Hiatus Kaiyote are future soul. Based in Melbourne, the four-piece experiment with neo-soul, hip-hop, future beats along with flavours of Latin, jazz-fusion and opera, all presented with a cinematic sheen.
The band formed in mid-2011, and ever since, they have been racking up accolades, including a listing in the Who’s Hot 2012 feature in Gilles Peterson’s Worldwide Festival Magazine. Their debut release, Tawk Tomahawk, peaked in the Top 10 played Albums on KCRW in June, 2012.
Led by 23 year old enigmatic songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Nai Palm, and joined by three of Melbourne’s finest and most versatile musician/producers Perrin Moss, Simon Mavin and Paul Bender who have been able to realise Nai Palm’s songwriting in ways she never imagined.
TAWK TOMAHAWK, marked the band’s debut, released independently in April, 2012, it has received international attention. The 10 track EP, almost all of which was recorded and mixed in the band’s home in Melbourne, showcases the breadth of the band’s expertise as musicians and attention to detail in the complex arrangements and through the musicians’ symbiosis, they have created an innovative and rare sound, unique in every way.
What was the inspiration behind forming Hiatus Kaiyote?
It was a creative necessity for us all as individual musicians to go down this collective path of creative freedom. The seed began with Nai Palms song writing and it evolved into the wild beast of math soul fury that is Hiatus Kaiyote
Your first EP Tawk Tomahawk was released in April this year – was it received the way the band expected?
It was great to have something out, we recorded most of it in our home studio and it was Bender and Perrin’s first real release as ‘producers’, that was a big thing for them, and to say the least we have been blown away by the attention it’s received.
We had hoped to get international recognition, but not to the extent that we have received.
We had hoped I guess for more local attention but our music seems to make more sense on West Coast of USA or in UK it seems.
Have you got any plans for new music coming up soon?
We have a remix album coming out before our November tour with some of our favorite beat-producers from Melbourne and some well known international guys, it’ll be a free downloadable digital thing….
But we’ve also just done a version of Autumn In New York for Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, it’s for a Charlie Parker orchestral performance in Central Park. We’ve developed a relationship with him through our Co-manager in NYC and he asked us to do our take on the Parker version for the concert. Unfortunately we’re not going to be there…but Miguel has done an arrangement of our version for the orchestra which we’re eagerly waiting to hear.
The band’s sound is described as, “a fusion of future beats, hip-hop and soul with subtler influences of Latin, dub step and opera” – that’s quite a mix! How do you incorporate these different styles into your tracks?
Of course it’s not a conscious thing, well not most of the time, but you listen back to it and notice some influence, or inflection or someone says “Hey that reminds me of..” We don’t try not to sound like something, nor the opposite, it’s just the creative process we’ve got and the mixture of musicians from very different back rounds I think that end up with this layered sound of multiple styles.
You’re occasionally joined by three back-up singers – what do you feel this brings to your music?
Sonic liquid gold
Who/what are your greatest influences when creating music? Which artists would you most like to play alongside?
Last time we answered this question it ended up becoming true….we’d love work on something with Mulatu Astake or Georgia Anne Muldrow, maybe both on the same track?
How do you like your music? On digital, CD, or vinyl (maybe even cassette)?
Some people in the band are collectors,
What has been your most memorable gig to date?
I think New Years day at Woodford was pretty special, none of us had really slept and even the audience was feeling fragile but that lent itself to being a really powerful show and was a ended up being a really enjoyable cantharis.
If you could play any venue/festival where would it be?
Gilles Petersons Worldwide Festival 2013 sounds pretty good. SXSW 2013 as well
What else have you got in store for 2012? Where can we catch you playing next?
We’ve got a Tuesday residency at Workers Club in August, and then Nai heads to USA for a some shows in NYC and LA, she’ll be back in time for our November tour which will be through Brisbane, Sydney, Blue Mountains, Melbourne and Adelaide.
www.facebook.com/hiatuskaiyote
