By Garry Lu (@mrputneyswope)
Perth natives SLUMBERJACK have rocketed to the main stage in the last few years. With the release of their Fracture EP alongside Diploโs Mad Decent, a national tour on the horizon, and returning to countless festival pit stops, this tirelessly hardworking duo have been active to say the least. We sat down with Morgan Then to discuss the layers of their music, the renaissance of Australian music, as well as the pride of marking our spot on the world.
You guys seem like youโve been everywhere at once, doing the rounds at Groovinโ, a national tour, and youโre also set to return to Splendour.
We actually miss it. Right now, itโs just the startโฆ We took about three months off to work on this live show, and work on this EP, and literally just planning the better half of 2017 for usโstarting right now. But itโs pretty exciting.
On the same note, youโve just dropped some fresh material. What can you tell us about the process of producing Fracture?
The process was a lot different to the first oneโฆ Our debut EP, we didnโt have a lot of experience, we were just a couple of kids that wanted to make music. So we just made a couple of tracks and put it together, and kind of called it an EP. Right now, we have amassed a couple of good experiences on tour, and in the studio, so we kind of know what we want artistically. And we started writing the Fracture EP from the ground up with the right mental image in our mind, and the light show to go with it. A lot of the tracks are written so it worksโฆ it translates well in the studio, or headphones, on the recording, but all of it translates pretty well live. And having the gold paint, and the darker, more desert looking image has all been part of the plan. I think this EP is the second coming of Slumberjack, and it kind of just shows that we have matured a little bit since we first started.
Like a renaissance of Slumberjack?
Yeah, sort of. I mean, we always had this idea that this should be the way we wanted to run our music project artistically, but never really knew how to get there. Because, just from inexperienceโฆ just both of us starting as uni kids, and wanted to make some music. We didnโt have any idea how to make an art project cohesive. Suddenly we have a management team, and a strong team of people around us to give us great advice. Weโve met a lot of good artists.
Youโve stated previously that a defining trait of your music is the dichotomy. Beyond being two of you, the end product is this beautifully woven item of contrast. How do you negotiate with the other when composing?
I think itโs less of a negotiation, but more of a way to get things to work. While Fletch and I come from such different musical backgrounds, and backgrounds in generalโฆ negotiations donโt tend to beโฆ negotiations seem to always end up being something, you know, along the lines of being, โLetโs just make things accessible.โ Whereas we find a solution to make two contrasting elements work, what we then create is something really special. So the idea has always been to leave it in the project, whatever weird idea we have, and just keep polishing it, chipping away until they fit together. And that makes it really unique in its own right, because thatโsโevery track has its own unique element, or a moment whereโฆ we call it the eureka momentโฆ things just fit together nicely and it sounds like a cohesive track, but has that really weird element. When you come to a compromise in the middle, I think, a lot of times you take away the special thing that makes it weird, or makes people find the track unique.
I have a theory that producers at the top of their game have an element of classical training. Not to say you need to be classically trained to be great, but you of course are a pianist. Allison Wonderland was a cellistโ Daft Punk, Skrillex, Getter had careers in bands. Do you think having a more rounded musical sensibility helps approach EDM from a unique angle?
Absolutely. I think it definitely helps in understanding what you want, โcos we know a lot of musicians, a lot of producers, who are great at what they do, but often times in a studio, they struggle with whether a certain sound, or a chord, or a melody is right or wrong. Whereas for us, itโs a lot easier. We know when itโs wrong or when it doesnโt work because we have the music theory side to help us, so the rule of thumb is if it doesnโt fall within a veryโฆ itโs not confined but if itโs not within music theory rules, then itโs a red flag. Which means we try to make it work, or we donโt.
Thereโs textures and layers to your music, like itโs a diverse melting pot of world sounds. Your Like A Version of M.I.Aโs Paper Planes for example used Turkish strings.
Yes, right now weโre on a big Turkish ode spree. We just find the instrument so magical, so weโve been using it on a lot of tracksโฆ Even in our old tracks, the remix of What So Notโs Touched, Horusโฆ we just love that instrument so much.
These past few years have seen a tremendous amount of talent launch from the Australian scene onto the international arenas, not just with EDM. What are your thoughts on this renaissance of Aussie music?
I think itโs great. I think itโs because of the isolation in the music industry. I think isolation helped us a lot in developing our own sound, and also we have this really classic tall poppy syndrome, you know? You always got to be at one with the fans, and not be this celebrity on a pedestal. You just got to be part of the crew and that humility, I think, helps Australian musicians come up with something that is more familiar, and relatableโฆ if you hang out with people you think are Australian royalty, theyโre just Australians and theyโre really cool. I canโt say the same about musicians around the world, but I can definitely vouch for Australians.
Somewhere down the line, Australia also became the de-facto tastemakers the world over.
Yeah, we got Anna Lunoe running Beats 1, we got Nina Las Vegas being very influential in the club music scene, we got Flume spearheading the post hip-hop/pop sceneโitโs crazy. I love that Australiaโs coming at all sides now.
Is there ever a sense of pride in this area when youโre overseas?
Thereโs this sense of being a badassโฆ Mad Max, desert, spider hunting, shark catchingโฆ just badass when youโre in America. But thereโs also this sense of, โWe need to work a lot harder, guys.โ Being Australian, we know how small we are as a country compared to the States. This sense of, โWe know weโre goodโฆ but letโs not get cocky.โ Just keep doing what weโre good at.
You guys are essentially the future of Australiaโs EDM scene. How does it feel to have that rest on your shoulders?
[Laughs.] We try not let ourselves think that, and just do what weโre good at. And if we end up being leaders then great. We hope we become great inspiration for future musicians and producersโฆ inspiring creative people to take a step and conduct the way they want to carry themselves in the industry. We donโt think about putting pressure on ourselves, by doing the best work we possibly can.
