Album Focus: Mathas

What did you take away from piecing together your first album that helped in creating Armwrestling Atlas?

I think across both albums I've learnt that i am very slow at making albums. Both took about six years. I think 10lb Hairless Sasquatch taught me that I did have an audience; it also propelled me on my way towards years' worth of great shows and supports. I definitely made a concerted decision after the first album to make sure there was breathing space in the way i wrote. That album is full of songs that are remarkably hard to perform live because i can’t find spots to breathe.
It's been a good half-decade between albums - was that a deliberate decision or did things simply pan out that way?

This was most definitely not a deliberate decision. I wanted this album out the year after 10lb Hairless Sasquatch. I spent the percentage of my 20s wasted.. but I had a bloody good time.

Lyrically, Armwrestling Atlas is quite a personal album for you and explores some very important themes - how was the songwriting process this time around?

The process varies on every song for me. Most of the time I have to wait until the little creative monster is in the room, it’s usually when the rest of the world is asleep at about 2am. I write to get weight and frustrations out of my mind and formed into a cohesive article so that they might have some kind of use, as apposed to rolling around in my brain all the time making me anxious.

Now the album's finally out and you're gearing up to tour, what's next for you?

Get this tour done, go camping for a few days, set my studio back up, lock myself away in it, put my production hat on and get some new music done. I'm actually dying inside a bit doing the same songs on stage over and over. One hint I would give is that you can expect my next projects to be more sparse and less rappy.

Originally published in X-Press Magazine