Sydney trio Step-Panther have never been mistaken for a serious band. With song topics ranging from lasers and loitering to rock'n'roll aliens, music has always been an excuse to lose their shit and have a good time irrespective of the consequences. Although not everything can be at breakneck speed.
“Yeah, I've been hanging out at home, had some breakfast, went out for coffee…that's about it,” vocalist/guitarist Steve 'Stevsie' Bourke drawls.
Such a laconic, wasted response fits perfectly to Step-Panther's aesthetic. 2011's self-titled album was jam-packed full of brash, fast-paced, snotty jams that it immediately struck a chord, to the point that self-proclaimed rock bible NME championed them as one of 2012's Bands to Watch. Yet after a whirlwind year, the band is happy to slow things down and focus on the music. The result is Dreamcrusher. Recorded predominantly with Simon Berkfinger (Philadelphia Grand Jury), the four tracks still hold the essence of what makes Step-Panther such an appealing prospect, yet showcase a more elaborate, layered approach to songwriting.
“It's a bit more intricate, for sure,” Bourke attests. “We just felt like putting a few more elements on there. We were getting a bit tired of that really stripped-back sound that we were getting known for. It gives something extra to listen to and makes it more interesting for us, to mess around a bit more. Simon didn't influence things in that way; we came in knowing how we wanted to lay down the tracks for a while. We had learnt the songs then went over to Germany knowing we only pretty much had a day to record everything. It was a pretty intense procedure because we were recording all these elements over twenty-four hours and it became a bit of a daze, then he put it all back together and made it sound good.”
The title track was something that came after this session, and not only is it a new direction for the band, but it came to shape the entire release.
“Dreamcrusher we came up with in Sydney with Wade [Keighran – Wolf & Cub],” Burke recalls. “It ties everything together, and became the final piece of the puzzle that we didn't even know was missing.”
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Dreamcrusher ends with Skullface, a dumb thrasher about a guy with a skull for a face, just to remind everyone that Step-Panther haven't gone all serious just yet.
“It gets so we really get over doing fast, repetitive stuff all the time, but sometimes that is naturally the only way to go with the song,” Bourke states. “Bad Mood is a song that felt right from the beginning, and it's a pretty slow song. Usually though it takes a while, and if that's the way it is, it's gotta be played fast, then that's the way it's gotta be. (Skullface) is one that we've always thought was fun and is fun to play, so we wanted it on there somewhere.”
Regardless of the process, Step-Panther really want to kill it when they take the stage with Melbourne's Bored Nothing and Brisbane's own Gung Ho. Bourke admits that this tour makes a lot of sense.
“We're all alike, but not alike, if you get what I mean; there are enough similarities there that means we gel,” Bourke asserts. “We played shows recently with Yacht Club but it didn't feel like a Dreamcrusher tour. We decided to play a real balls to the wall kinda set, really high energy, just to mess with people before this euphoric dance party kicks in. This time around the set will encompass what we as a band truly are…maybe.”
Step-Panther will be playing the following dates:
Friday 3 May – Alhambra Lounge, Brisbane QLD
Saturday 4 May – GoodGod Small Club, Sydney NSW
Friday 10 May – Cats @ Rocket Bar, Adelaide SA
Saturday 11 May – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne VIC
