Brisse has been a hot bed of new indie talent over recent years with bands like The Last Night Dinosaurs, Ball Park Music, Hungry Kids From Hungary and recent Universal signings The Cairos. The city’s latest indie offering The Jungle Giants are embarking on their maiden voyage south to Sydney and Melbourne, so we check in with Sam Hales to see what all of the Brisbane buzz is about.
Music Feeds: How did you first get into playing music; do any of you come from a musical background?
Sam Hales: Well my mum is Irish, so I was pretty much born into a singing and dancing environment. My sister is also a professional Cellist, so I’ve always got someone in my family to talk to about music. Keelan’s parents run a printing business and they are friends with so many musical and industry types. Keelan played the drums since he was really young so I’m pretty sure his parents dig his commitment to music.
MF: How did The Jungle Giants meet and start playing together?
SH: We all met at School. Me and Cesira were both in a few bands together during high school, she played guitar and I played drums. Once I started getting into singing/songwriting, we got Andrew and Keelan on board and The Jungle Giants came together pretty quickly.
MF: What have some of the highlights from being in the band been so far?
SH: Hmm, one of them has to be playing Bike Polo with a bunch of the guys from Ball Park Music and Last Dinosaurs. We also played a crazy gig with Ball Park Music where we crashed the stage during their set and managed to create a 3-person tower on top of their guitarist, Brock.
MF: You’ve just finished your debut EP; tell us about that-
SH: We recorded the EP at Airlock Studios in Samford. It was a really lovely Studio surrounded by mountains. We were lucky enough to work with local producer, Yanto Browning. He is an absolute champ and inspired us to get the most out of our time in the studio with him.
We loved it. At the time, I was playing drums, so it was only Cesira, Dooris and I in the Studio. We had a ball and really loved getting stuck into creating a sound that we all liked.
MF: Brissie is currently a hot bed for good indie talent; who are some your favourite bands that you’ve played with, or have seen play lately?
SH: Definitely is! Some of our favourite bands are from Brisbane. We played Ball Park Music, which was definitely a wicked gig for us. It was also great to watch Last Dinosaurs and Hungry Kids Of Hungary. Still haven’t had the chance to see Emma Louise live yet though, hopefully soon!
MF: These shows in August are your first time interstate, and it’s in support of your first release. How are you guys feeling? Nervous, excited, blasé?
SH: Excited! Being our first tour, we aren’t completely sure what to expect, so we are really keen to see what it’s all about. We also see it as a great chance to get our music out there, and even the pressure is on for us to play well, we can’t wait.
MF: What aspects are you most looking forward to on the tour?
SH: Well the gigs for one. We are really excited to play to some new faces. We are also really excited to buy coffee in Melbourne and Gnocchi from an Italian restaurant in Sydney that we found a few months ago.
MF: Have any more established, fellow Brissie bands given you any advice on how to survive touring?
SH: Well, I had to chat to Sam Cromack from Ball Park Music a few weeks ago, and he had some supportive words for us. He also said it was all about going in with confidence and being prepared for anything.
MF: You guys remind me a lot a young Cloud Control; who are some of the other influences on the band who we might not pick up on straight away?
SH: Well, we tend to go for sounds that are really rhythmic and melodic. Bon Iver and Local Natives are two major influences.
MF: What would be the first three songs you’d put on a mixtape?
Darwin Deez – Constellations
Bon Iver – Re: Stacks
The Hives – You got it all … wrong
Catch The Jungle Giants at Sneakers Can’t Say this Friday night 12th August
