With a new single set to explode on radio and a spot on the national Rock the Schools tour, we’ll be hearing a lot more about Brisbane pop-rockers Finabah. Before all the craziness begins I caught up with bass guitarist and songwriter Brendan Langfield to chat about the band’s upcoming tour, their dedicated fan base, and why he can’t wait to quit his day job.
While you’ve got a loyal following, most of Australia probably aren’t familiar with your music. How would you describe your sound?
I like to describe us as if you mash together Fall Out Boy and Kisschasy, you get a Finabah sort of sound. It’s sort of Americanised pop-rock. Obviously we’re Aussies, and we like to think that we sing about reasonably deep and meaningful stuff, and have some decent lyrics and that sort of thing. So I think if you take a Fall Out Boy sound with some Kisschasy elements, that’s pretty much where we’re at.
You recently won the rock category of New Artist to Radio awards which will see your new single “Everyone Jump” all over radio next week. Are you going to be glued to your radio waiting to hear it?
Yeah, definitely. We recently got some play on a lot of the digital radio stations and we’ve been glued to that, let alone the actual stations when it comes out. I think we’re getting reports about which stations are adding it, so we’ll definitely be sitting closely by the radio with our ear to it on the day single comes out.
You’re soon heading out on the road to support the single. I noticed you’re playing plenty of all ages shows which is so refreshing. What made you want to do that?
I think we’ve got a very modern pop-rock sound, and obviously our demographic is an underage fan base. So it’s good if you’ve got an underage fan base to get out there and play to them. It’s difficult these days with the liquor licensing laws and all of these terrible things, all the under-age venues are disappearing unfortunately. I think it’s just pretty important to actually get out there and play to the younger fan base.
And then, in saying that it’s important to not just categorise yourself as an underage band because a lot of bands do that and end up going down the gurgler because their fans grow up and there’s nothing left. So I think we’ve got a good spread of AA and 18+ fans, and thus we’ve done a good spread of AA and 18+ shows.
You obviously love playing for the kids, because you’re doing the Rocks the Schools program midyear, which I believe has an educational component to it as well. What will you be telling the kids?
We don’t know yet! I guess, the whole idea of Rock the Schools is, it’s a really cool venture; I wish it was around when I was in school. They bring in bands that have been in the industry quite a while – like we’ve been doing this for six, going on seven years now – they bring in bands that can give students an insight into what it’s like being in a band and trying to make it. Obviously it’s pretty difficult to figure out what goes on until you’re in the midst of it. So we can give them an actual insight into what it’s really like, and not what you see on TV. It’s not all about one-hit wonders and all those sort of things, getting found when you’re 15 and all the rest of the wonderful things that happen to the occasional band. I guess we’ll give them a real look at what it’s going to be like and how hard work it is and the rewards you can get out of it.
I hear that after this current tour you’re heading back into the studio. Can you tell me anything about your next project?
Because we’ve got this song going to radio at the start of next week, that’ll be on rotation if all goes to plan for the next three months, so then we’re going into the studio to record our second single. So if all goes well and if the public tends to like we’ll have our second single come out in the start of May. Hopefully it’ll be better than “Everyone Jump” as well, and we’ll get more play, and it’ll all snowball from there.
Now you’re heading out on the road. What’s life like on the Finabah tour bus?
It’s actually going to be really different this time. Previously we have done it in the van. We’ve got a van called Hercules that we cherish to death, and we usually jump in that and hit the road for a couple of weeks. But we’re taking a different approach this time; we’re flying to all the cities. So it’s a sort of businessy move because it means you can still stay at home, keep your income and work four or five days a week, and then on the weekends you just jump on a plane and fly away. So it’ll be interesting this time. We have a bit of experiencing flying around, and it usually gives you a bit of a big head if you’re a rock star, flying around with your guitars and flight hostesses that ogle you. But it should be pretty cool I think. Usually in the van we get cranky at each other and it stinks and we end up wearing the same underwear five times in a week. This time since we’re only away from home two or three days at a time, it’ll be a very different experience. We’re definitely looking forward to it.
What do you love most about being on stage?
For me, because I put together most of our songs lyrically and write all the melodies, I think it’s really inspiring to look out and see people singing along to songs that I wrote. I still don’t really comprehend how cool that is. It’s way cool to think I can sit here at home and write something on the couch and then I can play to a couple of hundred people, and there’s a hundred people singing the words to it. It’s pretty cool that you can have an influence like that on people. I think it’s the coolest thing that I love about playing to people and being in a band, that I can get a message across.
Which parts of Australia are you psyched about visiting?
We’ve never been to Adelaide, and that’s our first stop on the tour in a couple of weeks. So we’re really pumped about going to Adelaide just to experience something a little bit different. And we haven’t been to Melbourne in quite a while, and obviously Melbourne tends to be the cultural capital of the country. So we’re playing in Melbourne, and playing some really cool shows there. Obviously we love playing our home town in Brisbane, which is good. But definitely Adelaide and Melbourne we’re really looking forward to this year.
I believe you’re still slugging away in retail. When will you know that it’s time to quit the day job?
I don’t know. I guess that’s a dream that we’ve all had for a really long time now, so I’ve got my fingers hard crossed that it’s going to be soon. I think if all goes well, if “Everyone Jump” goes well next week, and the second single goes well, hopefully mid-this year we’ll all be able to say “Cool” and we’ll all just start writing songs and playing for a living which would be all our dreams come true. If we can make 300 bucks each week playing in a band I’m sure we’ll all be happy campers.
Since many people probably don’t know you yet, why should they head out and see Finabah live?
I guess we’ve got a really good reputation as a really strong live band who’ll get you singing along and get you really into it. So I guess if you like seeing good pop rock that will make you dance, we’re who you want to come and see.
If that sounds like a good night out to you, make sure you catch Finabah at one of the following shows:
12 February 2010 – Syke, The Producer Bar @ Electric Light Hotel, Adelaide, SA (18+)
13 February 2010 – The Underground, Adelaide (All Ages)
19 February 2010 – Mynt Lounge, Werribee (18+)
20 February 2010 – Bang @ Royal Melbourne Hotel (18+)
21 February 2010 – Fist 2 Face, Melbourne (All Ages)
5 March 2010 – X&Y Bar, Brisbane (18+ Unplugged set)
6 March 2010 – The Hive, Brisbane (All Ages)
6 March 2010 – Thriller, Brisbane (All Ages)
7 March 2010 – Gladstone Hotel, Gladstone (18+)
Image used with permission from AAA Entertainment