Growling At The Moon

"It was just like ten guys from Perth touring around and having fun,” says Avery about the gang taking on the US. “I've been best mates with Kev and Nick (Tame Impala's Parker and Allbrook respectively) for years now and sort of, like, watching that unfold has been pretty amazing. In Mexico the other night they played to 50,000 people. I got a great photo, it was incredible.”

A lot has been said of the creative scenario in WA and much analysis has gone into trying to work out why it is such a fertile breeding ground for indie music unaffected by the passing fads of the big East Coast cities. Avery says that it's something the bands themselves consider as well, and they do have their own theories.

“Me and Kev were talking about this the other day,” he says. “We feel like Perth is so far away geographically, in the back of all of us musicians' minds – no one moves to Perth to make. I mean it's so far away no one gives a shit. There's no thoughts about a career in any way; everyone plays in everyone else's bands because there's no competition and we're all just here together. It's a very arrogant way to think about our home town, but it's like how the earth is the perfect distance from the sun for water to exist and germinate life – Perth is kind of like that.” 

A great example of the complexity of the scene is to examine Avery's group The Growl next to their related contemporaries Tame Impala and Pond. While all three bands undeniably share some sonic attributes, it seems unlikely that they would be lumped into any kind of scene without the common location and crossover band members. The Growl's debut album What Would Christ Do?? is a sophisticated record that owes a legacy to the past but filters it all through Avery's singular vision, much like Kevin Parker's Tame Impala. While comparisons with Tame Impala are inevitable, Avery says it doesn't concern him at all, and he's happy to talk about the genesis of the projects and how they have intersected. Location had a lot to do with it.

“There's this one place in Subiaco where Kev and Nick and I and our mate Jeff lived,” he explains. “Kev set up a studio in this house and he did most of Lonerism there and I started The Growl record there. A lot of the (Parisian artist) Melody's Echo Chamber was done there as well.”

When they had to move from the house, Avery's unique recording style helped the album retain its feel. He says he mostly finds interesting sounds by doing things the wrong way.

“It just comes from messing around,” he says bluntly. “The funnest thing about recording and mixing yourself is just learning as you go; I learnt fuck-tons recording this album. Stuff about mics and using things like compression in a way that they are not meant to be used. A lot of studio guys have this attitude that there is a right way to mic up a snare drum and compress a kick drum and that's why there's so much shit on the radio that has this Australian sound to it; people have stuck to these fucking rules. I'm not saying we're revolutionary, but recording should be fun and that's where you get your inspired ideas. They say there's no polishing a turd if it's recorded shit – but yes there is! There's nothing too lo-fi – if you can delete the idea that your band will ever get played on fucking triple j – then you can just have fun.”

The Growl will be playing the following dates:

Friday 19 April - Brighton Up Bar, Sydney NSW
Saturday 20 April - Ric's Bar, Brisbane QLD
Wednesday 24 April - Worker's Club, Melbourne VIC
Friday 26 April - Cats @ Rocket Bar, Adelaide SA