All For Show is the second single this year from amiable rock outfit, The Shang. We caught up with the boys to learn more.
Whether it’s a gig in Sydney, Queensland, or back on the home turf of Camden, you can rest assured The Shang will do three things; command the stage, pump out pub-rock reverie, last but not least, hang around for kick-ons.
Zac (vocals, guitar), Michael (guitar), Aiden (bass), and Diego (drums) haven’t been able to tour in the current COVID-19 climate, but this hasn’t stopped them from keeping on. Following last years’ explosive EP, Tales Of The South West, the band have dished out two new tracks; Here I Stand and their latest, All For Show. We caught up with the crew to learn more about the intriguing new tune, recording trickery, and future plans.
HAPPY: Hi boys, first of all, congrats on your new single All For Show! How’s it feel to be putting this track out?
Aiden: It feels really good. As much as we don’t want to keep harping on about how lame lockdown has been for everyone, the lack of purpose and productivity that has inevitably come from the current situation is really tough for a lot of us. So to have something completed and out there feels nice. It feels like we have accomplished at least something. This year definitely hasn’t gone to plan but we will take the little wins and keep moving forward.
HAPPY: This single originally started as an idea for a triple j Unearthed songwriting competition. How did that come about?
Aiden: Zac, our frontman, had a big part to play in this. DIY Supergroup is a competition where we were provided with a whole bunch of different samples from popular artists and challenged to use them and create our own unique track. We wanted to do something a little different for the competition and thought by having a look at the sample pack from Unearthed, we could find some inspiration by chopping up samples and seeing what would come of it.
So we had a fiddle and Zac came up with a pretty cool guitar riff that we used for that track too. When it came time to hit the studio, we thought why not follow that same process and mix and match our parts in a similar way? The end result became All for Show, something different to our usual sound with Zac’s same riff over the top.
HAPPY: The chorus and verses on All For Show both showcase very different energies. How did you and producer Jack Nigro achieve these unique sounds in the studio?
Zac: We tried to explore ways to change up the structure and feel of the track by experimenting dynamically and altering the traditional ways people expect to hear a chorus or a verse. Using a type of ‘anti-chorus’ was the end goal, and trying to create a separation between the ‘anger’ and ‘frustration’ in the verses compared to the more reflective, emotional content of the chorus was a real challenge for us considering we usually try and go for the big chorus.
We tried to use a lot of space in the choruses and really experiment with subtle sounds and a more flowing type of vocal line to showcase the emotion and really emphasise the lyrical content, where as with the choruses we tried to replicate that brash, pumping vocal line by accompanying it with a jam-packed, distorted piece of music. The recording method was also really new for us, using a lot of techniques that we haven’t really delved into previously, which we thought created a pretty unique sound compared to our previous works.
HAPPY: I love the lyric “I don’t know if it’s all for show”. Was there a reason for exploring miscommunication on this release?
Zac: Thanks a heap! There wasn’t any specific reason for exploring miscommunication, but in a trying time currently, I guess it just made sense considering everybody just wants a bit of clarity about what the future looks like. As well as this, I suppose a lot of people have been through stages in their life where there has been a lack of clear communication and an inability to resolve issues or understand what is real and important in a relationship, so we thought that by reaching out and giving a little insight into our lives that maybe someone out there might connect and find some meaning in the track.
HAPPY: All For Show has some hip-hop/electric sounds coming through. You guys also featured rapper Rops1 on your 2020 single Games. Did anything inspire this new direction?
Michael: As a group, we have been really getting into hip hop from across the world of late, both Zac and myself are massive fans of UK grime and drill artists like J-Racks, AJ Tracey, Little Simz and Skepta. Diego and I have been into our Australian hip-hop for years and Aiden has been bumping HP Boyz at the gym for a while. Has always been an influence that has kind of sat under the surface but we have only recently been giving it the nod in our songwriting. Guess it gives a different element to our sound that you wouldn’t traditionally get from a rock band.
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HAPPY: You guys worked with longtime collaborator/director Michael Conlon for the All For Show music video. How was that experience?
Michael: I went to high school with Conlon, we’ve been really good mates for a long time. He has always been a truly gifted guy behind the lens and we know we can trust him to come up with the goods. Seeing as we’ve all been in lockdown and at opposite corners of greater Sydney, we knew that we weren’t gonna be able to get a music video together where we could play any meaningful part, in front or behind the camera.
He was down the south coast and out of lockdown at the time so we basically just gave him full creative control, let him have at it. It has been so cool watching his career develop alongside us, he’s already achieved so many of the goals that he set out at like 16. He’s a legend, lotta love for the guy.
HAPPY: There’s a lot of shaky cam and extreme close-ups in the music video. Would you say this is one of your most intense tracks to date?
Diego: Intensity is definitely dialled up on this track in its own weird way. We’re not slamming drop D and doing half-time breakdowns, but there’s a lot going on to fill the song up. There’s also the jarring back and forth between sections that creates energy in itself just by pulling back. We have more intense songs, especially played in live settings, but there’s plenty of room to give this one some gusto on stage.
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HAPPY: COVID and lockdown have obviously made touring a challenge, but it’s great to see you creating and persevering? What can fans expect when live shows are back?
Diego: We are obviously suffering a gig deficit and cannot wait to get back on the stage. There’s so much energy we are so eager to throw into the mix again. Before it all hit the fan we were just starting to try out a bit of stage production that will only get bigger and better the more gigs we play. So if you come to some Shang gigs you can expect some fancy red lights and the band getting way too pumped about every small thing that happens on stage. Even just writing about it now is getting us overly excited to get back into the big scary world.
HAPPY: Thanks for your time, The Shang!
All For Show is out now. Stream or purchase the single here.
