title: Cog on the process of creating their debut album...

date: 18th April 2005

URL: http://www.amo.org.au/qa_interview.asp?id=748

writer: unknown (Australian Music Online)

When did you decide that you wanted to be a musician and/or songwriter? How did you start going about it?
I think it was after school pretty much. Myself and a few mates used to jam at lunch time in the music room until we got kicked out for being too loud and not playing what they wanted us to play.

It wasn't till I was about 20 that I decided to take it more seriously and joined a band called Poetry. That didn't last that long and my own tastes in music started to change which led to me join another band called Tax which went for a year, and then soon after that falling apart I joined Cog.

What’s the best advice you ever received about making music, and who was it from?
I have received lots of good advice from a lot of good musos and non musos and have tried to take all of it on board. I don't think I can remember who told me what but here are a few bits of advice that have helped me out.

"It's not what you play but what you don't play as well that make you a good muso" - a bit like less is more.
"have a go" - Ian Gower
"Its all about timing"
"People want what they cant have" OO

Who’s an Australian musician you particularly admire? Can you tell us why?
Kevin Borich. He is an amazing musician and continues to blow me away with his drive and passion for simply playing live music. I don't know whether you have seen him live but if you haven't you're missing out on something special.

If I can still pump it out like he does when I'm that age and accomplish what he has over his career I will be stoked. All hale the Silver Fox.

What would be your dream local line-up for a gig, and why:
I would like to see all the following bands on the bill because I have played with or seen them play and honestly believe that they are the best live acts in Australia and are all passionate and truly love what they do:

Shihad, Test-Eagles, Mark Of Cain, Wetter, Silverchair, Cog, Butterfly Effect, Fullscale, Sunk Loto, Carla Werner, Multiball, Karnivool, Betchadupa, Junto, Grand Silent System, Kevin Borich, Mick Hart, & In The Grey.

Can you tell AMO a story behind your latest release?
We started writing the album about 18 months ago possibly two years, in our homes and in the rehearsal studio. From there we recorded a whole lot of demos at a home style studio (Evalution Studios) in Winston Hills. After we did the demos we sent a whole lot of them to different producers that we would like to work with and waited for responses.

When Sylvia Massy contacted us we couldn't believe it and from that point all our energy was focused on getting overseas and recording with her at her studio in California. Luckily for us a deal popped up and we ended up signing to Difrnt Music and the rest is history.

There were a lot of hurdles that we overcame in order to get over there but it all worked out in the end and we believe that we've created something special.

What do you want people to get out of this record when listening to it? How would you choose to describe it someone who was unfamiliar with your work?
I don't have anything specific that I would like people to get from listening to the album. I hope they get some sort of enjoyment I guess and everything else is a bonus. There are definitely statements we are trying to make regarding a variety of what we think are important issues that all of us are involved in, and if you listen to the lyrics you will hear that.

I get asked this question a lot and the way I tend to describe our music is it's rhythmical, hard, emotional, original Aussie music but I would much prefer the people go out and catch a live show or grab a CD and make their own mind up. People tend to pigeon hole you a lot of the time with other bands or genres and it's so easy to do that.

I like to think that we are creating something truly original and hopefully one day people can say "they don't sound like anyone else".

What was the biggest challenge you faced when writing & recording this release?
When we first started writing the album our biggest challenge was getting enough time in the rehearsal studio together because we were all working our day jobs and it was really hard to juggle.

We would go in and start jamming on stuff and when we finally came up with something that we all liked it would be time to go because we had to wake up at 6am to lay bricks, dig holes or make coffee and that can be really frustrating because you can't get on a roll or keep that same state of mind when you finally get back in there.

We recorded a lot of demos at a home-style studio called Evalution Salutions with a friend called Sean Boucher and that was a great way to listen back to each of the songs and focus in on each part before we decided to record it overseas.

The other challenge was obtaining the funds to get overseas to do the album with Sylvia and that took quite a while to organise but once we were there we didn't have too many problems with the actual recording of it. Oh yeah and then there was the visas but I wont bore you with that.

What do you think is unique about the Aussie music scene as opposed to the rest of the world?
Generally I think Aussie bands have to work harder to get any type of return due to the size of it and I think it would one of the toughest places to start out because most of the venues wont give you a show without hearing ou first which is quite funny really.
What's unique to me is the music itself and the bands that come up with it. I think Australia and N.Z have some of the best live bands in the world, take Shihad for example - if you have seen that band live you would know what I am talking about and if you haven't you should they are fucking amazing and continue to blow me away every time that I see them.

I think there are a lot of good bands coming out of Australia at the moment and it will be interesting to see what develops in the next two years.

Lastly, what’s the best thing about being part of the Australian music industry? The worst?
The best thing would be getting to travel around this country and going to places that you have never been to with your mates.

The older crew that have trouble letting go of the tackle-box, leather pants wearing days - relax, take a deep breath and just let go.