Twelve Foot NinjaRarely has an Australian heavy band sounded so strikingly assured – not to mention as musically wide-reaching and coherent – on their initial full-length as Melbourne's Twelve Foot Ninja. After two EPs, the proggy heavy rockers exhibit a seamless delivery on debut LP, Silent Machine, despite its versatility. It effortlessly flits, often within a solitary song, between heavy-duty metal riffage, electronica, bossa nova, reggae, funk and classic rock, underpinned by Mike Patton-esque vocal musings and Meshuggah-inspired poly-rhythms. Previous recordings bristled with promise, and the band impressed at various festivals and during jaunts with Dead Letter Circus, Mammal, Behind Crimson Eyes and Thousand Needles in Red. However, the inaugural full-length is a major statement.
“We all come from pretty diverse backgrounds,” vocalist Kin chuckles when quizzed about their eclecticism. “We're all influenced by a lot of different styles of music, not just metal or hard rock. I think originally the band was conceptualised by our guitarist Steve Mackay. He wrote all the music for the first EP and I think he was sort of basing it on the iPod mentality of skipping songs. We noticed there was a trend of kids who would like listen to thirty seconds, skip to the next one, and then skip to the next one. So we thought we'd attempt to cater to that. Writing that sort of stuff, we don't plot it out really. It's not like we say, 'Okay, let's make a song with a jazz progression, then we'll go to a reggae bit and a metal bit.' It's a little more organic than that. Most of the time the heavy stuff comes first and we'll build the other styles around that base essentially.”
Said approach must present a raft of challenges for the singer, too. “Yeah, because I realise that because there are a lot of different styles I could easily have gone down the Patton road of the Mr. Bungle-esque vocals, where I'm changing accents and voices, and attempting to blend in with each style. But I tend to work towards building something a little more consistent throughout the song, so that the changes aren't too jarring. I think there has to be something grounding it all together. So I attempt,” he pauses, laughing, “to tailor my vocals to that concept, and keep it as consistent as possible.”
The buzz surrounding the band is undeniable, having earned numerous gushing reviews and winning scores of new converts. It's remarked that as a proudly independent band, doing it off their own bat must ultimately be more rewarding, even if it means they really have to do their homework. “Yeah, absolutely,” the vocalist responds. “You sort of have to work twice as hard in a way, because you don't have that backing. You don't have the hype machine and publicity that's afforded to you on a major label; or the budget, for that matter. You have to work a little harder to be noticed; but I think for us it's definitely paid off so far. It's great that we've been able to do this being an independent band. I think that's indicative of the new music industry business model really, that bands can get out there and do it themselves, be their own boss and still achieve significant results, that otherwise, years ago, couldn't have been achieved without a major label.”
It also encourages other outfits not signed to majors to have that self-belief; although of course they also need the talent and appropriate work ethic. “Absolutely, and there's a plethora of them out there, too. We would hope it would be at least inspiring for some to get out there and not be afraid of doing it themselves. It is harder work, you have to do a lot more yourselves, but I think building it up that way… It creates a better relationship, a much more solid relationship between you and your fan base, because they're aware of how hard you've worked, that you're not a major label band. So there's a little more respect and kudos for that, which is fantastic.”
It's apt then that Twelve Foot Ninja have been so actively championed by US prog-metallers Periphery, who began life as strictly DIY act, using various clever online means to build a reputation to such an extent that labels couldn't ignore them. They regularly promote Twelve Foot Ninja via social media and Silent Machine landed in members' best-of-2012 lists. “It's pretty wild, man,” the frontman laughs. “We played a show with them in Melbourne and ever since they've been flaunting us to their fans.
“We're seeing tangible results from that; every time they post about us, one of our clips or anything like that, our 'like's go up on Facebook straight away. They've been absolute legends and their support has meant a lot to us. It's great to be identified by other musicians that you admire; there's nothing like it. It's still a little bit surreal for us at the moment, but it's been awesome.”
Perhaps they see a little of themselves in Twelve Foot Ninja? “Yeah perhaps; that's likely, actually. I think there's a very similar sense of humour between our bands as well; I think they identify with our sense of humour. They also identify with the musicianship of the band as well, and the technicality. So we're kind of aligned; it's like we're running parallel,” Kin laughs. “They're a lot more advanced than we are, and have a lot more experience. But I think we're sort of parallel. Even though we're in different worlds, I think as bands we function in very similar ways.”
Buoyed by the assistance of their high-profile fans there has also been significant international interest from press and booking agents. “There are a few things in the motions, but nothing's confirmed yet,” the vocalist says of foreign touring. “But we are hoping to make a foray into other territories, hopefully next year. I'm not sure which territories they're gonna be, but I think that's all dependent on where most of our traffic is coming from overseas.”
Australian fans won't be short-changed, though. Beyond their upcoming album launch tour, the band hopes to more extensively trek throughout Australia later in 2013. “It's basically us just giving it everything we've got for the whole show,” he says of their live performances. “It's relentless, but we're pretty light-hearted about it. We've played quite a lot of shows, done a few tours and just learnt as we've gone on. We do gig analysis quite a bit. So if we play a show and things have gone wrong, or we hit snags or anything like that we usually reflect on the show, try to work out a solution to avoiding that in the future. I think from there you start getting a lot more familiar with the territory, the do's and don'ts just fall into place.
“It's a little bit like learning a language. The more you do it, the more you learn and the bigger your vocabulary.”
Twelve Foot Ninja will be playing the following dates:
Thursday 10 January - Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle NSW
Friday 11 January - Annandale Hotel, Sydney NSW
Friday 18 January - Corner Hotel, Melbourne VIC
Saturday 19 January - Ferntree Gully Hotel, Ferntree Gully VIC
Thursday 24 January - Prince of Wales, Bunbury WA
Friday 25 January - Amplifier, Perth WA
Saturday 26 January - Mojo's, Fremantle WA
Friday 1 February - Enigma Bar, Adelaide SA
Thursday 7 February - The Venue, Townsville QLD
Friday 8 February - Tempo Hotel, Brisbane QLD
Saturday 9 February - Miami Shark Bar, Gold Coast QLD
