Marvellous Medicine

"I've got this album coming out and I said to myself, when it's time to come out I'm gonna make room for it so we can actually do all the shit we need to do, and of course, when you want to make that time, the universe comes at you like, 'Hey, here's all this amazing shit,'” Hughes begins as he takes a gulp of beer. Their first full-length album, Omniliberation, was released last week after the trio produced an EP in 2011 and another in 2012. “It was the first time I've ever done a full-length, and for some reason, it felt almost intimidating because of how much care was taken for it, and that's why it took two years. Creating an EP is like a little dip into what an artist is trying to capture sound-wise and style-wise, so we were very conscious about doing something full-length, and we did want to take our time with it. Previous projects I've played in, we've really rushed putting together an album because it's such a heavy process sometimes and you're stuck in that mixing stage, and you're conflicted about how things sound when you listen to it over and over. It's good to be a perfectionist, but you have to be careful. You'd think of new things halfway through which would change your perspective on what you've already done.”

Both guys Hughes and George have been to Japan with the band and for their own enjoyment; however, Hughes was not expecting to end up on a Japanese game show. “Being featured on a bizarre Japanese TV show has to be one of the best achievements of my life.” Hughes laughs. “It's the thing dreams are made of. You'd think as a white guy living in Australia that you'd be the last person featured on a show like that. I didn't know any of the jokes being made but they were definitely laughing at me.”

The new album steps back slightly from the instrumental and experimental side of things and shifts its focus towards vocal compositions and a more concentrated sound. While the sound may be a little different to their EPs, Hughes and George insist their live shows will be as intense as ever. “The live version is definitely a lot more ball-tearingly wild,” George explains, “and that's how a live performance should be. I hate going to gigs of bands I love and it sounds like the record. Nothing saps my excitement more than that. I want to see unhinged. I'd prefer to see a shit performance than that. Nothing's better than when a band has a technical issue on stage and has to deal with it, and you go, 'Alright, show me what you got.' I'm just keen to see how people react to this album. I want people to listen to it. There's been a lot of heart and soul poured into this record and I'm really fucking proud of it.”