Priorities – ‘Staying True To Ourselves’
There have been a number of incredible new bands coming out of Melbourne of late, so here’s another one you NEED to add to the list.
Introducing you to 5-piece hardcore band Priorities, who have made one hell of a first impression through their debut track ‘If I Believed’. We had a Zoom party with vocalist Mitch Siggie and bassist Alan Lipsett to get the lowdown.
Thanks for chatting with me guys! For the people who haven’t come across Priorities as of yet, can you give us a run down of who the band is and how and when you got together?
Mitch: We’re essentially just a good group of mates to be honest! The band all started with me, Alan and one other friend just wanting to play some music. Myself and Alan played in another hardcore band a few years back. Dean and Liam played in another band around the same time Alan and I were in another band, so we actually did some gigs together. Jesse and Dean have been best mates for 10 years so it was quite easy for us to all get together and write songs. As far as how the band got together it was really just trial and error until we eventually got where we are now.
When I first listened to your debut single ‘If I Believed’, I did get some Parkway Drive vibes. Are there any specific bands that have influenced your sound?
Alan: It’s always been Parkway Drive hasn’t it?! Everyone that walks into our studio says the same thing! It’s weird with us, we’ve got like 2 or 3 different genres. I think that shows in what we’ve got hiding away to release later on. It’s not just one style, its like we got indecisive *laughs*. It’s really good in the sense that we should stand out and not just fade into the background like other bands.
Mitch: For me personally when writing lyrics especially in the sense of not hiding away from emotions, I am a big fan of Beartooth and Caleb Shomo. Dean is a massive fan of Rush and Karnivool, Jesse listens to Hands Like Houses and The Living End. And then Liam is straight up hardcore, he still listens to Madball and those sort of bands. So it’s really a combination, which works really well when it comes to writing as we can all bounce off each other.
‘If I Believed’ is about feeling helpless during hard times in life. Would you say this is the main theme the band speaks to through your music? Are there any other standout subjects you commonly address?
Mitch: Lyrically I tend to commonly address my own personal experiences, such as dealing with depression and anxiety. I try to bring it forward, rather than push it to the side and pretend everything’s okay when it’s not. People struggle with their own demons, whether it’s their family or something else, so I prefer to be true to feelings rather than sing about things that I don’t personally believe in.
How have you guys been coping through COVID-19? Have you all been able to get together and continue writing new music?
Alan: If we realised that we could have hung out during this as it’s ‘work’ related, we would have! It’s been tough because of the restrictions.
Mitch: Anthony was getting us set up to get together for the music video, but then Stage 4 hit and so we couldn’t really go anywhere!
Yeah I can imagine it’s made getting together a lot trickier! Apart from music, what have you guys been getting up to in your spare time?
Mitch: Well I just got my hands on the new Tony Hawk game!
Alan: My soccer season got cancelled so that’s something I can’t do anymore! And now just dealing with the pregnant wife at home *laughs* She’s due in November which is very exciting!
Your live debut was supposed to be at Battle of The Bands at Stay Gold, which unfortunately was postponed. How are you guys feeling about finally getting to perform live?
Mitch: I’m so excited! But also a little nervous as this is my first time fronting a band, all the other bands I’ve been in, I’ve been the guitarist. I remember seeing the set list when Battle of The Bands was announced and because we were put on there before we officially released any music, we were the only heavy band on there *laughs* We thought, ‘ah this will be interesting.’
Are there any bands you’d love to tour with?
Mitch: Locally I’d love to do some gigs with Ocean Sleeper! I’ve met all the guys and they’re just a great bunch of dudes! Through them I also met Jaydon from Outloved and they’re awesome, we had a few drinks with them after a gig and what not, so would love to tour with them too!
Alan: Yeah I agree with Mitch. Because we already know them, it would be great to start out touring with people you’re more comfortable with and can feed off of them.
Can we expect a debut EP or album in the near future?!
Mitch: We actually have enough songs in our bank for like 2 full albums! It’s just about getting down to record them. ‘If I Believed’ wasn’t even going to be the first track we released. We had another one lined up and ready to go and we were about to do the music video but then COVID hit. We’ve sort of put that one on standby as we really wanted to do a video for that song with Anthony, as he has worked on some really great stuff.
Alan: Yeah Anthony has worked with Amity, Alpha Wolf and Polaris, he actually filmed Masochist!
Mitch: We could release more tomorrow if we wanted to, but we want to make sure we do it right so will have to see what happens! Overall we’re so happy to see such a great response to our first single and that people are excited for new music to come out. A big thank you also to the guys at Collision Course for helping us with everything.
Looking forward to more music in the future and also can’t wait to see your live debut at Battle Of The Bands soon!
Interview By Rhiannon Porter (@rrhiannonporter)
Get your priorities in order and check out Priorities on Facebook and Instagram.
