Biffy Clyro wowed audiences at this year’s Soundwave Festival, putting their unique brand of rock on show for all to see. Live Music Adelaide caught up with James Johnston a while ago to talk all things Biffy.

‘We are back home, we were in Russia last weekend, but home now just enjoying a fairly rare opportunity to wake up in our own bed. Things are good, Russia was great and all, a really fucking amazing place. Really friendly people, the shows were incredible, the architecture… everything about it was really amazing I think. Sometimes it can be disappointing when you go to a country and it feels like your own country. It was cool to go somewhere where it felt totally different, totally new experience.’

In September, the band will be back in Australia again for a string of more intimate shows. Biffy Clyro just can’t seem to get enough of the land downunder. ‘Well, I think we left it too long in between trips last time around. You know, we’ve always had a good time when we’ve come over. I think it’s the people, the jokes, the space, you know how it’s just really attractive. I really like the idea of not being hemmed in and I think there’s a certain familiarity in Australia. I think people are not too different to some of the people back here you know, back in the UK. I think there’s just a certain amount of familiarity that makes it a really comfortable place to be.’

Despite their continued and long running success, it wasn’t until 2013 that Biffy Clyro hit number one in the UK charts. ‘It was surreal. I think making a double album we certainly never expected anything like that.’ Johnston explained. ‘A lot of people told us that it could have been a mistake and it was risky. In a commercial sense it could have been difficult but it wasn’t something that really bothered us, but to make it to number one, no one could have expected that, you know, least of all us. There was some vindication that we felt. We always felt that making a double album was the right move and that people out there like listening to music. People were accused of having a short attention span and I think that can be true for some things but we felt if we made a good enough album people would take notice and you know, people would take it to their hearts and I think that was the most encouraging part for us. You know, to be number 1 in the charts was incredibly exciting but I think just for people to take the album to their hearts, to make it part of their life was something that felt really special.’

‘I suppose there’s an awareness that comes from something like that so maybe some people would hear about your band that otherwise wouldn’t have or you get mentioned in passing but in terms of a door opening, we haven’t been to the right house for that.’ Johnston told us, of their chart success. ‘We haven’t been to Buckingham Palace, you know. I don’t know what massive difference it’s made apart from being a great honour. I don’t know that its really opened up many doors potentially. I think we’ve been one of those bands that have just kept going. I think when a lot of bands would have given up in the past, we have just kept going.’


Interview by Melissa Donato.
Written by Sofie Marsden.



You can catch Biffy Clyro in Australia in September. Tickets are on sale now via OzTix.

4th September- Tivoli Theatre, Brisbane

5th September- Enmore Theatre, Sydney

7th September- Palais Theatre, Melbourne

9th September- HQ, Adelaide

12th September- Metro City, Perth 

Live Music Adelaide was fortunate to catch up with Seether bass player Dale Stewart this week, right after  they have released their sixth studio album ‘Isolate and Medicate’, and on the eve of a tour that will take them through the U.S., Canada and Europe.

I asked Dale what the reaction to the new album ‘Isolate and Medicate’ has been like and how was the mood in the band as they prepare to tour off the back of their latest opus.  ‘It’s really good actually, we’re pretty proud of the new album, the response has been really good in the first couple of weeks, we’re motivated, we’re ready to get up and play. Taking a nice long break was good as well, we’ve come back with recharged batteries and a full tank and we’re ready to go out and play some shows.’

To my question of whether touring off the back of a new album added another dimension to proceedings, the Seether bass player’s philosophy was pretty simple ‘We just do our thing man, we just consider ourselves the working man’s rock band, blue collar rock, we just do our thing. We try not to put too much thought into it, we just try to get up there have some drinks, make some noise, work up a sweat and we have fun doing it, so that’s pretty much our motto I guess.’

On listening to the new album it comes across heavier than its predecessors, was this a fair evaluation? ‘I think so, yeah, I’ve heard people say that and I’ve heard people say that it’s really poppy. I think it’s heavier and I think there’s a lot of interesting stuff. You know it retains a sense of melody in the songs, so you know there might be a really heavy guitar work but then there will be like a very prominent melody in the chorus. That’s always been important to us to retain that sense of melody, however heavy something is it needs to have a melodic edge to it. I enjoy playing the heavy songs, I like that but we like to have that melody there to sing along with.’

The writing process this time around was more of a collaborative effort, so rather than Shaun (Morgan) working on the ideas in his studio, Dale explained ‘We just went in and jammed, you know, like old school garage days. It was fun man, we didn’t try and put ourselves under too much pressure, just went in and just jammed. I really enjoyed that, I feel like that’s the most fun I’ve had, when you get in that environment, three guys in a room just jamming, kind of having fun playing music. It kind of comes from the heart, you’re not sitting behind a computer trying to record stuff, thinking about it, overthinking it there’s all this energy, it comes from the heart.’

Unfortunately for the Australian Seether fans there is no plans to hit our shores in the near future as the current tour doesn’t wind up until mid-December when they play St. Petersburg in Russia. Dale left me with these words for their Aussie fans ‘Thank you for supporting us, I feel like there is a lot of loyalty from the Aussie fans. Every time we go over there you see a lot of the same faces, you make friends along the way. Thanks for letting us come and hang out in Australia and play great shows, play to a good crowd and not have to get proper haircuts and real jobs.’


'Isolate and Medicate' is out now


Interview by Mike Trandafil

I recently had the pleasure to speak to Voyager’s guitar virtuoso Simone Dow on the brink of their Australian tour. The band will spend July touring from coast to coast in support of their newly released, critically acclaimed album 'V'. The fifth Voyager opus has been gaining rave reviews from both the media and fans alike, Simone is understandably pretty excited about getting out and playing the new songs live.

I asked Simone if it add a new kind of excitement when you are going out in support of a new album, 'This is what you do, it’s what you work for, for so long. We keep plugging away, sitting, ripping our hair out, this is what it’s all about, actually presenting it to fans.'

The new album comes across as not being as dark as its predecessor, the introspective album 'The Meaning Of I'. Simone offered an insight into this. 'The last album was written when Daniel (Estrin – Vocals/Keyboard) was going through some heavy stuff in his life, so the lyrical content ended up reflecting it, I think. So the lyrical content this time around is still about life, but it’s a lot more positive because we’re obviously all quite happy'.
The other key factor in the change was the band took on a different approach to writing this time; 'It’s a lot more of a collaborative effort, which we have not done in the past. It’s been more, Daniel would come in with most of the songs written, then we would work on the arrangements and make small changes and additions to the songs. This time the majority of it was actually written in the rehearsal room, so that is probably why it’s kind of a little bit more focused than previous albums.'

Having released their first album over a decade ago, I was keen to know whether it was frustrating for the band to have to still work full time when a band of this calibre over in Europe or the U.S. could do this for a living. 'It is frustrating, it is hard, but in reality we live in the most isolated capital city in the world, and at the same time, and I think the guys will agree with me, it’s good to have some grounding. It makes you appreciate a lot more, doing what you’re doing and then you come back and do your normal thing. I think even If we were overseas doing it, we would still want to have a little bit of normality, enough to keep you a bit grounded, otherwise you’re living in a fantasy world almost. If you’re doing that all the time. I can understand why some bands go a bit out of control.'  

Adelaide will get to witness firsthand how impressive the new album sounds live when Voyager take to the Enigma Bar stage on the 19th July. I asked Simone what the Adelaide fans could expect. 'A crazy, wild night of progressive, pop metal.  We will be on our a-game and as crazy on stage as we always are, I hope Adelaide are ready for us.'

Simone’s parting gesture was a message to Adelaide Voyager fans 'We look forward to seeing you, people don’t be shy, come up and talk to us, we look forward to meeting our fans.'

Interview by Mike Trandafil.


You can catch Voyager on tour on the following July dates:

FRI 4th - Canberra @ ANU Bar
w/Caligula's Horse (QLD), Eyes to the Sky, Renegade Peacock

SAT 5th - Sydney @ The Factory Floor
w/Caligula's Horse (QLD), Troldhaugen, Without Parachutes

THU 10th - Sunshine Coast @ Vaudeville Room
w/Caligula's Horse, FreeThought, Weightless In Orbit

FRI 11th - Brisbane @ The Brightside
w/Caligula's Horse, Toehider ('What Kind Of Creature Am I?' Album Launch) [VIC], Dark Symphonica

SAT 12th - Melbourne @ The Workers Club
w/Caligula's Horse (QLD), Toehider ('What Kind Of Creature Am I?' Album Launch), Orsome Welles

SAT 19th - Adelaide @ Enigma Bar
w/Caligula's Horse (QLD), Dyssidia, Voros

SAT 26th - Perth @ Amplifier Bar ( Amplifier Capitol)
w/Caligula's Horse (QLD), Orsome Welles (VIC), Local Support (TBA)

Presale Tickets are available at wildthingpresents.com, Oztix & the Venues.

This is an 18+ event.


'V' is out now.