Brisbane’s surf-punk quartet Hey Baby have released their new EP Sun Break; all energy and no fucks. We caught them in a rare moment of seriousness and chatted about the rollercoaster of love and drugs.
With punk’s stealthy DIY approach and surf-rock’s charm, Hey Baby are a fusion to be frothed on their new EP Sun Break.
HAPPY: Hey Baby! How’s it going? What are you guys up to right now?
HB: Hey! Pretty swell at the moment, just waking up and getting ready to go to work. Death to the grind haha.
HAPPY: Your debut EP Sun Break is officially in the world today – what can we expect?
HB: Yeah how exciting! Definitely a rollercoaster of an EP with lots of twist and turns. A lot of it follows the same vibe of the last EP, boisterous in its energy and exploring themes of loves, drugs, mischief, mayhem and adventure. Most of the music is super upbeat but the lyrics dive a little deeper and a little darker. That’s why the EP is called Sun Break; light breaking through the darkness. Kind of a metaphor for the cathartic nature of songwriting I guess.
HAPPY: How did the EP come about? Who wrote the songs?
HB: Ummm, I (Kacper) wrote the main chunks of the songs a while back, but there was definitely a collaborative effort in making them sound the way they do today. Everyone adds their own inflections and attitude. Everyone worked together for the lead bit for Walking Home (took ages) and Jaeger wrote all the mental drum bits. Gotta give a shout out to Daniel Patterson for writing the bass line for Love and Drugs though, and Daniel Chlonta for writing a bunch of the bass bits throughout the EP.
HAPPY: Which is your favourite song on Sun Break?
HB: My favourite in terms of song writing is Love and Drugs. It’s got twists, turns, build-ups, drop backs, harmonies; the whole pie. But in terms of fun, attitude and sheer energy It would have to be Mandy and Me.
HAPPY: In terms of artwork, you guys have done skater scribbles, used press shots and indie photos to cover your music. Who makes these artistic decisions?
HB: We always came to it as a collective. My girlfriend (Liz May) has drawn a bunch for us and our friends have taken photos for us. Definitely have to give a shout out to Will Johnstone for creating our amazing EP cover.
HAPPY: Love and Drugs was a huge last track! Which song goes off most live?
HB: Thanks! Love and Drugs goes off pretty hard but people tend to get a fair bit looser on the punkier tracks like 1800-WEED and Mandy and Me.
HAPPY: So, where does the name Hey Baby come from?
HB: Haha. I used to try and sing like Lou Reed. So I think the combination of that influence, and giving a punkish band a title that sounds more like a Bieber song was a joke that we all seemed to enjoy.
HAPPY: You’ve supported some incredible acts like Crocodylus and Dear Seattle, what’s your dream support slot?
HB: Ahh man I think I’d have to pick FIDLAR or Pixies. FIDLAR cause they’re sick and that show would go off, or Pixies cause they’re my all-time favourite.
HAPPY: If you could play a show with any artists who would it be and where?
HB: Ooft. If I could take all my pedals and amp anywhere I’d probably go back to the 50s and just wig people out haha. Otherwise hmmm I dunno there are so many great bands… playing with Jay Reatard would be sick, or Brainiac or any punk shows at CBGB’s or the Roxy in the 70’s, that’d be rad.
HAPPY: What does the future look like for Hey Baby!?
HB: After this, we’re going to be sitting down and taking a much-needed break. Can’t predict the future, anything could happen, but this most definitely won’t be the last thing any of us do musically. Jaeger Brodie is doing some solo stuff at the moment so be sure to check that out.
