Hi, thanks for taking the time to chat with Hear 2 Zen, what have you been up to today?

I actually had today off work, first day off in a very long time. All the DS boys work full time, running a little bit of a double life at the moment. So I managed to record a demo for a recording session we have this Saturday. Super excited to jump in and record this next one, we are just in a great flow of writing & recording at the moment! 

Tell us about yourself, how long have you been performing/creating music for?  

We’ve been a band for less than 2 years, but have been friends for a while. We’ve always enjoyed playing music independently. Personally, I had my first guitar lesson in year 5, and have been hooked ever since. I have been writing little tunes for about 10 years now, but it was only since we started the band that they have come together into proper songs.  Our process is bringing a demo into band practice & working on it together.  

Who are your greatest inspirations?  Why?

Personally, it was my family, Mum and Dad have always been my go to.  Early days, it was probably a case of “A Mother never has an ugly baby”, and they always said that what I was writing was incredible, when in reality it was awful. However, this kept me loving music, and I wouldn’t be here without it.  Musically for the whole band: maybe Ocean Alley or Spacey Jane? Ocean Alley for the heavy yet floaty sound that comes out in a couple of our songs, and Spacey for putting Perth on the map in the last couple of years.  However, so many acts inspire us… from Biggie Smalls to ACDC. 

How do you create music?  Are you lyrics/story driven, or does the music/melody come first?  Explain your process. 

I usually come up with a vocal hook for a chorus while I’m slaving away at work and quickly sing into my voice memos. 

Then go home and try to arrange chords around the vocal hook. Once I’ve got a bit of a base, I bring this very basic demo to the boys, and they respectively add their magic to the track.  We then get in the studio with our incredible producer, Andy Lawson who really puts it all together & adds the little sparkles that really make the tracks. 

What has been your greatest challenge so far in performing/creating music?

Definitely COVID. The rollercoaster of nearly playing a show or supporting someone we’ve looked forward to supporting  and then it just being taken away from us really sucks.  That’s where our latest track, Capital F came from, so there is a bit of a positive. 

Tell us about your new release, how did it come about?

I’ve always wanted to write a song with a cliche knock knock hook, so it stemmed from there. Kinda didn’t have direction at the start when I was writing it, but it came super naturally. And before you knew it I had written a whole song about my journey with mental health, and a few of my mates that it has impacted. 

What advice do you have to artists who are just starting out?

Ooo great question, and I suppose we are still kind of here, but if we had to say something it would be: Enjoy every bit of it. Do it for you, and write what you think sounds cool. Don’t sticking to the norm. 

Tell us your favourite Zen practice.

Deep breathing, downward dog, crow pose… you know it’s yoga baby.