Electric Lover

Donny Benét is a sight to be seen. He's the energetic “bald guy with a moustache,” jumping around on stage, and the panache, white-suited bloke trotting around airports and open fields in his video clips. On the phone, he's just gentle and patient. If you haven't seen him live though, never fear, for Benét has just released his second album, Electric Love. And he's a fan of first encounters.

“First time listeners, it's always amazing watching them, because they're not sure what's happening. But by about song three they get up and everyone seems to be having fun. So what people should expect is to dance, and imagine it's about 1984. And that's about it… And I don't know anyone who's doing that at the moment, so it's pretty cool.”

Benét's second musical baby took on a completely different construction process to its predecessor Don't Hold Back, with considerably more time spent in the pre-production phase than in the studio actually recording. The major difference, he suggests, is that “with the debut, I could have recorded that in a week; this one took about two months.”

Benet wrote, played and recorded (in his very own Donnyland Studios) everything on Electric Love, a challenge he happily embraces, and one that pays tribute to his biggest inspiration, Prince. So would Benét have been stupid enough to miss the raspberry-beret purveyor when he was in the country? No, of course not, you idiot. “It was life changing,” he mutters earnestly.

Furthermore, it's a way of working the suave chap enjoys so much that he's often reluctant to share it with anyone. Having said that, he'd love to start collaborating. With who though, he's not really sure. “I guess I'm pretty open to anyone really. I would love to do some recording with a female singer, I'm kind of tossing a few ideas around at the moment, which if realised would be cool.”

With a wild collection of synthesisers and pitch-altering gear – the full use or power of which is sadly lost on most – Benét elects his favourite piece from the current spread, which has apparently doubled in size since he was last quizzed on it. “A real favourite of mine at the moment is the [Roland] Jupiter 6. The cool thing about them is that being a kid of the '80s, it's very nostalgic. It brings back memories of dancing in front of Video Hits and Rage as a little kid. With a pretty cool sound too.

“I'm hopefully getting something coming from America next week actually – it's a drum machine that Prince used. It's obviously not his personal one, but one of 500 ever made. Firstly I had to find someone who would sell one, then I had to convince them to sell it to me! I've been patient for more than three months, and it turns out there's only about three people in Australia who own one. So that's coming soon, which will be rad.”

Queried about his true capacity as a “Sophisticated Lover”, one of the better-known tracks from Don't Hold Back, Benét is quick to work out exactly where the question is headed before revealing his best moves. “On my wife or in general?! It might be ironic, but I really believe that part of being a sophisticated lover is to be a good listener. One of the things my age is teaching me is that if you listen to women and to treat them right, you'll go a long way.”

Noticeably impressed by his diplomacy, Benét fills the temporary silence – “I'm smart enough not to say anything silly.”

The future looks resoundingly promising, with “touring, touring, touring”, the pursuit of aforementioned collaborations and maybe even a soundtrack. Or, “anything to do with music,” says Benét. “It's just an addictive thing to do. I'm always happy to do it.” Whatever the case, he won't hold back.

Donny Benét will be launching his album on:

Friday 7 September - GoodGod Small Club, Sydney NSW
Friday 14 September - The Worker's Club, Melbourne VIC