POND Muse On Growing Together In 'Windows' & More Backstage At Coachella

Coachella's press tent isn't actually on the festival site map, but can be found between the Outdoor Theatre stage and the toilets via a small slit in a barrier that's manned by an extremely polite security guard, who addresses this scribe using the formal "ma'am".

As we enter the communal space, where media types edit photos and prepare for artist interviews, POND pose for a photo as a camera-wielding dude encourages them to "do something crazy". Frontman Nick Allbrook obediently places his hands, palms facing forward — either side of his head — slowly waving them to and fro, like Dumbo in full flight.

We're up next. Allbrook and Jay Watson (also of Tame Impala and his own excellent solo project, GUM) excuse themselves — one to visit the bathroom, the other to get some water — and so impressively 'froed-up multi-instrumentalist/guitarist Joe Ryan and Jamie Terry (keys/good vibes) collapse into a couch perpendicular to this scribe with broad smiles on their faces. They look more like more like friendly tradies than band members (Terry in a charcoal singlet and khaki pants, Ryan sporting a long-sleeved checked shirt in earthy tones with the sleeves rolled up and black jeans). Ryan announces he chose "the wrong jeans" for this climate, and we're all sweating profusely in the relentless Indio heat. There are some mad-loud sounds coming from one of the neighbouring stages (possibly Swet Shop Boys on Mojave?) and we must raise our voices to be heard over the din.

POND performed at Pioneertown's premier venue, Pappy & Harriet's, on Monday night and Ryan extols, "We've been there quite a few times." As punters? "I was gonna say punters! We're syncing up today," he laughs. For those who haven't been to this magical place, it's out in the middle of nowhere, many a Western was filmed there, and you won't find a better mac'n'cheese anywhere on the planet. The stables, saloons and jail remain from historical movie sets with Pappy & Harriet's standing where the cantina facade once stood. It's easy to imagine you've wandered onto the set of Deadwood and, in this remote location near Joshua Tree National Park, the stars truly twinkle ("We were out there at two in the morning looking up at them," Terry marvels.)

Prior to Desert Trip festival, which premiered on Coachella's site last October, Sir Paul McCartney played a warm-up show at Pappy & Harriet's, and the lead-up to Coachella this year saw Lorde also perform a secret warm-up show on Friday 14 April. Terry tells, "We booked a warm-up show in San Diego the night before our Coachella show 'cause it was the very start of the tour — just to, like, ease ourselves in." On taking Coachella's Gobi stage the following day at 2.35pm, he admits, "It was so hard with the heat". Ryan adds, "We were still fighting the jet lag a bit, too. But, anyway, I thought we played all right."

"The only time we get together, really, is to record or maybe [do] a show or a warm-up rehearsal before a tour."

At this point, Allbrook returns, notices our interview is in full swing and wanders off again.

The first time this scribe interviewed POND was in 2010, ahead of their Frond release, when the band played a show at The Workers Club among Tame Impala dates (Kevin Parker played drums in POND back then). During said interview, Allbrook (a full-time member of Tame Impala at the time) bemoaned how busy they were with Tame Impala commitments, despairing that POND hadn't yet had a chance to "get good". "We still don't get that much of an opportunity to, you know, get to rehearse all that much," Ryan opines. "The only time we get together, really, is to record or maybe [do] a show or a warm-up rehearsal before a tour." Ryan blames "coordinating the schedules" of POND members' various other musical projects. "Yeah," Terry — who cross-pollinates in another killer Perth band, The Silents — chimes in, "between, you know, the Tame Impala scheduling and all the solo album stuff [Nick Allbrook/GUM], there's not a whole lot of time left, but, yeah, we take windows."

POND's latest Kevin Parker-produced set, The Weather, has just dropped, but our ears were previously treated to three luscious preview tracks at the time of this interview: 30000 Megatons, Sweep Me Off My Feet and The Weather. "As of yesterday, there's four," Terry corrects. Ryan elaborates, "The new video clip for the single that came out yesterday; Paint Me Silver, it's called." The trippy video features an alien house party that relocates to a spaceship then goes interplanetary. Ryan commends "longtime mate" Andrew Crawford (aka Alejandro Miguel Justino Crawford), whom he met when the pair "worked for Tame as crew" around the time when the band supported MGMT "some years ago". "He also did our Sitting Up On Our Crane CGI video," Ryan continues, "but he just really outdid himself with this. He kept sending me little, like, GIFs. He said, 'Trying to get your hair lookin' right,' you know? [laughs]."

With Tame Impala taking an extended break while mastermind Kevin Parker works on some new music, POND are now finally able to tour the globe extensively. "I think it's about three months all up," Terry enthuses. So how does one pack for a touring stint like that? "Heavily," Ryan chuckles. Terry shares, "Just two T-shirts, one pair of jeans and then, like, 30 pairs of socks and 30 pairs of jocks."

Another of our nation's finest exports, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, owned Coachella's Outdoor Theatre stage yesterday (whipping up the dustiest moshpit we've ever witnessed). POND actually performed with King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino last week (Tuesday 18 April), which was "really fun, actually", according to Terry. Did the location make them feel like rockstars? "The opposite," Ryan counters. Terry explains, "Nah, we're not really into those rock'n'roll-cliche gigs, but it was pretty cool 'cause we were playing outside in front of a pool. Not many people were swimming; it was pretty shallow." When asked whether chicks were rocking out in bikinis, Terry says, "More like drunk bros dancing in all their clothes".

"All three bands — all Aussies — out in the desert, out woop woop."

"In the elevator on the way up," Ryan recalls, "I grabbed my laptop [to record] a video. I put it away and this old couple got into the elevator and I was like, 'G'day! How are ya?' 'Good, good! What's going on outside? We didn't expect it'd be so loud!'" he tells of the couple's bemused reaction to the pool party. Ryan confirms there was a proper stage set-up by the outdoor pool, adding, "I don't think they had any noise limit, either, which was pretty cool. But, yeah, I can imagine people up in their rooms..." What would people be doing staying up in their rooms in Vegas, though? "Prostitutes and cocaine?" Ryan suggests. Touche.

When asked how this joint gig came about, Ryan offers, "I think our managers — I mean, they know how friendly we all are together so there just happened to be a schedule possibility and we just jumped on it. They also brought another Melbourne band, Orb, out on tour; they're amazing, they slayed it! It was cool. So, yeah! All three bands — all Aussies — out in the desert, out woop woop."

Terry reflects on how far POND have come: "It's been such a steady, gentle increase, you know? I feel like we're not too far ahead of ourselves." POND don't strike us as a band who plan too far ahead or schedule band meetings, however. "But we probably should," Ryan laughs. "No, we don't sit there and, like, plan all the releases; it all comes together fairly naturally, our albums. Like, we never get a chance to tour, so..."

Until now, that is. After their American and Canadian dates, POND are set to tour Europe, and Israel, but it's the South America crowds that are particularly "crazy", Ryan reveals. "It's just different," Terry considers. "They're insane! It's, like, people are waiting for you when you walk off a plane."