First In The Dogfight

Not too many bands have left quite the impression on the local music scene before packing up their bags and making the pilgrimage over east as The Spitfires. The band, fronted by enigmatic guitarist and vocalist Sean Regan, were well known during their Perth stint for their blending of Aussie garage rock and British no-nonsense punk, harking back to Regan's Liverpudlian origins. They were equally well known for their onstage antics: amazingly chaotic sets – where instruments were known to be separated into pieces while the band members flung themselves around the stage – were the norm. Thankfully, and despite any concessions towards the “elitist” nature of the south east coast music scene, not much has changed since the move to Sydney.

“Yeah, we've just knocked off from recording, and I'm in the pub grabbing a pint. A much deserved one, I'd say,” Regan begins our conversation. “It's probably best this way.” The Spitfires are making an always welcome return to Perth to play super dudes Teledex's first birthday.

Last year was a big see-saw act for The Spitfires. On top of continuing to expand their fanbase through their no-holds-barred sets, Regan and co had to accommodate for an entirely new city, one in which competition is arguably more fierce. Then, there's the fact that the band are entirely independent, and completely willing to publicise themselves through their own sheer will. Thankfully, it's paid off. “ Yeah, I think it's actually run a lot smoother than 2012,” Regan mentions on the subject. “It was a bit of an uphill struggle, with the development of the album, the release of the album, the explosion, and then relocating to Sydney.” You might remember what Regan sardonically refers to as 'The Explosion': In the midst of relocating everything, the band's house was destroyed by an inopportune house fire. “It did kind of put a dampener on the move,” Regan says, ”but then again, it gave us more of a reason to move, I guess. Going into 2013, we were absolutely on the bones of our arse, and we were struggling to pack out gigs like we used to. And I don't think that's anyone's fault, except for the fact you have to fight for gigs over here a lot of the time, there's an absolute shit-tonne of bands. But things have turned around now. You know, the radio's been smashing the album all year [the highly-rated Songs For The Debt Generation]. It's a lot of hard work to start with, but it feels like it's paying off now. And, you know, what fuckin' band doesn't go through all that now and then?”

Admittedly, the success of Songs For The Debt Generation was a peak for The Spitfires, and it obviously formed a pretty bloody high bar for them, one that it seems Regan feels like their approaching now. “You know, with any band who releases their debut album, there's a certain level of publicity and excitement that comes up but then dies off after a while. I think we stretched that out too long, tried to ride on the album alone for too long. I think now we've milked it for all it's worth, and it's time for something new to come out.” What that is, for anyone who knows anything about The Spitfires, is sure to be exciting. The band have already taken some pretty strong steps to cement their fanbase over east, which seems to be the way they want to go now. “We've had a few international tours, and they're always a lot of fun – Japan was incredible – but they always cost so fucking much. Our emphasis is really trying to get our name out here first.”

Managing everything yourself means organising your own shows, something Regan relishes. One clear example of this: following the death of Margaret Thatcher, The Spitfires – in true “fuck you” punk fashion-meets-Spitfires craziness – commissioned a statue of the Iron Lady, which Regan subsequently destroyed on stage at a gig in her honour. “I was in the pub a few months back with I think my younger brother, and obviously there was this big hoo-ha about the funeral and all that. She's a very divisive character in the UK, and I guess over here as well. It felt like a rewriting of history to her being this great person, when really she had a lot of policies that fucked people over. So I said, 'We should totally make a statue of her that shoots out tear gas or something'. And then, I don't know, we actually did it. Though there was no tear gas.”