Last month our mate Jonathan Boulet dropped one of the most insanely rock and roll albums of the year. He and the band are now back in Aus and are about to head out on tour with Unity Floors, starting tonight at the Northcote Social in Melbourne.
All the illustrators we hired for this interview were turned to stone after looking at Boulet’s handsome face for too long.
Happy: I remember the first time I saw you guys live – it was in a tent at Sydney Uni for Verge Festival back in ’09 – and you’ve certainly come a long way from there! What’s it like looking back at those days on Modular?
Boulet: Haha. Yeah that was a fun show. I remember half way through I turned to see if Dave, our bass player, was ready to play the next song, only to see him frantically fleeing the stage. As he passed me he urgently murmured under his breath, “Man I gotta take a shit” and disappeared out of the venue.
Seeing as that tent was a temporary one, the closest toilet was in the next building over. So we were left standing there with our dicks in our hands for what seemed like an eternity. So yeah we had some good times. I wouldn’t change it for the world.
Happy: You’ve been spending some time over in Europe, what prompted the move over there?
Boulet: Well I am part French and part English so I needed to visit the mother country and make sure The Queen didn’t need anything. Also it’s a good place to setup to travel around a bit – play shows to a whole new scene and expand ourselves.
Happy: What’s it like working in Berlin making music as opposed to back home?
Boulet: Really not as different as you’d expect. I feel like it would have been the same wether I was in Berlin or Australia. But then again, maybe the German atmosphere made the music super efficient, emotionless and now has the ability to demolish the Brazil world cup team.
Happy: What influenced the turn in style on this new record? There was always a bit of melancholy on your self titled – are you exploring the same themes in a different musical style this time on GUBBA?
Boulet: As we always have been pushing towards louder and more exciting shows, this seemed to be the logical step to really take it up a notch. I don’t think there’s any melancholy in this one. If anything I was trying to push the record away from having too much emotional content and deep feelings. More so, the themes we’re dealing with include apathy, motivation, and generally acting cool.
Happy: Do you have a favourite track off the new record? Why?
Boulet: I really love High Five Guy. But my favourite at the moment is Strut King. It’s the grooviest song I think I’ve ever written. It just stomps along, no cares in the world, spreading the gospel of Strut King.
Happy: Were there any tracks that didn’t make it onto the LP? Any chance they’ll see the light of day?
Boulet: Yeah as always there’s a solid list of songs that didn’t make the cut. Song’s that didn’t bring anything new to the record, or they just didn’t hit the mark like the others did. No way they’re seeing the light of day. Why would you even waste your time with that stuff? It’s not good for you and it’s not good for me. On the other hand, releasing demo versions of the album is something I like the sound of.
Happy: What is your favourite piece of musical equipment that we can hear on this new record?
Boulet: Got to be the fuzz on the guitars. It was my first try at making a pedal from a kit. It was just a copy of a Z.Vex Fuzz Factory and you can hear it choke out when I hold on to a note for too long. It kind of sputters and buzzes, but when you hit it hard it just grips and rips. It can have a real tearing quality to its sound, which is perfect for this stuff. It also embodies the ethos of this whole album. Do it yourself with a little help.
Happy: You’re being supported by Unity Floors on the tour following the release! Are you mates with those dudes / what did you think of their record?
Boulet: Not yet mates. But soon to be. Yeah their record is cool. Can’t wait to be on tour again and share those special moments with some new friends. And by ‘special moments’ I mean farting and searching for late night kebabs.
Happy: Who else, Australian or otherwise, should we be keeping an ear out for in 2014/15?
Boulet: To be honest, I’m a bit out of the loop. I’m hoping to be enlightened while we’re back in Oz. You should check out Joseph Liddy and The Skeleton Horse, they’ve got some sexy new music.
Happy: What makes you Happy?
Boulet: Cartoons. My sense of self worth. Large bodies of water. Drug of choice, caffeine. Sharing Youtube videos.
TOUR DATES
Special Guests: UNITY FLOORS
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Friday, August 15th | Northcote Social Club, MELBOURNE | Buy Tix
Saturday, August 16th | Pirie & Co. Social Club, ADELAIDE | Buy Tix
Thursday, August 21st | Goodgod Small Club, SYDNEY | Buy Tix
Thursday, August 28th | Black Bear Lodge, BRISBANE | Buy Tix
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