come to see Gung-Ho as well, who are a great band. It’s going to be nice to be, I guess, in the spotlight,” he thoughtfully chuckles.” The show we have lined up is pretty cool, so we’re really excited”
The boys are no strangers to touring life, supporting The Living End and Children Collide, amongst others. However, it’s the two tours with fellow Ballarat exports, Yacht Club DJs, which have produced a number of stories they probably won’t be telling their grandkids. “Both of our tours with those guys were fucking insane. One time we were in Canberra and we somehow slept at a strip club, because the lady let us stay in the beds upstairs. I think one of the guys slept on a mat that girls masturbate on, so it was really strange. When we left, they gave Daniel (Marie, drums) a sexy outfit, like a tight one, that all the strippers wear. It was new, so it wasn’t infected of anything. He ended up wearing it for the rest of the tour. That was really bizarre. At the encore show at the second show in Melbourne, DZ were playing and Shane threw his guitar in the air and it smashed on his head, then me and Daniel thought it would be cool to come in and save the day, so we ran on stage and played this really heavy version of Beautiful Day by U2 and the bands all crowd-surfed to it. It was just this really awesome live moment for us, because it was just the loosest thing for us. I think Gaz was shooting people in the crowd with a bag of goon, which was pretty hilarious. A lot of fun.”
Lara Moates
Hunting Grounds
In Hindsight tour, with support from
Gung-Ho
FRIDAY AUGUST 03
Elsewhere Bar, Gold Coast QLD
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
SATURDAY AUGUST 04
X and Y Bar, Brisbane QLD
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
SUNDAY AUGUST 05
The Hotel Great Northern, Byron Bay NSW
Tickets: FREE ENTRY
WEDNESDAY AUGUST 08
Plantation, Coffs Harbour NSW
Tickets: FREE ENTRY
THURSDAY AUGUST 09
Yours and Owls, Wollongong NSW
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
FRIDAY AUGUST 10
Good God Small Club, Sydney NSW
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
SATURDAY AUGUST 11
Transit Bar, Canberra ACT
Tickets: DOOR SALES ONLY
THURSDAY AUGUST 16
Prince of Wales Hotel, Bunbury WA
Tickets: FREE ENTRY
FRIDAY AUGUST 17
Amplifier, Perth WA
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
Moshtix: www.moshtix.com.au / 1300 438 849
SATURDAY AUGUST 18
Rocket Bar, Adelaide SA
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
FRIDAY AUGUST 24
Karova Lounge, Ballarat VIC
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
SATURDAY AUGUST 25
The Toff in Town, Melbourne VIC
Tickets via: Oztix www.huntinggrounds.oztix.com.au / 1300 762 545
Moshtix: www.moshtix.com.au / 1300 438 849
*GUNG HO NOT APPEARING IN SA & WA