Premiere: Meet Butter and their silky-smooth new single, Hocus Pocus

18 February 2019 | 8:00 pm | Hayden Davies
Originally Appeared In

The six-piece jazz-hip-hop band are perfect for fans of BadBadNotGood, King Krule and more..

We're certainly no stranger to the depths of Perth's local music scene, but it seems that every week we're presented with someone new doing incredible things within our scene. It genuinely appears that regardless of genre, sub-genre or sound, there's always someone new locally flying the flag high - and doing so in remarkable fashion. Emerging six-piece group Butter are a band showing a tonne of promise in the hip-hop/jazz fusion world, proving the perfect Perth comparable to bands like BadBadNotGood, MF DOOM and King Krule, the latter of which you can particularly feel in their latest single Hocus Pocus.

Premiering today, Hocus Pocus is a silky-smooth number from Butter that serves as a perfect introductory point if you're to be acquainted with the band. There's a layered, flowing instrumental that leans within that jazz/hip-hop intersection, with lush instrumentation and this driving, minimalist percussion kick keeping it all in line. Then, there are the vocals, which sway and rise over the top in a way that almost feels like you're listening to King Krule himself, incorporating not just his tone but also his seamless ease to gracefully float over a constantly-changing and texturing instrumental. They've got a few shows coming up and a bunch more planned in the year ahead, so meet Butter and their gorgeous new single below:

Tell us about yourself?

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Hey Pilerats, we are a dairy-based spread, also known as 6-piece jazz influenced hip-hop band (but also not just that) – bad for your cholesterol but good for the soul.

What’s the vibe music-wise?

As a collective, our sound fits somewhere in between MF DOOM, King Krule, 30/70 and Koi Child.

What are your production and writing processes like?

The writing process can vary from arranging improvised jams to producing an electronic beat which we then later translate to a band setting. Once we’ve arranged a song we tend to spend some extra time adding small production aspects such as samples.

Can you tell us about your latest single, Hocus Pocus?

Hocus Pocus is one of the earlier songs we wrote together. The song stomps with an eerie and aggressive vibe while Lach sings (and yells?) about the various feelings of attraction, vulnerability and infatuation that can come with romance & relationships.

Any shows coming up?

Yeah, a few! We’re launching Hocus Pocus this Friday at Mojo’s alongside Adrian Dzvuke, Mal de Mer, Faoul Duke and DJ Not Your Girl! Plus SUPEREGO have invited us to play with them and Jamilla at new venue Freo Social on April 5th. Some others too, including our first all-ages show at Collision Fest on March 3rd and also Izatang’s Carpet Burns single launch on the 15th of March at Mojos.

What does 2019 have in store for you?

Heaps of good times: we’re playing our first large festival slot (TBA), writing new material, recording old material and maybe releasing beat tape vol. 2?

Where can we find more of your music?

Our first beat tape I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter is on Soundcloud, while the new single will be on all streaming platforms. More tracks coming soon enough!

Follow Butter: FACEBOOK