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 Most bands would view the loss of a singer and guitarist as an excuse to shut up shop, but THE PAPER & THE PLANE see it as just another incarnation of the “living, breathing Brisbane entity” that is their band. SOPHIE BENJAMIN spoke to bassist REMY BOCCALATTE ahead of their first show in months.
I’ve done a fair few interviews with musicians, but never once interrupted one doing anything remotely related to being in a band. They’re always putting on the washing, eating breakfast or sitting in a hotel room doing hour after hour of phone interviews. Therefore, it’s a pleasant surprise when The Paper & The Plane’s Remy Boccalatte tells me he’s on his way to band practice during our phone call.
His band have spent most of the year in hibernation, or as they call it in the music industry, pre-production. Singer Dan Van Zutphen left the band earlier this year, followed by guitarist Paul Voge a few months later. Boccalatte is diplomatic about the split.
“It was pretty shocking, but you can’t blame anyone for it. People were on different paths, or just weren’t into it; with our history we’re a bit used to it.”
The “history” Boccalatte refers to is the revolving door of membership, with many singers, drummers and guitarists passing through the ranks of the band. He is the most recent in a long string of bass players, with guitarist Greg Ibbotson (who also played bass at one point) the longest-serving member of the band.
Filling the shoes of both Voge and Van Zutphen is Luke Dalton, a super-enthusiastic 18 year-old. The age gap between Dalton and the rest of the band is, well, noticeable.
“Don’t say that to our drummer! He’s almost double Luke’s age!” Bocalatte cries in mock-horror.
“It’s always good when someone is excited about the music you’re writing,” he explains. “It doesn’t matter what age they are.”
The time away from gigging has been productive, with six songs demo-ed for an upcoming LP. Despite the drastic line-up change, Boccalatte assures me the new stuff won’t be the sole focus of their upcoming shows, nor a departure from their previous releases.
“People will notice a bit of a different vocal style, but we hope we don’t stray too far off what we were doing, even though it’s evolving at the same time.
“We’re not going to ostracise ourselves from the people who remember what we did. We’re going to play some old songs in the set, but gradually phase them out, like any band, when we get excited about new stuff we’re writing.”
This week’s show will be the first for the new line-up of the band, but one of the last for Brisbane punk stalwarts The Gifthorse, who are calling it a day after fulfilling tour commitments early next year.
“This show’s going to be amazing; it’s the first time all three bands have been on the one bill. Arrows will be playing some of the new stuff that’s going to be on their forthcoming album and with the Gifties finishing up it’s going to be extra-special.”
THE PAPER & THE PLANE play their first show in a long time with The Gifthorse and Arrows on Thursday Dec 17 at the Troubadour. www.myspace.com/thepaperandtheplane
1. Written by Caitlin, on 25-02-2010 12:54 , IP: 58.108.227.39
Dan van Zutphen was an extraordinary vocalist and was passionate and engaging. This new young fellow has taken the band in a different direction and i feel they have lost their heart. Musically they were quite good, but the higher register vocals dont lend themselves to the content of their songs. Sadly, I will no longer be following their progress. |
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