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| Anemic Magazine Interview: www.anemicmagazine.cjb.net |
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Interviewees: Brett and Toddy Hansen on behalf of Headkase
* Hey gentlemen how are things in good old Brisvegas today?
B + T: Can't complain.
* So how have things been for you guys of late, You guys just played Rapid and from all reports you guys really rocked, how was Rapid on the whole?
T: Awesome! |
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B: I think it went really well. Probably the best (and biggest) crowd response we've had in a while. Plus the sound was crisp and clear, and we got to play to an "all ages" crowd, which is a rare treat for us. |
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T: We had an excellent day - not only when playing, but while watching other bands and getting up to mischief. |
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* Do you guys like playing Festivals or would you rather go with the pub scene option?
T: Festivals are great! We really enjoy the atmosphere when playing at a festival. Everyone seems to go harder. The pub scene's good, but only if it's a good venue (such as The Basement) dedicated to live original bands. |
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B: Yes, and not some of these sleazy old suburban pubs where you're playing to a couple of old men at the bar. We like playing to younger moshing crowds and fans who are there to see us, and who are there to see live bands in general. |
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* Do you guys care to give us a little biography about the band and how you guys started etc?
T: Nutty's brother is a good mate of mine. And through him I became friends with Nutty (lead vocalist) who had been in bands with Raleigh (lead guitar) and Trizza (rhythm guitar) before, but at the time they weren't doing anything as their drummer had just gone overseas. I had a drum kit, and at Nutty's 18th, I said that I would jam with the guys, although I wasn't really that good. We jammed for a couple of months, never really keeping anything we wrote. Then in early 2001, we decided to take it more seriously and write some material that we would keep and start gigging. I also asked my brother Brett if he would like to jam with us on keyboard, as his previous jazz-funk band "Boris" had recently broken up. Although not really into metal, he jammed with us anyway. We came up with some new and original sounds and wrote some songs that we liked. Nutty entered us into the Queensland Rock Awards 2001 as a 5 piece. We advanced through the audition heat (our first gig), after which we were required to find a bass player. After much searching previously, I asked a friend of a friend if he would jam with us on bass (as he was actually a lead guitarist). He did and he enjoyed it, and stayed with the band. And that's Dylan. |
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* Reading your profile on the underground section of Anemic and seeing that you guys have a real diverse sense of influences, then downloading some of your music and it really shows that the diversity of your influences really comes out in your music, is this something you guys wanted to achieve? |
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B: Yes. We're 6 different people with different influences. Nutty's into bands like Coal Chamber, Raleigh has 80s metal influences like Megadeth, Trizza's into stuff like Pantera, Dylan's a bit of a Mike Patton fan (Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, Fantomas), Todd likes really heavy stuff like Slipknot and death metal, and then my influences come from trance and trip-hop kinda stuff like Portishead and Hybrid, as well as drum 'n' bass like The Bird from Sydney, but also the circusy Mr. Bungle kinda stuff too. With all of these styles combined, we've come up with something really different and original. |
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T: We are all into a wide range of music which expands further than those listed. We play what we wanna play. |
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B: Yeah, I mean, we all enjoy a bit of dance music and some folk and jazz and stuff. And I can appreciate a lot of heavier stuff as well. Otherwise I wouldn't be playing in a heavy band. |
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T: Nutty listens to Enya. Haha!
* Obviously there are heaps of bands up in Brisbane, do you get to see much live stuff from a fans perspective or do you just get to see the bands you play along side at a gig?
T: I go out and check out bands every night of the week, apart from Monday when there's nothing really on. The local scene is really great. There's a lot of talent here in Brisbane. I still like to get out and see a touring act when they come around. |
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B: Yeah, last year I was also going out every single night always supporting the local scene. And I still do get out pretty regularly. Obviously we enjoy watching the bands we play along side as well. |
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* How would you describe the Brisbane scene, everyone says that its the strongest scene in Australia as far as quality goes, is this how it is from an inside perspective? |
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| T: The Brisbane scene is excellent. The Basement is a great venue for the local scene. Bands like Seven 8th's Torn, 6012, Japunga, Diola, Prefix and Soraatu are among my favourites. I've made a lot of friends and contacts and see a lot of great bands every week. |
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B: Yes, I go and see them as well. But I also like to see bands who play in places like The Zoo and Ric's. I love Gota Cola, The Visitors and Resin Dogs for example. I go and see some punk stuff as well like The Fightin' Amish and Gazoonga Attack, as well as Razel. Razel are good mates of ours actually. In fact, when we played at Rapid Festival we had Kelly filling in on bass because Dylan was in Italy. She did a really good job! |
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* How would you describe the Headkase fanbase?
T: Getting healthier everyday. People are starting to come and see us quite often. |
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B: Because we mix so many different styles, we tend to get a lot of different people coming to see us. From metal-heads to ravers, and everyone in between. Pretty recently the goth community seem to be getting into our music as well. And that's really great to see! |
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* What's the best gig you guys have played since the band has formed, I know you guys have supported the Testeagles and you have also played at The Arena. Were they your highlights or was there something else that stands out?
T: They were definately highlights for us, but not our best gigs. I think this year we've been playing a lot better than last year. Rapid was a highlight, as well as various Basement gigs, and the last time we played The Alliance Tavern was good too. |
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B: The best gigs are the ones when we're playing really well, the sound quality is great, and there are heaps of people dancing and moshing. I think big places like The Arena, and the Nambour RSL (where we played recently) are definately venues where we are destined to play because of the huge stage and great sound and lighting. It's hard to fit a 6-piece band onto a tiny pub stage or in a small corner on the carpet. We like to really move around and get into the performance. We're pretty theatrical when we play live. |
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* Do you guys stay in touch with the Testeagles? They're a great band that have sort of gone into hibernation. Last I heard they quit their label Krell Records. Do you guys know what the deal is with the Adelaide boys?
T: No, we just played with them once. |
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B: We only talked briefly with them that night. As for what they're doing lately, they are still playing gigs. I don't know anything about what's happening with their record label, but I know they toured in May, so obviously they're still out and about. |
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* So what's next in store for Headkase for the next couple of months, more gigging or are you guys going to go and record some material?
T: Both. We're looking at recording a double A side single with a few studio tracks and a couple of live tracks so it's more of an EP. Possibly an album next year. And of course we'll be gigging as usual with maybe a few surprises. |
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B: We've pretty much been playing once (and sometimes twice) every week since May, so we're always busy playing gigs. |
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* What do you think of good old Anemic Magazine?
T: Terrible. Just kidding. You guys rock for interviewing us! |
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B: Yeah, it's good to see people like you helping to promote Aussie music. And it's on the world wide web, so the whole damn world can access this information. I like the little write-ups about the bands with the pictures. |
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* Thanks for doing these questions guys, take care and good luck with the band for 2002 and beyond. |
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T: Thanks Anemic Magazine. Welded mesh! |
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B: Yes. And good luck to you too! Da! |
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