MONICA, CHRIS & REI OF SWEATER CURSE
Hi and thanks for taking the time out to speak with us at Musicology.
The single Can’t See You Anymore is an amazing track that ebbs and flows before a crescendo of the self-title. Can you elaborate a little on the subject matter of the track?
The song was written at a time of pretty intense emotion for Monica, and was written as a bit of a reflection on that time. It’s about feeling stuck in a negative situation, knowing that it’s not getting better, and deciding how to manage that. It’s also about recognising that sometimes you need to give yourself time to make a big decision, even though you’re in a situation that feels impossible.
There is a distinct indie flavour to your music with a 90’s bent analogous to the likes of Stone Roses, The Clouds and Smashing Pumpkins. Were there certain artists, sounds you were drawing upon in formulating your own material?
We hadn’t actually thought about those bands so much but definitely see where you can draw that comparison. The very first time Monica and Chris went to try and write music we had no idea what we wanted to sound like. It wasn’t until a little while later when we were all listening to a lot of ‘Yuck’ and Chris was listening to lots of Interpol that we finally decided on a specific “sound” that we wanted. But even so, I think we didn’t even really decide on it, it just sort of just happened.
You had the privilege of working with engineer Fletcher Matthews and Mikey Young. Mikey has worked with indie royalty such as Eddy Current Suppression Ring and Total Control. What words of wisdom did Fletcher and Mikey provide to you when laying down your sounds to tape?
Fletcher was a hero when we were recording! I think the very first day we went to meet him we were all running 45 minutes to an hour late and he probably thought he was going to have the worst week ever. But we had such a great time recording with him; he has a great insight into tiny details that we never thought about and helped us come up with harmonies that definitely filled out the songs.
Mikey did the mastering for our songs and smashed it out so fast. It was a huge honour to work with him!
Creatively can you give us an insight into the processes Sweater Curse take into creating your sentimental, lyrical and musical path?
Writing songs as a band has actually been quite an easy process for us thus far – we’re pretty lucky. Usually one of us comes to practise with a piece of a song and we write the rest together or it just happens from the start while we are all together. It is usually a pretty organic process. For lyrics we sometimes take influences from things around us, whether it’s something mundane or something sentimental or emotional.
The artwork features a little Australiania with unmistakable Banksias. Is there a deeper, underlying message in using this flora in particular?
Our music to us is quite domestic in a few ways. We all live in Brisbane and went to the same uni and grew up in similar areas, and in a way writing music together feels like an extension of our regular lives so it feels natural to have domestic and I guess typically Australian things around us, like a banksia. Also banksias are so beautiful and we wanted to incorporate some native flora in our art work because it fits the domestic feel of our videos and press photos, which were taken in our typically Queensland houses.
The tyranny of distance can be something of a problem when not in constant contact with a vast amount of other artists and seeing what other bands are up to but conversely a bonus as you are not subject to trends or styles. How has the Brisbane scene shaped your style and panache for the indie?
Brisbane’s music scene is growing in a really exciting way at the moment, and has been for a while. There are lots of cool bands, venues and events in the scene and it’s really exciting to be a part of it all. In the Brisbane scene, because it is a little smaller than the scenes in Sydney or Melbourne, you get this sense of community for all musicians and creatives in the area; we all go to the same venues and see the same events so we get to be a part of more eclectic and diverse line-ups which is really cool. In that way it does make it easy to not stress about being strict on the genre or style of our music, and we can just write organically without being too concerned about the image or genres associated with whatever music we’re writing.
You are set to perform at this year’s Big Sound which can become a break out moment for many new acts. Is there an added sense of pressure albeit self-imposed to really light up the stage during this showcase performance?
There’s definitely some pressure involved, but we’re mainly just really excited to try to play as many shows as possible, get in front of as many people as possible and have fun and meet new friends.
