Sure we’ve heard about you before, but we think it’s time for Tone Deaf to get to know you a little better. Slip in to something comfortable while we put on some music, pour us a couple of drinks and turn the lights down low. So, tell us about yourselves…Who are you – who who? We really wanna know….
Who are you and what do you do in your act?
Josh. Guitar and vocals.
‘Fess up. What records have you stolen from your parents’ record collection and why?
I’ve taken all of them but my favourite would be Hunky Dory by Bowie.
What’s on heavy rotation on your iPod right now?
The usual – Trail of Dead, Biffy Clyro, Brand New and an old band from Adelaide called Zeta. Also the new Paper Scissors record.
‘Home taping is killing the music business’ was the catch-cry of the record industry in the 1970s, but it managed to survive until now. What do you think is the difference between mates taping copies of friend’s records back in the 80s and 90s and file sharing now?
I guess there was some human element to taping; you had to at least listen to what you were recording (didn’t you?) and if it was given to you by someone else, you would presumably have discussed what you were listening to with them. File sharing meanwhile is so convenient, you can download the entire work of an artist at the click of a button without context as to the way they intended for you to hear it, and it’s faceless, you do it alone in what I can only imagine is some dark room in the basement of a haunted house. It’s just lost the love, you know what I’m saying?
You must answer this question honestly or we steal your rider. What was the first gig you went to? Where was it and what was the venue?
There was this Adelaide band called Edison that I saw when I was in primary school, they played at a rotunda around the corner from where I lived at the time and they were really fucking good.
What’s your favourite site to download music from and do you ever pay for it? Can we find any of your releases there?
I plead the 5th. But seriously, I use whatever torrent site hosts whatever artist I want to listen to at the time. If it’s good, then I buy it. No one bothers to pirate our stuff…
What artist made you want to pick up an instrument and/or sing?
I think it was probably my Dad or my cousin. They both played in bands that I watched when I was a kid and I was like, I wanna do this.
Have you ever been arrested?
Nope.
Do you have any particular ritual before you go on stage, or even a lucky charm you take with you?
I generally spend whatever time we’ve got before a show in the bathroom. I get nervous. I get nervous real bad.
What’s been your most outrageous rider request?
To have a rider to request something on? If only we could demand what that roadie talks about in Wayne’s World 2, it had something to do with brown M&M’s and him killing a lion.
Because it’s more fun to do things together, which living Australian artist would you most like to collaborate with? Tell us why?
Probably The Church, they kick ass and take names.
Right, let’s get really intimate. Tell us what releases you have that we can listen to with the lights down low, or even better, where we can see you play in person next.
We’re recording in a couple of weeks, so hopefully that will be out some time in October/November, but the real news is we’re supporting …And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead in Melbourne at the Corner on the 7th of September. It’s just nucking futs.
