With their shiny debut EP only a week old, we checked in with WHARVES to see what’s happening up North.

Releasing a body of work out to world is often a nervy experience for a lot of bands. Worrying about what people will think/say, sweating it over those little things that only the band can actually hear, getting all the art/photos etc sorted, it can be a big deal at times. It seems, however, Lennox Head four-piece WHARVES couldn’t be more relaxed about it – and listening to their debut, you can understand why.

Sooner Or Later is 17 minutes of unadulterated energy, riffs and melodic earworms. From the dark-disco opener ‘Mo’s Desert Clubhouse,’ through to anthemic single ‘High School Hero,’ and title track ‘Sooner Or Later,’ it’s clear that the lads are as comfortable in the studio as they are on the stage. Resulting in an EP that sounds so crispy and well thought out, you could easily forget that it’s their debut.

But don’t just take our word for it, you can catch WHARVES this over October and November when they hit the road for an East Coast tour with Teenage Dads (info here),  and check out our interview with vocalist/guitarist Matt Collins below:

The EP pays homage to the indie-rock revival of the early 2000’s, what sort of stuff is on your party playlists?

We all grew up and fell in love with all the great bands from the early 2000’s, which is where we all picked up our instruments and got learning how to play. I think old regular favourites include Franz Ferdinand, The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys & Interpol. We’ve been discovering some amazing bands who inspired those bands lately like Wire, Brian Eno, Devo and Television.

It sounds like you guys had a lot of fun chasing some nice fuzzy guitar tones for the EP. Was there any little secrets studio hacks that went into creating the WHARVES sound for the EP?

Fuzz is a beast that comes in many forms! Luckily we are all massive pedal geeks and love to get our hands dirty. We experiment quite a bit in the recording process by switching between different pedals on our boards or finding a plugin sizzles just right. Analog or Digital, it’s all good!

‘Mo’s Desert Clubhouse’ references a venue that has closed down? What do you guys look for in a venue when you’re booking a show? What makes for a good place to party?

Mo’s Desert Clubhouse hasn’t actually closed down, they’re just in the middle of a massive battle with the local council that doesn’t recognise it as a space for the arts. There’s something about graffiti in the toilets and a collage of bands’ stickers in the green room that gives venues bit of a grungy vibe. The kind of places that during the day you wouldn’t go near but at night they really come alive and they feast on the energy in the room.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Nvc8bBG4xw

What’s the music scene like in Lennox Head? Do you guys find you’re heading North a lot for shows?

It’s a small town but it’s growing a great scene. We put on monthly gigs with Lennox Groove at the Lennox Point Hotel which we’ve had legends like BUGS, Raave Tapes, IVEY and Sweater Curse come and play. We also run an All Ages Festival called Beach Sounds and have had The Pretty Littles, Stumps, Eliza & The Delusionals and Voiid. At the same time we like to get to Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne a few times each year.

Your merch includes shirts that say “It’s Not A Crime To Dance.” What the story there? Are there any dance moves that should be outlawed?

It’s the lyric from Mo’s Desert Clubhouse about fighting for your right to party. As long you and everyone around you is having a good time there are no dance moves that should be outlawed. Except when a cover band plays Khe Sanh at our local pub and the mums and dads get their groove on.

You guys really nail it on EP closer, ‘Sooner Or Later.’ It feels kind of like it has uplifting music but a pessimistic message. Was this your intention? What does the song mean to you?

Thanks, yeah, I was reflecting about how disappointed most people are with who is in charge. Trump is president, David Bowie & Prince are dead. It just feels like someone should swoop in and fix this mess. I am hopeful about the future though, I think it’s just a bit of a crap time at this particular moment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mFEdAcCzqg

What are you guys most proud about on the EP?

We are pretty stoked in general to be releasing a body work rather than just a single. We are also proud to be putting it on vinyl which people can pre-order now via our website which is a big milestone for us.

What’s coming up for the rest of 2018?

TOUR TIME! We are going to Melbourne, Sydney, Wollongong & Brisbane over the next two months then we are doing a few other shows which are yet to be announced. We are also dropping a live video clip later on this month which we are very excited about.