The Jezabels

Samuel Lockwood, Heather Shannon, Hayley Mary and Nick Kaloper

‘We’re not a female band or a male band.’

How many bands are able to claim that they are genderless, completely neutral? Not many. Though the Jezabels’ are one of the few, there’s Hayley Mary (vocals) and Heather Shannon (keys) along with Samuel Lockwood (guitar) and Nick Kaloper (rhythm). 

As Heather talks about her role in the band, images spring to mind – The Runaways, The Divinyls.  Whether it be the tight corsets or school uniforms associated with these bands respectively, it’s just so great that the Jezabels are able to transcend that entire stigma.

‘When you look back in history at bands with female front women, generally the band are all males and they’re the standout. I like that I’m a non-descript instrument person, people don’t have to think about my gender which is really empowering.’

Two guys and two girls – it’s the perfect equation; a rare achievement that finds itself among the ranks of yin and yang, sally and harry, honey and soy. Though on a more serious note, this is what makes the Jezabels’ music relatable to a wider audience.

Having just returned from a host of shows overseas the band is coming closer to knowing what its like to be a world wide phenomenon, though this doesn’t make it any less overwhelming.

‘I guess when you’re ambitious and hardworking and you’re willing to put the time in then something good will come of it though I never thought about the repercussion. Once you get to that place its like oh my god, holy shit. It’s really blowing up now, getting more and more scary.’

But you wouldn’t know be able to tell. Exhausting at times the band delivers raw energy and emotion every time. Whether it’s to thousands at Ireland’s Electric Picnic Festival or a roomful of students at Sydney Uni’s Manning Bar... 

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Ernest Ellis & the Panamas

Ernest Ellis’ music is what it is – and what you take from it.

‘It’s something I really love and I feel bound too – I wouldn’t know what to do without it. Kings Canyon is a true indicator of where I’m at and where we’re at.’

Great Sky.

Only three times in my life has a song been as affecting. The first was I'll be your lover from Paul Kelly – that man is inspirational. Then as a teenager there was Sebastian Tellier’s la Ritournelle and more recently, Nick Cave’s Into My Arms. 

Whether it’s my infatuation with the track, or it’s vast, overwhelming sound I can’t help but ask Ellis the meaning behind Great Sky.

I’m a little unnerved as he chuckles down the line,

'You write songs and you forget who that person was that wrote it – you write it at a certain place in time and the lyric comes about real quick, a song like that comes out of nowhere… your mind works in different ways.’

I can see his point. Talking about the mechanics of a song, or even art takes away from it’s charm to begin with, the way it means something different for every person – and besides, he can’t remember the reasons behind it’s conception to begin with. 

Maybe that’s a good thing.

If you’re wondering why this song, or this album means so much to me – I’m not sure. But I’ll tell you this, it’s real and as Ellis relates, that’s something that can’t be taken for granted these days,

'To be honest with you there’s no great music without pain, there’s no great art without it and I hate this whole thing ‘ oh yeah we’re just guys playing with our guitars, having a good time.’– It’s fucking bullshit, they’re not real artists…

You look at the National, Lou Reed or Iggy Pop and there’s pain burning in their faces, that’s the reason they write good records there’s no pretension and that’s what makes people as a listener feel a deep connect to those songs.’

It’s safe to say this is something I agree with, especially if you remember my rant about cookie-cutter musicians and the line ‘Lady Gaga is merely a reincarnation of Madonna with the added interest of raw meat.’ It's all the same.

‘You hear Fleet Foxes, or Bon Iver and there’s so much emotion in that and reality – they’re real people singing those tunes, then there are people who find another idea that other people have made and it becomes homogenised…

A lot of the time it’s about what other people want – that’s not what it should be about, you’ve got to make music that’s honest to yourself otherwise it’s an amalgam of other things, its not real.'

More than anything, real emotions make real music. And as a record, Kings Canyon reaches highs, lows, all that in between. Songs like Sons and Daugters and Great Sky are a little more upbeat whereas there’s great depth and depression to Blackhole and Oceans…. 

‘We wanted to put songs on there that flowed thematically and sonically. They say art imitates life and if you’re a proper songwriter, or artist its impossible not to be influenced by what happens around you – you take that everywhere you go...

It was a tough period in a lot of ways but at the same time we feel that the record has a lot of optimism in a way, it was a cathartic process… the record goes from a really elated to really depressed sound and lyric – I’m proud of the fact that it’s honest.’

The best things are natural, unforced – left as they are and to be honest Kings Canyon is the kind of music I live for as a journalist because there’s something to talk about – it’s thought provoking. 

Kings Canyon is released tomorrow, you know what I think - Itunes & JB.