Introducing Perth’s latest punk/indie hybrid Lo-Fire and their new single/video ‘Bloody Oath’
Remember the days when Kisschasy, Gyroscope and Jebediah were ruling the airwaves and rock wasn’t shunned away from mainstream attention (ah, the glory days), well a new act from Perth has emerged and they’re bringing back all the vibes of those bands from yesteryear with their genre-crossing blend of punk, indie rock and music video comedy.
Introducing Lo-Fire, consisting of frontman/guitarist Rory McDonald, Simon Julian on bass and backup vocals, drummer Bryce McLachlan and Angus McRobbie also on guitar and backing vocals. Together they intend to leave their mark on Perth’s music scene and their debut video for ‘Bloody Oath‘ has all the makings of a potential future classic. I grabbed frontman Rory for a chat all about the band and what the go is with the vulture in the video…
Mate congrats on the new song/debut video! It has all the remnants of that classic late 90’s/early 2000’s Aussie punk, is that the style you’re going for?
Yeah, most of my influences are straight out of the 90’s and early 2000’s, so I guess naturally we just gravitated towards that style. I’ve always been a fan of Hot Water Music and their heavy, melodic take on punk and the genuine Aussie style vocals of Kevin Mitchell from Jebediah. If someone lumps us in between those two bands and Grinspoon, I think that’s the style we’re going for.
Well you’re pulling it off well. ‘Bloody Oath’ is your first music video, but the second song you’ve ever released. With that said, how long have you guys been working together in the band?
With the lineup we have now, I think it’s been somewhere around 18 months. It was just myself, Simon and Bryce for a while, and when we recruited Angus that’s when we started to get really excited with what we were playing and kicked things into gear. We really liked the three piece sound, but adding another guitar or layer added an element to our songs that we didn’t really know we needed.
And what’s the go with the vulture man chasing you in the video, who came up with that idea?
I was bouncing some ideas around one day with a mate of mine, and it was essentially his idea haha (thanks Rhys). I kind of just took his idea and put it into an extremely loose storyline. On the day we had Angus dress up as the bird and we pretty much just winged it, and took some shots of some of those old cliches. We were just being silly really. I guess because we weren’t super serious about it, it made the whole process so much smoother, Victor Lim was super easy to work with too.
Was the idea a metaphor for something?
In a literal sense, the song is kind of – for some reason that is beyond me – about a samurai about to undertake seppuku and he’s coming to terms with it, the vulture waiting for his impending death. But I guess, the vulture signifies some kind of inner demon that needs to be faced. So at the end when I receive the cigarette, its supposed to be a peace offering or whatever, a truce is made and so he disappears.
I loved layered stories like that haha For those who don’t know, Perth has a pretty fucking active punk scene with events like Punktober, Punks Against Poverty (which you’re playing) and bands like Scalphunter, Tired Lion, The Donald Trumpets, The Shakeys for example, does that make you guys confident you’ll have an automatic audience because of your style/genre?
I think we are lucky that people are really getting into this contemporary, sort of indie-punk thing yeah. I mean, we’re still opening a lot of our shows and stuff but I think people are paying attention. People do say you sound like this or that, so I guess that means we’re heading in the right direction.
And what’s next, an EP or album on the way?
We actually have a shitload of songs in our ‘archive’, if that’s a thing. And we’re just not sure how to go about recording and releasing just yet. But I think the rough plan is to gradually release a couple more singles, maybe a video and see where it goes from there. I guess, inevitably an EP. I think since recording and making the Bloody Oath video we’ve got that itch that will never quite be scratched!
Well the time is now to get a backscratcher and jump on it lads haha How about local shows, anything else in the works?
Possibly playing Amps in November once finalised, and definitely playing at the Boston for Punks Against Poverty on November 17th. Really stoked for that one, a great cause and a sweet line up!
We’ll have to pop down and see what the fuss is about… Any final words?
Cheers to everyone who has had a look at the video so far, and thanks for checking us out! Props to Wall of Sound for having me too, thanks Browny!
My pleasure lad. Thanks for the chat and all the best with the single drop.
Interview by Browny @brownypaul
Follow Lo-Fire on Facebook
Catch them playing at Punks Against Poverty next month
Punks Against Poverty – Minifest
Feat: Leeches, Scalphunter, The Shakeys, The Donald Trumpets, Priority One, Dead End Brawler, Renegade Girl and Lo-Fire.
November 17th @ The Boston, Perth WA
