John Floreani - Trophy Eyes 'The Love Letter To Fans That Changed From Being About Defeat To Gratitude'
Originally formed in Newcastle in 2013, Australian rockers Trophy Eyes have been taking their unique pop punk stylings and hardcore roots across stages in Europe, the UK and America this year. It's been a busy 2024 so far for the four-piece, and they're coming home with a headline tour, kicking off this Friday in Brisbane.
Lead singer John Floreani was in Melbourne when he sat down for our chat, laughing about the classic "non-sunny" Melbourne weather. Reflecting on what he's looking forward to most about the band's upcoming Aussie run, the singer deliberated for a while before answering.
We're playing our biggest rooms at home, so that allows us to go in on the production, and really focus on making moments in our set and creating an atmosphere. You know, expressing ourselves in the way that we really want to... So I'm excited for the chance to do that. Some big rooms, a lot of stage space and opportunities to share special parts of the music.
I then invited Floreani to think about how his relationships with Boston Manor (UK) and Adelaide's Towns - both supports on the tour - started and evolved over time.
Our relationship with Boston Manor started back in probably 2016 or 2017. We were on a tour with them and a US rock band called A Will Away was brilliant. They were the opening band and the headliner was Moose Blood. We became instant best friends. We've stayed incredibly good friends and stayed in touch over all these years. I was just messaging Henry (Cox, Boston Manor vocalist) last night. I think it's almost the degree of shared trauma. We did Warped Tour together and things back then were not as easy as we have it now in a lot of ways. So a lot of hard floors slept on, a lot of long drives, early flights and being poor together. I think that cements a bond that really doesn't change over time. They're the kind of friends where a year or two has passed and it's like no time has passed at all. Feeling really blessed to be touring with such good friends.
Towns... I've met them in passing over the past few years and always loved their style. They're a really fun, high-energy pop punk group. We've been introduced a couple of times as well, and I'm excited to develop that relationship on this tour. They seem like really friendly people, so it should be good.
When I asked the musician about whether there's a music venue he's most looking forward to playing, he admitted that while he's not usually a "venue guy", there's a particular one that stands out to him on this Aussie tour.
I think The Forum in Melbourne. I do love that venue. The roof is all blue with stars on top. It's a beautiful room... Last time we played there, we got really close to selling it out and we didn't quite get over the line. This time, it definitely will, looking at the numbers. So I'm really excited to check that box, and I feel like we're moving forward in a way that you can quantise. That's a big highlight for me, after lockdown and COVID, after sitting on The American Dream album for five years and not having any new music for a long time.
I'm really excited to have a very big, cathartic, high-energy show there.
The chat turned to Suicide and Sunshine, which was released in June last year. After being asked whether any of the songs have taken on new meaning since then, Floreani turned inward.
That's a good question! All these songs do, but I feel like compared to the rest of our album library, I guess it's still a baby record. They haven't really applied to any new stories in my life right now, except maybe 'Epilogue'. Going into Suicide and Sunshine, we were thinking, 'This is our last record that we'll write'. That song 'Epilogue' was my love letter to anybody who's ever cared about the band or listened, just to say thank you. I couldn't leave without people knowing how much them listening has changed my life...
Now, I think that song might have changed in a way. When I listen back to it, it's definitely coming from a place of defeat. When I wrote it, we felt like we couldn't really continue to do this, COVID gutted the band and we were all getting a little bit older. Some of the older members got married, started families and got other jobs, things like that...
I guess now 'Epilogue' feels a lot more like gratitude and a good spot to look back on for when I'm doing things like this. This tour is some of the biggest rooms we've ever played. Talking about the production for these rooms, planning the flights and the setlist, and everything... It's great to look back at that and go, 'Shit, we were phoning it in'. Now it's been a complete 180. So I think that one's taken on a new meaning. It doesn't make me feel sad anymore, but accomplished.
Delving deeper into Suicide and Sunshine, the vocalist thought back on the album-making process and what the band could bring from that process into future records.
Trophy Eyes doesn't ever really go into a recording scenario with ideas for particular soundscapes in mind. The process is making it up as you go, and we leave there with something that we made in that tiny blip of time. It's fascinating because what I write here at home is always changed tenfold with the band and producers. I think some aspects from Suicide and Sunshine will definitely shine in our next work, that being an element of honesty and I think approaching the new body of work without the desire to experiment so much anymore... We've done a lot of experimenting and there's no two albums of ours' that sound even remotely the same. A lot of people have hated that, which we've found hilarious.
I think I'm finished with experimenting as dramatically as we used to, and I'm just focusing now on defining those foundational Trophy Eyes aspects, which to me are raw energy and emotional honestly. That's what I'm doubling down on now, and definitely what I've been writing at home.
The conversation moved to the band's lead guitarist Josh Campiao, who has been a part of the group since March last year. Floreani was happy to reflect on both his personal and professional relationship with Campiao, who was in a few bands that the singer was a fan of when he was younger, as well as in Hellions.
I think the relationship started there. With Hellions pursuing other things in their lives, I knew that Josh was very much a 'ride or die' musician and we were in need of a guitarist ourselves. He was the obvious choice... Just having him along as a vibe check... He's always so high, happy and funny, and I kind of go to him for everything. For style questions, art, music... He's a library of what's good and fresh. I've always loved that about him. He's got a very enthusiastic stage presence as well... It's really great having someone excel on that side of the stage. It's very comforting.
Our chat concluded with some musings on vocal care, and how the importance of it has significantly increased since the start of Floreani's career.
To start with when I was younger, my prep for a show would be to just smoke and drink. I would go out there and be like, 'Whatever. It is what it is'. Then the more I started singing, the more I started to realise that it wasn't working at all, and that I was going out there and making an arse of myself. Which is a particularly sobering thing, to watch yourself back and realise you're really not doing a great job.
So for the sake of the songs and the people who had spent their time and money on coming to watch, I started to care for my voice. It started off with some scales before I went on, then it was no smoking or carbonated drinks before a show. Warming down after the set. Little things like that, and that's really helped me, but there's still a lot more that I could do to make it better. There are still a lot of songs that are challenging for my register, that give me a lot of anxiety every night before I go on. When I'm jumping around, I don't really get to breathe when I want to, because I'm always pushing out.
Even now I have a portable steamer that plugs in and fits like an oxygen mask. Vocal care is super important for me now, just for the sake of doing your job and not letting down those people who are looking forward to a good show.
Interview by Genevieve Fellmoser
Trophy Eyes kick off their Aussie Tour on Friday.
TROPHY EYES – Australian Headline Tour 2024
With Boston Manor (UK) and Towns
Fri 23 Aug – The Fortitude Music Hall – Brisbane
Sat 24 Aug – Roundhouse – Sydney
Fri 30 Aug – Hindley Street Music Hall – Adelaide
Sat 31 Aug – The Forum – Melbourne - SOLD OUT
