Image via Billy Zammit // 

The Inner West outfit will be taking over The Bank this Saturday…

The wait for Sydney All-Nigher is getting smaller and smaller, Solotel’s citywide festival set to fully reinvigorate the city for a day of live music. And of course, the lineup for the day is full of local legends all chomping at the bit to play for Sydney, with the latest of which being Inner West hip hop outfit Triple One.

Most recently, they’ve released their new album A Dangerous Method Vol. 1. Headlined by singles like ‘BLOOD RAVE’, ‘COME OVER’ and ‘GHOST’, the new record has struck a fervent chord with the masses, and judging by the strength of the project as a whole, it’s looking like they’ve got us well-sorted with volume two.

We caught up with Obi and Billy from the band to get the deets on Sydney All-Nighter and what life’s been like since the release of A Dangerous Method. Check it below.

Last time I interviewed you guys, you were releasing ‘A Dangerous Method’. What’s life been like since it came out?

Obi Ill Terrors: Pretty chill. I think once you get something done, you go back to the drawing board. We’ve been away for a week on a writing trip, so we’ve got around four more songs locked in for A Dangerous Method Vol. 2. And we played Splendour as well, which was crazy. Now we’re planning a national tour for November and December.

I see you guys have been doing a lot of pop up shows and appearances. What’s that been like in terms of getting the energy levels going, especially with the new tracks out?

Billy Gunns: Really good. We got to play the last tour just off the back of A Dangerous Method. I think it was just after.

Billy Gunns: So, a lot of those tracks were really fresh and they all went off surprisingly well to us because it takes a bit of time for stuff to resonate. But yeah, the tracks we played all were as big as the older songs, which was great.

And how was Splendour amidst all of the chaos?

Obi Ill Terrors: Very worrying at the start. I was sick before Splendour and I was on antibiotics. I lost my voice on the week leading up and we had one rehearsal on the Friday. And while we were in rehearsal, we got a call being like, “Splendour’s canceled.”

Obi Ill Terrors: And we were like, “What the fuck?” We had tried to play three, maybe four festival shows that had been penciled in, and just because of COVID and touring and so on, it kept falling through. So, we hadn’t played a proper festival in like four years. But it ended up going ahead the next day and it was successful.

Billy Gunns: Yeah, we were on the plane in the morning and we’re like, “I think it’s going to happen. It’s going to happen!”

Sydney All-Nigher is a festival in itself. Where are you playing on the day amongst the madness?

Billy Gunns: Yeah, so we’re playing at Waywards.

Obi Ill Terrors: The Bank.

Billy Gunns: We haven’t played there in ages. So, it’s going to be mad. It’s going to be a mad throwback. I think it has a 150 – 200 person cap. I haven’t even been there since it’s been renovated. But yeah, we played there probably five years ago or something. It’s definitely an old stomping ground of ours.

Obi Ill Terrors: It’s only five minutes from the studio we’re in right now. And we’re going to play some old school classics. DJ Billy Gunns has a fucking set coming up [laughs].

Billy Gunns: [laughs] So I used to DJ whenever we’d do a support slot for an international artist, before COVID. And I had to just spin a few songs before or after our set to fill in the time. So this is my first time back on the decks. It’s going to be pretty fun.

But yeah, I actually freaked out and thought I had no music because over four years you lose hard drives and everything. But I found this laptop that we’re on right now and it has all these old songs that have dropped in people’s DJ sets for years. And so, all of  these super hectic bangers, tailored for DJ sets, are just sitting on this computer.

So, this is going to be quite a nostalgic set?

Billy Gunns: Absolutely. It’s going to be funny one for sure… we’ve never actually done a full DJ set as a band, so it’s going to be pretty funny.

Sydney All-Nighter is a pretty good celebration of the Inner West and Sydney’s live music scene as a whole. Do you guys have any crazy memories from your early days of an all-nighter in Sydney?

Obi Ill Terrors: Sydney All Nighter and King Street Crawl used to be the big ones, where you’d just go and get sideways in the park. And just fucking walk around to every single venue. Just get turbo. It was mad.

Billy Gunns: Yeah, that was a good couple of years.

There might be some young Triple Ones in the crowd at The Bank. What should they expect from your set? 

Obi Ill Terrors: Music history month. Just to get educated… fucking ’90s hip hop, man.

Billy Gunns: Yeah, it’s like a combination of all our favorite hits that you want to hear at 1 o’clock in the morning. No niche genre stuff. A very ‘for the people’, kind of set.

Obi Ill Terrors: It’s going to sound like Kelli’s Karaoke but it’s inside The Bank.

Billy Gunns: Yeah, but you’re not at Kelli’s Karaoke, you’ll be at a Triple One show.

I feel like Triple One at The Bank is a once in a lifetime opportunity. What do you reckon the vibe’s going to be like?

Billy Gunns: Well, it’s 1am at The Bank, so it’ll be a mixed bag for sure.

Obi Ill Terrors: Some punkers from downstairs, couple suits, some young guns. Maybe some mums.

Billy Gunns: Everyone from every demographic. That’s a Triple One show.

Will you be heading out to enjoy Sydney All-Nighter afterwards?

Billy Gunns: Yeah, I’m sure we will!

Lastly, I know you’ve already alluded to it, but can you give me any specific stories about an all-nighter or big night you’ve had while out in Sydney over the years?

Billy Gunns: One thing that comes to mind is still being awake when the Newtown Market’s are going the next day. And you walk past and you’re like, “Oh my God, I’m fucking still awake…”

Obi Ill Terrors: And Billy would be playing a Lebanese drum at the Newtown Market with our friend in a suit. People thought it was a prank but it was actually just a bent band with a Lebanese guy.

Obi Ill Terrors: And look at him now! You want to be a mad producer and go get on a juice and play a drum at a nice community meeting on a Saturday morning with no sleep. You’re destined for big things.

That’s probably the most motivational, aspirational tone we can end this on. Thanks guys and see you at Sydney All-Nighter!

Both: See you then!

Triple One are set to play Sydney All-Nigher this Saturday. Be sure to catch them at The Bank and visit the official Sydney All-Nigher website for more information.