Sydney rock band super FLORENCE jam are a volcanic mixer that's two parts guitar, four parts vocals, two parts bass, one part keys and one part drums. But there are only four of them. Made up of Adam Krawczyk on vocals and guitar, Laurence Rosier Staines on guitar, vocals and Casio, Mike Solo on drums and Alex Tulett on doubleneck bass, they've bashed out songs in styles ranging from blues, to progressive rock, to punk, to funk (not necessarily in that order) before emerging with their latest lick: the single “Anastasia Won't You Sleep With Me”, a blistering fireball of garage rock crunch, backed up by two songs that extend the frenetic sexual urgency to levels not heard since Little Richard. Alex answers our questions.: 1. What was the first band you saw live? Of any significance - The Who. 2. What'd you learn from them? That I hope I die before I get old. 3. Got any pre-gig rituals? I personally listen to Kanye West's magnum opus "The Good Life" featuring T-Pain. It gets me into a real Next Level Zone. 4. What do you think the most important issue affecting artists in NSW is today? A lack of good songs. 5. If you weren't a musician what do you reckon you'd be doing? Critiquing other musicians - haha just kidding, I do that all the time anyway! I'd probably exercise, that looks like it could be a good time. Website MySpace Twitter YouTube

Posted Fri 6th Aug, 2010 by Sean Calalang.

1. What was the first band/act you saw live? Not sure, probably a Christian "metal" band like Stryper! But I seem to remember a show with Custard, The Fauves & Sidewinder that is clear in my head. At the Caringbah Inn.. 2. What'd you learn from them? It's good to not take yourself too seriously. 3. Got any pre gig rituals? I like to do a little pep talk with the band that is reminiscent of a rugby match.  We plan our play very carefully! 4. What do you think the most important issue affecting artists in NSW is today? I think pokie machines and the liquor licenses are something that still affects the music scene negatively.  We still need to create more of an atmosphere for the arts within this city. 5. If you weren't a musician what do you reckon you'd be doing? I think I'd have my own cafe.  Just a small place with a few tables, great coffee, a simple menu.  A brightly painted hole in the wall that was my very own. Find her on: The Internet Myspace Facebook Twitter Bandit.fm

Posted Mon 24th Aug, 2009 by Meg Williams.

Super Massive are a creative bunch of electro-laced, sci-funk, alterna-pop-rock explorers, carving a sexy new sonic path between dance and rock. They released their debut EP in 2008, winning a MusicOz Award. They recently toured Vietnam, and have a new single and east coast tour planned for September/October. 1. What was the first band you saw live? Either Dire Straits or Whitney Houston, can't remember which, but I was very young and my parents liked them at the time. Fell asleep during Dire Straits' down-tempo guitar noodlings and Whitney dragged every three minute song out for fifteen minutes of melismatic vocal histrionics that I really didn't appreciate. I was bored out of my brain! The most memorable thing turned out to be the supports - The Choirboys and John Farnham, both on the cusp of huge success. Both gave killer, electric performances. Run To Paradise was instantly all over the radio and two weeks later John Farnham had monster success with the You're The Voice album. It was quite extraordinary to witness him just before that happened. The first band I wanted to see live was Queen, but my parents thought I was way too young to go. I argued with them but they wouldn't budge. Afterwards they said the show was absolutely incredible, which I'm sure it was! When Freddie Mercury died I was devastated I'd missed the chance forever and I wouldn't let them forget it. That's probably why I was taken along to Dire Straits and Whitney... 2. What'd you learn from them? If you love an artist buy a ticket and go see them as soon as you can. You might not get another chance to see them live. From Whitney I learned not to be self-indulgent and drag one album's worth of material out for three hours. And watch the support bands: Be prepared to see bands you don't know much about. Sometimes they can be an even more rewarding experience than the main act or a band you think you'd want to see. 3. Got any pre-gig rituals? A good vocal, physical & emotional warm up. It's my own wierd, crazy mash-up of yoga, dance stretches and Michael Chekhov inspired psycho-physical gestures along with humming, lip trills and various rising and falling sounds that I keep on my iriver/ipod along with instrumental versions of our songs. I don't feel good about going onstage unless I've woken up my voice and body and activated the inner life - the emotional/psychological side - as well, and got them all working together. Our show's pretty uptempo and demanding, and you want to make it as energetic and intense as possible. Glenn tends to beat a motel pillow into submission with drum rudiments for an hour, listening to Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and 70s funk to get the slamming groove feel happening. We're both plugged in to our own ipods leading up to the show. 4. What do you think the most important issue affecting artists in NSW is today? What a huge question! It's hard to boil it down to the one most important thing. One thing we find to be a disturbing issue is that the vast majority of musicians are expected to work for nothing. At pub level gigs the barstaff, doorstaff and sound engineer all must be paid, yet it seems acceptable for the musicians performing on the night to walk away with nothing. Not only that, but they're expected to cover all the costs of the night - including the wages for the door and sound staff! - often out of their own pockets. Doesn't quite seem right. I don't know any other industry where businesses rely so heavily on workers providing services free of charge most nights of the week. In other industries even a first year apprentice or trainee's time is worth something. 5. If you weren't a musician what do you reckon you'd be doing? Either exploring movement and voice therapy, or buying some land up north and starting up a boutique cacao plantation & fine chocolate business. Something that helps people feel good in a simple, sensual, organic way.

Posted Thu 13th Aug, 2009 by Sean Calalang.

Answered by Liam O'Brien 1. What was the first band you saw live? The Toothfaries. They were this really eccentric, rhythmic, folk band from Brisbane in the 90's. I was 8 or 9 and my dad was selling dream catchers and hand made wind chimes at the Woodford Folk Festival. I was asleep when I heard them playing to hundred's of stoned/tripping hippies on a stage near our tent. 2. What'd you learn from them? I learned to not be a rock but 'to make like a rover and flow' and I guess now looking back on it they showed that a good groove and considered beat is the most important thing in a song. 3. Got any pre-gig rituals? I like to read the local street press of whatever town we are in and get to know what's happening in their scene. 4. What do you think the most important issue effecting artists in NSW is today? Poker Machines. 5. If you weren't a musician what do you reckon you'd be doing? I would be an anthropologist and the rest of my band would be my major case study as we all come from a very peculiar place! Find them on Myspace Blog Facebook

Posted Mon 20th Jul, 2009 by Meg Williams.

1. What was the first band you saw live? Celibate Rifles at Dee Why. What an eye opening night for a bunch of clean cut kids from the suburbs 2. What'd you learn from them? Not to encourage a room full of drunk surfers to stage dive, kick over your pedals, knock over mic stands or stumble into the drum kit. 3. Got any pre-gig rituals? Make sure all pedals and other gadgets have fresh batteries (I dont follow this ritual as strictly as I should). 4. What do you think the most important issue effecting aritsts in NSW is today? It would be nice to have more grants/funding opportunities for artists to cover the manufacturing and distribution costs of independent releases. In particular, some opportunities for small independent record labels to access funding/support with distribution and promotion - an abundance of productive smaller independent labels will be a great help to many local artists. 5. If you weren't a musician what do you reckon you'd be doing? Im harboring a dream of running a buffalo farm on the NSW south coast. Find them on Myspace. Become a fan on Facebook.

Posted Fri 3rd Jul, 2009 by Eliza Sarlos.

1.) Stolen Memories is... A three piece rock/blues band from the Central Coast of N.S.W. Three mates jammin, playin and having a good time. 2.) How would you describe Stolen Memories sound? Our sound is something a bit different. We have a bluesy rock sound but we dont like to limit ourselves to a rock/blues band. Our sound is diverse, from fast, punchy rock songs to slow ballads and everything in between. It is hard to restrict our sound to a specific genre, the only way to really know is to listen for yourself. 3.) What did winning YouthRock 2009 mean to Stolen Memories? Any highlights from the night (aside from winning of course)? Winning YouthRock for us was amazing. We were stoked just be playing on such a great stage with such great bands, to think that we won still seems somewhat surreal because the talent on the night was really impressive. The other highlights as I mentioned before would definitely have to be the other bands, in particular, The Bennisons, Breaking Contrast, Powerage and Mind Priorities. They made it such a great night. Its definitely something that we wont be forgetting anytime soon. 4.) Stolen Memories is no stranger to winning band competitions, you guys have won a few titles in your time and youve only been together for 3 years. What do you think is the key to Stolen Memories successes and what motivates you to keep reaching for new heights? I think that the key is being ourselves. We dont look or sound like any other bands and I think that in this day and age that is becoming a rarity. It is those type of things that the judges of band competitions seem to appreciate. As for motivation, I think its the feeling that we get when are playing or jamming. If you asked anyone who has performed in front of a large audience, Im sure that they would agree that the feeling is amazing. 5.) Stolen Memories really gets amongst the all ages music scene. What is the all ages scene like on the Central Coast where you guys hail from? How important is the all age scene to Stolen Memories? The all ages music scene on the coast is not the best, it is really divided. Who you know can have a big influence on whether or not you get shows. In the first two years we didnt get many shows at all but we just kept playing anywhere we could. Only in the last 12 months have we started to build up a bit of a reputation and are finding that people are contacting us for bookings (which makes life a little easier). Without the all ages music scene Stolen Memories would not have done half the things that we have done or had half the opportunities that we have had. 6.) What does the future hold for Stolen Memories? In the next couple of months we will be releasing our first EP, but beyond that hopefully we can keep playing, recording and having a good time about it. The future is looking bright at the moment and if things keep going the way they are, next year (when we are all 18) we will be touring as much as we can. Who knows what the future holds for us, time will tell I guess. Find them on Myspace. Become a fan on Facebook.

Posted Sat 27th Jun, 2009 by jsntv200.