Ron Chant - Skyway 'Skyway or the Highway'

There's nothing worse than the long painful wait to hear if your favourite band will be returning from their hiatus after they've reappeared for a couple one off shows which managed to offer a glimmer of hope for the band's future. Gold Coast pop punk heroes Skyway are one of these said acts and following our Top 7 Bands That Need A Comeback article in which they took out the Number 1 spot, I decided to track down the band and interrogate find out the status of the members and whether or not we'll finally hear the new music they promised back in 2013. Guitarist Ron Chant who replaced his instrumental axe for an actual axe, works as a carpenter these days building movie sets on the Gold Coast. He took the time out to chat exclusively to Wall of Sound to about where the band is at right now...

Hey man, long time no speak or hear from Skyway. Where is everyone at now?

"Ben (drummer) just recently launched his tutoring app 'Vygo' which he's been working on for a while now and it's going to be very successful in my opinion. Dan (singer) is running a plastering company on a huge commercial site and making the big bucks. Mike (bass) has a chain of laser tattoo removal parlours all over Australia and is also killing it. Daniel (guitarist, angel pipes) is a human enigma who I wish I saw more but he's been writing some awesome shit with Troy Brady [formerly of The Amity Affliction] and turns out he has a huge voice to match it, but I'm not sure if the world is ready for his pipes yet. I have been working as a Carpenter and also set building for a few big budget movies, none of which are out in cinemas yet.

You guys briefly came off hiatus in 2013 to open for All Time Low in Brisbane which was sick. How did that offer come about?

"Playing All Time Low was so awesome as we got asked out of the blue and it was at the Tivoli which is one of my favourite venues ever. It definitely made us keen for a show again but at the same time we were like 'well the next show isn't going to top the fucking Tivoli so maybe end it on a good thing?'. There was also a 'minor incident' that made 'Soundwave Touring' say 'you'll never play one of our tours ever again' and at the time they had the monopoly on a million bands we loved, so we were like 'jokes on you, we're not even a band anyway!' and now they don't even exist anymore so jokes on them I guess?"

Can you elaborate more on this incident? haha

"Basically we got our friend backstage by double passing (there were two bands on the roster, so it's not like we were stepping on anyone's toes) and the tour manager chucked a bit of a wobbly and maybe an angry email, which is fair enough I guess."

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhbWoeLygGI&w=853&h=480]

That's not too bad man, I mean, I've heard of worse incidents than that! Nowadays, what would it take to get all you guys back on stage together again?

"A good lump of money, much more than we're worth... and free piss... or maybe like a New Found Glory support slot or something... at the Tivoli"

Stranger things have happened so never say never. Have any of you guys been working on anything musically lately?

"Yes I have with most of the old Skyway dudes plus Troy Brady, the one I mentioned before except it's heavier than Skyway and Daniel [Hawkins] the old guitarist is singing. I'm really proud of it probably because Daniel, Troy and Ben did most of the work but due to being busy and lazy it probably won't surface until 2025."

Looking forward to hearing what you boys come up with. Talking about the old days, do you have any memorable moments from your time in the band all those years ago?

"So many moments, too many to name. All I've got to remember them is a hard drive worth of footage and photos I only recovered a couple of weeks ago. I wish I remembered more of it but I guess excessive alcohol consumption with the marijuanas and generally being a heaving piece of shit go hand in hand with playing shows."

"Another notable mention is the copious amount of friends we made along the way, I still keep in touch (well try to) with so many of those people who I'd never have met if I didn't write some songs with my friends all those years ago."

Well we all appreciated your music and what you achieved in such a short time. Since nothing has been announced for fans who have been waiting for some sort of news, is there anything you personally want to say?

"Sorry we never made that EP we said we'd make. Don't expect anything anytime soon unless we get an offer similar to the one mentioned above, but in the wise words of Jeff Fenech - I love youse all"

Time will tell if the guys get the offer they've been waiting for, until then bask in the memory of one of the best upcoming pop punk acts Australia had to offer the pulled out while they certainly were at the top of their game, leaving us all wanting more. We'll keep you posted on the new band that rises from the carcass of the band we knew as Skyway...

Browny (@brownypaul)

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kk8489lQaVE&w=853&h=480]