_Husky (12/01/2012)
_Ahead of their appearances at the 2012 Laneway Festival, The 59th Sound spoke with Husky, who will also be sharing the stage with Laura Marling at her festival sideshows.
It’s been a month now since the release of Forever So. This must be a really exciting time for yourself and the band.
Yes- A very exciting time indeed! Exciting and strange to think that people are actually listening to something that we poured so much time and love into.
Have there been any moments this past month that have made you want to pinch yourself, just to check that it’s all really happening?
Absolutely. There have been many of these moments of late. We are thrilled and feel lucky with the way things have been going recently. I think back to times when myself and Husky had conversations in our humble backyard studio about whether the record was any good or if anyone would even like it. It’s definitely been a dream run.
What part do you feel Triple J has played in your success since being picked as Unearthed winners?
While it isn’t possible to account for exactly what contributes to a bands success it is clear that support from Triple J in this country is invaluable. Since they unearthed our band in February they have continued to support us throughout the year awarding us feature record, nominated us for an Unearthed J award as well as a 2012 next-crop artist and backed our first headline tour. I don’t think we could have asked for much more! We certainly never imagined that they would get behind the record the way that have and there’s no doubt it’s made a huge difference.
What was it like touring with Gotye on his recent tour? It was such an ambitious live show.
Agreed! It is a very ambitious show. The lengths that Gotye takes to recreate the sounds on his record is inspiring. The stage is littered with gear to make sure that each sample, each sound is perfect. The show aside, his band is made up of a bunch of Melbourne musos some of whom we’ve known for years so it makes for some fun hangin time after the shows!
You’re in the middle of a national tour of your own now, how have the crowds been responding to the tracks of the debut LP?
It’s been pretty surreal for us travelling the country on our first headline tour and looking out to the crowd to see people singing along to our songs. We’re all really excited that we’re able do this and from our perspective it seems like people have been responding really well.
How do you find doing your own headline compares to doing an international support slot like you did for Noah & The Whale or Devendra Banhart?
Well they’re very different experiences. I mean, when opening for a band we think about how we can win an audience over. How we can give them an insight into what were about, how we can leave some kind of impression on a bunch of people that probably aren’t familiar with our songs. When headlining however it feels like there’s a different expectation so we think about with how we can best deliver our material, really capture the emotion of the songs and hopefully leave the audience felling like they’ve experienced something.
The album is so richly detailed musically; are you able to bring all those layers into your live shows?
This is something we have discussed and continued to work on a lot recently. It seems like the conclusion we’ve come to for now is that while we aren’t able to bring all those detailed layers to the show, we make up for it with an energy and emotion that can only be experienced in a live setting. Ultimately, it’s the songs that people want to hear and I doubt that audience would be disappointed if some guitar line or an organ sound is missing if the band is totally connected and committed to bring to songs to life. I can’t imagine that people would have come away from seeing the Doors who also performed as a four piece and saying ‘hmm great show, shame that keys part was missing!’ Not that I’m comparing ourselves to the Doors, but we work really hard on bringing our recorded material to the stage, making sure our vocal harmonies are blending nicely and our parts are played as best as they can be.
What has been your favourite gig of the tour so far?
Honestly, almost every show on this tour has been great for different reasons. But I guess if I had to choose one I’d say playing to a sold our Corner Hotel in our hometown. What a thrill to pack out a venue I’ve grown up with, a venue where I’ve seen some of my favourite gigs since I was a teenager.
Have you thought much about the long term goals for Husky? Is there a point on the horizon you would love to get to?
I’m not sure there is necessarily a point at which we’d like to get to. There sure are a number of points that we’ve been working toward over the years and some of these have been realised including making a record we’re proud of and having the opportunity to tour it. But as you move forward your dreams and perspective change and you work towards different horizons. I guess we’d all be proud if we could look back and say that we’d always tried to write good songs, play good shows and produce good records with the people we love and respect.
And finally, ‘The Woods’ is a personal highlight for me out of all the beautiful tracks on Forever So. Are there any plans to release it as a single?
Yes, ‘The Woods’ is definitely one of my favourite tracks on the record and yes, it has been included as one of the possibilities for our next single. I guess we’ll have to wait and see!
Kirsty Visman
It’s been a month now since the release of Forever So. This must be a really exciting time for yourself and the band.
Yes- A very exciting time indeed! Exciting and strange to think that people are actually listening to something that we poured so much time and love into.
Have there been any moments this past month that have made you want to pinch yourself, just to check that it’s all really happening?
Absolutely. There have been many of these moments of late. We are thrilled and feel lucky with the way things have been going recently. I think back to times when myself and Husky had conversations in our humble backyard studio about whether the record was any good or if anyone would even like it. It’s definitely been a dream run.
What part do you feel Triple J has played in your success since being picked as Unearthed winners?
While it isn’t possible to account for exactly what contributes to a bands success it is clear that support from Triple J in this country is invaluable. Since they unearthed our band in February they have continued to support us throughout the year awarding us feature record, nominated us for an Unearthed J award as well as a 2012 next-crop artist and backed our first headline tour. I don’t think we could have asked for much more! We certainly never imagined that they would get behind the record the way that have and there’s no doubt it’s made a huge difference.
What was it like touring with Gotye on his recent tour? It was such an ambitious live show.
Agreed! It is a very ambitious show. The lengths that Gotye takes to recreate the sounds on his record is inspiring. The stage is littered with gear to make sure that each sample, each sound is perfect. The show aside, his band is made up of a bunch of Melbourne musos some of whom we’ve known for years so it makes for some fun hangin time after the shows!
You’re in the middle of a national tour of your own now, how have the crowds been responding to the tracks of the debut LP?
It’s been pretty surreal for us travelling the country on our first headline tour and looking out to the crowd to see people singing along to our songs. We’re all really excited that we’re able do this and from our perspective it seems like people have been responding really well.
How do you find doing your own headline compares to doing an international support slot like you did for Noah & The Whale or Devendra Banhart?
Well they’re very different experiences. I mean, when opening for a band we think about how we can win an audience over. How we can give them an insight into what were about, how we can leave some kind of impression on a bunch of people that probably aren’t familiar with our songs. When headlining however it feels like there’s a different expectation so we think about with how we can best deliver our material, really capture the emotion of the songs and hopefully leave the audience felling like they’ve experienced something.
The album is so richly detailed musically; are you able to bring all those layers into your live shows?
This is something we have discussed and continued to work on a lot recently. It seems like the conclusion we’ve come to for now is that while we aren’t able to bring all those detailed layers to the show, we make up for it with an energy and emotion that can only be experienced in a live setting. Ultimately, it’s the songs that people want to hear and I doubt that audience would be disappointed if some guitar line or an organ sound is missing if the band is totally connected and committed to bring to songs to life. I can’t imagine that people would have come away from seeing the Doors who also performed as a four piece and saying ‘hmm great show, shame that keys part was missing!’ Not that I’m comparing ourselves to the Doors, but we work really hard on bringing our recorded material to the stage, making sure our vocal harmonies are blending nicely and our parts are played as best as they can be.
What has been your favourite gig of the tour so far?
Honestly, almost every show on this tour has been great for different reasons. But I guess if I had to choose one I’d say playing to a sold our Corner Hotel in our hometown. What a thrill to pack out a venue I’ve grown up with, a venue where I’ve seen some of my favourite gigs since I was a teenager.
Have you thought much about the long term goals for Husky? Is there a point on the horizon you would love to get to?
I’m not sure there is necessarily a point at which we’d like to get to. There sure are a number of points that we’ve been working toward over the years and some of these have been realised including making a record we’re proud of and having the opportunity to tour it. But as you move forward your dreams and perspective change and you work towards different horizons. I guess we’d all be proud if we could look back and say that we’d always tried to write good songs, play good shows and produce good records with the people we love and respect.
And finally, ‘The Woods’ is a personal highlight for me out of all the beautiful tracks on Forever So. Are there any plans to release it as a single?
Yes, ‘The Woods’ is definitely one of my favourite tracks on the record and yes, it has been included as one of the possibilities for our next single. I guess we’ll have to wait and see!
Kirsty Visman