Melbourne pop-punk four-piece PAPERWEIGHT recently unleashed their latest single, ‘Whisper Games’.
The track was produced in collaboration with bona fide genre legend Stevie Knight (Stand Atlantic, Yours Truly, With Confidence). It’s a hooky, fun track that makes for a strong addition to the thriving Australian pop-punk canon.
“Whisper Games is a song about valuing authenticity. All too often we tend to compare ourselves to others in a negative light whilst not releasing most of what we see is disconnected from reality – the “highlights reel” of social media is an impossible standard,” Haris Dillinger explains of the track.
“This song was written about valuing what is real, the good, the bad and everything in between – because, at the end of the day, what will be remembered is the things that make you who you are, not the things you pretend to be.”
To celebrate the release of the track, we got PAPERWEIGHT to talk us through the 10-songs that inspired their creative process. So pop on the song below and see what they had to say for themselves.
Check out ‘Whisper Games’ by PAPERWEIGHT:
Haris:
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Twenty-One Pilots – ‘Tear In My Heart’
I’ve always admired artists who manage to fuse genres and make something wholly unique. This was the first track I heard from Twenty One Pilots and I Instantly fell in love, along with being heavily influenced by their brand of music.
The Story So Far – ‘Empty Space ‘
This song introduced me to the modern era of pop-punk and one of my all time favourite bands – I was instantly hooked to the fast paced, grungy, emotional aspects of their song writing. I love artists who are unapologetically themselves – it’s real, it’s raw and it’s what I always strive to be.
Green Day – ‘Holiday’
This may be an odd one, but this is where it all started for me. While I was always into music growing up, it was this song that started a chain reaction – getting me into the alternative scene one band after another. Whilst my taste is always broadening, this song will always hold a special place.
Luana:
I loved all the pop music the TV fed me until I discovered ABC’s Rage at age 13. I’d print off the playlist, watch until 5 am, highlight all the songs I loved then download them off Limewire. Pop evolved to pop-punk in my world after discovering music from Simple Plan, Good Charlotte, Sum 41… Give me a catchy chorus and some distorted guitars ANY day… and I’m 28. #notaphasemom
Sum 41 – ‘Fat Lip’
The ultimate genre mashup with pop-punk hooks, rap verses and a bit of a heavy breakdown. I don’t think I’ve ever skipped this song in my life – the intro was hook, line & sinker from the moment I heard it. Once I discovered Sum 41, it was game over. Pop-punk took over my entire life.
Goodnight Nurse – ‘My Only’
This song punched me in my 13-year-old face the first time I heard it. They combined a catchy chorus, an obvious Sum 41 influence and a riff that was easy enough to be the first song I learned on guitar! They were one of my first favourite local bands and opened me up to a world of incredible music. I remember asking the singer/guitarist Joel Little how to play it, getting an email back explaining that “the first chord is Eb” and little me yelling out to my uncle: “WHAT’S AN E-BEE AND HOW DO I PLAY IT???”
Green Day – ‘American Idiot’
I still remember seeing this video clip for the first time on Rage at some ungodly hour of morning and being completely mesmerized. This album (and song) just hit you with raw emotion, a captivating story and insanely catchy melodies – it also sparked my love for concept albums. This masterpiece was the first album I bought with my own money!
Basil:
Growing up with an obsession with Need For Speed and Tony Hawk’s games, my music taste and inspiration was heavily influenced by these two games! And let’s be real – they had some awesome soundtracks!
NOFX – ‘Separation Of Church And Skate’
Instantly hooked by the intro riff and the song that got me into NOFX, this song was my play along song for early high school exposing me to punk rock and d beat on the drums influencing my play style for years to come.
Avenged Sevenfold – ‘Blinded In Chains’
This song got me into faster paced metalcore right in the middle of high school (during my “emo phase”) and inspired me to learn double bass drum beats and gallops, mixing punk, rock and metal genres onto my playing style and inspiration.
Tom:
Blink 182 – ‘First Date’
This was the first song I heard on the radio properly as a kid which helped me discover Blink 182 and subsequently the pop-punk genre. My friend in school lent me the Take Off Your Pants And Jacket album and I was hooked.
Sum 41 – ‘In Too Deep’
Sum 41 was one of my first favorite bands. They had all the catchy hooks and introduced to me some more technical based guitar with the odd solos here and there, and also a slow progression into more hard rock/ metal like elements with their later records such as Chuck.
