After going through a little bit of a shake-up, we decided to catch up with Auckland band Nevernudes to find out what's been going on recently and who the new face behind the guitar is.
How long have you been playing together as Nevernudes?
Anthony: As Nevernudes we've been playing together since early 2009, but we started practising a few months before.
Sam: We've been playing as 'New-vernudes' for the 3 months.
Tom: That was a good joke, bro.
Where are you currently based?
Anthony: I live in an industrial shithole called Wairau Park and the other three live in beautiful Devonport, Auckland.
Who is in the band and what do they play?
Anthony: I sing and play guitar, Chris Smart plays bass, Tom Nicholls plays drums, and new addition Sam Harper plays second guitar and working on backing vocals.
How would you describe your sound?
Anthony: Hate this question. Well, our first batch of songs i would describe as really fast, distorted, poorly structured, weirdly melodied and pretty ADHD, as evident in our EP. But lately we've been doing pretty normal length songs with that are more easily distinguished and we're trying to incorporate genres that we're unfamiliar with into the mix.
Tom: I don't think it's changed all that much to be honest, its not like we've started playing jazz fusion or reggae, the music we play still sounds like us, its just a little less disjointed and all over the place.
What has been happening with Nevernudes recently?
Anthony: We recently replaced our old guitarist Joe with Sam Harper, which has changed our sound quite a lot, ie less shkkkkkkkkshkreeeee!!!. So we've been training him up, learning a bunch of new songs and also sorting an album deal with Mole Music.
You're currently recording an album. What can you tell us about it?
Tom: we're recording it by ourselves at the depot, and it's going to come out on Mole Music at some point in the next couple of months.
You recorded your debut EP very quickly, will you be doing the same with your album?
Anthony: No, we'll probably spend more time on getting good guitar tones and the vocals sounding right. We'll also be recording live instead of instrument by instrument to make it sound less stale and we are going to have more of a part in mixing.
Tom: We just got some really rough mixes of one of the tracks we demo'd, and I think it sounds good, we're going to go back and re-record them to get the performance as good as we can, then we'll get it mixed, pressed and in shops as soon as we can.
How does the band usually write and record it's material?
Anthony: It changes but usually I'll come up with a guitar part then we'll jam on it and I'll make a vocal melody then write lyrics and other parts yada yada yada. Sometimes I tell everyone exactly what to play, sometimes someone else comes up with something that becomes a main part of the song but mostly I just vaguely describe what flavour i'm going for and the rest of the band generally understands what I mean. With recording we just record everything live now except vocals, recording separately takes too long and sounds disconnected. Live always sound fresher.
How do you feel you have progressed since releasing your EP?
Anthony: I think we've mostly changed musically. The songs now sound more formed and crafted, rather than like little spasms of ideas.
Do you have any tours planned?
Tom: In the second week of July we're touring around the country, the shows aren't all set out yet, but we'll be in Wellington on the 8th and 9th, Christchurch on the 10th, Dunedin on the 11th and back in Auckland on the 12th. I think.
What's your favourite thing about touring?
Tom: Seeing that fan counter on facebook go up... No, seriously, meeting all the awesome people we did. I don't think we met anyone who wasn't really hospitable, except the crackhead Vicky Pollard sound-alike we met just off Cathedral Square.
Sam: Getting to be in a new town with old bros and new bros. Like Peanut Butter and Chocolate, baby....
What are your tour essentials?
Tom: Mi Goreng and very little else.
Anthony: Nothing. I leech off Tom.
Chris: couple 'o $$$ and a sleepin bayig. Oh yaya!
Sam: The Tally Ho guys and an ipod with Peep Show
What's the best or most memorable gig you've ever played?
Anff: Camp a low hum where Joe and I dry raped the naked guy on stage with our guitars and there was heaps of feedback haha.
Tom: It wasn't our best gig by any means, but The Mint Chicks show in the North Head tunnels was the most memorable one easily, even though I spent half the time shitting myself that the cops might turn up. It was funny though, because when they did, they just had a look from the top of the mountain and left. They obviously didn't see the 200-odd people crammed into the tunnel. I talked to some people who'd heard about it in Wellington i think, and they'd been told that we'd put fairy lights out to guide the path from the base of the mountain, when in fact we only had one desk lamp to light the entire tunnel. It could've been organised a bit better in hindsight...
Who or what are the biggest influences on the band?
Tom: Smashing Pumpkins and Fugazi, especially recently.
Sam: On our first-mixed song, i think there is a definite Radiohead influence.
What are you listening to at the moment?
Tom: Early Modest Mouse, You Made Me Realise and Sunny Sunday Smile EPs by My Bloody Valentine and a lot of The Velvet Underground and Dinosaur Jr.
Sam: Fugazi's 'Instrument' soundtrack, Rackets 'Friends' AND 'High Places', Elliot Smith's 'XO', Tally Ho's compilation 'Radikool Emotionz', The Smiths 'The Queen Is Dead' (Thank you Tim and Tane), and At The Drive In's 'In Casino Out'
Anthony: Soundgarden, Smashing pumpkins, Black Sabbath, Queens of the stone age, lots of heavy pop lately.
Chirs: I'VE GOT JUSTIN'S BEAVER FEVER.
What else doth the future hold for Nevernudes?
Tom: I still really want to go to New York, but some time early next year i think we'll definitely be going to Melbourne for a bit, do what Damsels, Street Chant and Sharpie Crows all did...Sam: Personally, I want to aim us getting to Melbourne by September, then drive along the Great Ocean highway or whatever it's called to the other cities.
In your opinion, what is the state of music in NZ?
Sam: In small pockets, it's great. There are so many amazing locals bands all over the country that don't get the attention they deserve. Whether its because of a lack of resources available to them or the inherent naivety and ignorance of the New Zealand public, bands like Wilberforces, Street Chant, Rifles, Rackets, O'Lovely, The DHDFD's, The Mint Chicks, and Die! Die! Die! that deserve so much attention will inevitably, if they haven't already, have to leave New Zealand to be successful.
Tom: I agree with Sam mostly, but i don't think the matter is that people don't pay attention. I mean, if you turn on bfm for 5 minutes, you're probably going to hear about Street Chant, Bandicoot or Rackets, its not like noisy bands don't get any attention, people just don't go to the gigs.
Anthony: Yeah and since there's no all ages gigs, kids just get into drugs and alcohol and then when they turn 18 they just go to bar gigs and get wasted and talk through bands. Its a bad cycle.
