What Does Heavy Music Mean? The Munch Weighs In
The winners of Most Popular Heavy Artist at the 2024 SA Music Awards "play loud, fast, and big."
The Munch (Supplied)
The Munch don’t slot neatly into any one genre - this appears to be the band’s whole modus operandi.
The four-piece have been actively challenging structural norms within their music since the release of their first single Pass By, in 2022. Matt, Blake, Gus, and Seb together make songs that are guttural yet thoughtful. Their music is conversational in that it harbours conflict, deliberation, and eventual release of tension - like most satisfying arguments.
Their debut album No Supine, was released in February 2024 to the delight of ecstatic, sweat-soaked audiences ready to be overwhelmed by all-consuming but intelligent sound.
Another moment of success for The Munch saw the band win the coveted honour of Most Popular Heavy Artist at this year’s SA Music Awards. Here to weigh in on the band’s success and their vision for the future is guitarist and vocalist Seb Rogers.
You've just come off the high of your SA Music Award win – how are you as a band feeling?
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The night itself was a great time, and coming away with a People's Choice Award has us pretty proud of ourselves. It's nice to know people are enjoying what we’re putting out, and it has given us a good push to continue creating, have an impact on the Adelaide scene, and keep improving as writers and musicians.
What does "heavy" as a genre mean to you?
We aren’t the heaviest band around, but we like playing loud, fast, and big. Heavy music needs tension, an impact, and a satisfying release, so we try to bring those elements into each song. A lot of heavy music is about being angry or upset, but channelling those feelings into energy can be really fun. So once you get that release in the song, it feels great.
Does it feel like it's been a long journey to reach this point of recognition in the local industry?
Getting your name around can be really tricky. You can put a lot of work into promoting yourself, talking to the right people, and making the right moves, all while trying to produce the best music possible. We’ve been consistently playing shows for about four years now, and so it’s just taken us that long to have people recognise our name. A big jump was releasing music; that got us in view of people and helped them remember us more.
What do you love about the Adelaide music scene, and what do you wish you could change?
We love how connected everyone is. A lot of people can go to a show and depend on someone they know being there, and if not, they are in a familiar spot and can feel comfortable watching a sick local band. All the bands watch and appreciate each other while also building off one another. We definitely feel a need to keep up with other local bands in terms of our quality of writing and performance. A big thing that could change is expanding the number of venues we go to and play at. With old places closing down and new places popping up, we need to try new things. There are venues the scene seems to overlook sometimes, and there are places we could transform into what we want them to be.
Who are your favourite local bands/artists in the scene right now?
We saw Awnings again recently, and they’re still sick, excited to see them continue. Raccoon City has always been a favourite for us; we’re very excited for more music from them. Obviously, Swapmeet is amazing and very deserving of their wins; their music is regularly listened to by me. The Genevieves and War Room are bands that keep us up to scratch, and Jackulson and Shrunkencell are loads of fun. There are so many more we could mention: The Mule Trade, Basty H, Twine, Ebop, Perfect 50, Soria Moria, Homecourt, etc…
What do you feel is the next step for The Munch as a band?
We are writing at the moment, still figuring out a system that works well for us. We want to release a good body of music in the next year or so, holding ourselves to a high standard. Playing some interstate shows and finding new places to play here would be great. Working with some new people to bounce ideas off and have to contribute to our music could be interesting.
You can next catch The Munch live on November 22nd at Jive, playing with The Empty Threats, Perfect 50, and Jackulson.
This piece of content has been assisted by the Australian Government through Music Australia and Creative Australia, its arts funding and advisory body
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