 ALASDAIR DUNCAN talks to TOMEK ARCHER of Sydney synth-rockers VAN SHE about the secret to his band’s success and creating an army of Kellys.
There are some bands who suffer in obscurity for years, never achieving success outside of their own small circle, while there are others who, blessed with a rare combination of talent and luck, are able to crack the big time almost instantly. The latter is most definitely the case with Van She – the group, who signed to the prestigious Modular label almost as soon as they had formed, are now, eighteen months or so later, looking poised to take on the world.
The group’s official biography says that they met at an audition for another band, although I’m sceptical of this, and when I ask Tomek, he tells me that the story is, in fact, embellished a little. “We met randomly at a barbecue,” he says. “We weren’t planning to form a band by any means, but out love of music brought us together and we just clicked. We’ve been hanging out continuously for eighteen months and we’re all each-other’s closest friends now.”
Following that chance meeting, the band spent some time writing demos in vocalist Nick Routledge’s bedroom, but when a friend affiliated with the Bang Gang DJs crowd heard some of their stuff and invited them down to Melbourne to perform live, they realised that they had four weeks to complete a set’s worth of songs. Various record company reps turned up at the show, and that, followed by the release of a killer self-titled EP and extensive Australian and international touring, brings us to where we are today.
Van She have had a good deal of support from local broadcasters, with the clip for their gorgeous synth-pop gem Kelly being flogged on Channel V and Video Hits. When I ask for the story behind the song – is there a real Kelly somewhere? – Tomek tells me that Kelly represents the ultimate girl. She may not actually exist, but the band have certainly looked for her.
“When we did the clip, we decided to go and find an Australian girl called Kelly, so the director put the call out and we ended up meeting and interviewing a whole lot of girls and making a little doco about it. When we did the clip, all the girls in it were called Kelly, and they were wearing their clothes and had a bunch of their own stuff that they took into the set. We had an exhibition of photos when we launched the clip, and all of these girls came along so people got to meet all the Kellys.”
Fans who have heard the EP and are desperately waiting on an album might have a little longer to wait. “We could have recorded one straight away but it would have been half-baked,” Tomek tells me. Van She, who are still, to an extent, honing their sound, have decided that after their next international jaunt (an American and UK tour in September), they will begin the process of looking for a producer to help them coalesce their dance and rock influences into a coherent whole.
Van She will play at Splendour In The Grass, Byron Bay, on July 23.
|
| Comments are submitted for possible publication on the condition that they may be edited. Poster's IP addresses are logged. |
|
Be first to comment on this article
