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Interviews

Blood Buffalo chat their blistering new EP Man In Smoking Jacket

It was last month, with the release of their debut EP Man In Smoking Jacket, that we were first introduced to the blistering sounds of Blood Buffalo. In an incredibly short amount of time, the Auckland-based outfit have crafted a sound that will blast your face off; it’s an explosive concoction of relentless blues and rock.

So fresh off the new EP’s release, we caught up with the band to chat all about it, their writing process, and what the future holds.

Photo: Chalice Of Blood / Mark Derricutt

With a truly epic debut EP fresh under their belts, we caught up with Auckland-based outfit Blood Buffalo to chat all about it.

HAPPY: Hey, how’s it going? What are you up to at the moment?

NATE: Hey! Yeah, we’ve been going really well thanks. Lately, we have been tied up with our latest EP release Man in Smoking Jacket playing shows around Auckland.

DAMIEN: Yeah, the support from our EP show has been awesome.

HAPPY: We’ve been loving the new EP! How does it feel having it out there in the world?

CALEB: Thank you, we’re stoked you’re enjoying it! It feels like a massive relief, just because of all the time and effort the EP took out of us. It feels good to get some sort of closure for these songs. Just because we’ve been playing them live for a while, and now we’ve kind of signed them off to the ether. It’s a great feeling.

CHOPS: It’s very rewarding. Still can’t believe it’s finally out, to be honest. We’ve been working on it for a very long time.

HAPPY: For a debut release, it seems you guys have a really well-developed sound. How long had this project been in the works before you released the EP?

CALEB: It’s taken a few years to get to the sound we wanted, but you know, in saying that it’s always been there and it’s continually developing with new material and new songs.

NATE: I think we had been sitting on a couple of songs for maybe three or so years, songs we had developed in Blood Buffalo’s early days. The other songs like Spanish Gold we wrote perhaps six months before going into the studio to record.

CALEB: The EP has probably been in development for the past year. The bulk of the recording was done early last year and then it took us a while to decide when the songs were ‘done’. That’s probably the trickiest part.

HAPPY: Could you walk us through how the band came together?

NATE: So Caleb and I were briefly jamming with some other musicians trying to sort of create a feel y’know, we had been going to local gigs trying to intergrade ourselves into the music scene that’s where we ran into Damien.

DAMIEN: Yeah, so Chops was recommended to me by a fellow musician friend and so we scouted him out and got a rehearsal going in my parents’ garage and hit off from there.

HAPPY: Do you have a favorite track off the EP?

CALEB: I think we’re all pretty happy with the way Spanish Gold turned out… it’s the one that really came together in the studio and became its own thing.

HAPPY: How does a Blood Buffalo song generally come together? Is there a common process, or does it change from song to song?

NATE: It can change from song to song, often Caleb will have some lyrics and a catchy riff or rhythm part and we will develop the song around that, although in other songs I’ll come up with a bassline and the song will center around that. Sometimes it’s just a good old fashioned jam with the band.

HAPPY: Are there any other artists you’re really loving at the moment?

CALEB: Recently I’ve been really loving old soul stuff like Sam Cooke, but collectively we’re all digging The Growlers and My Morning Jacket, such inspiring and prolific bands!

HAPPY: What’s next for Blood Buffalo? Any other exciting plans in the works?

CALEB: We’re writing and rehearsing songs for our debut album and hopefully start recording next year. I’m really excited for new songs; writing and creating new material is definitely my favorite part of the process. Maybe we’ll even be crossing the ditch soon and playing a few gigs in Australia.

HAPPY: Cheers for the chat!

BLOOD BUFFALO: It’s been a pleasure, thank you.

Man In Smoking Jacket is available now. Listen above.