Full Moon Fiasco is the new band of Will Rattray from Wellington psychedelic outfit Thought Creature. Together with a few of his friends, the home recording project is now a fully-fledged live band with a brand new album to tour the shit out of. UTR had a brief chat with Will to find out where Full Moon Fiasco have come from and where they are heading in 2010.
Hi, how are you?
Very well thank you!
What have Full Moon Fiasco been up to lately?
We have just done a pre tour of sorts in which we played four shows in Christchurch. The next few weeks will be filled up with our album release tour!! Fun, Fun, Fun!!
If we could take a step back for a minute, how did Full Moon Fiasco come into being?
FMF came into being as a recording concept I had been playing around with. I wanted to make an album that used Four Tracks and was really washed out. In the process of making this music a band was formed, which I have to thank our drummer for as I never really had any great intention of playing the material live.
Who are the members of the band and what do they do/play?
Alice Macklow AKA Nancy Moon plays the keys.
Aidin Craig plays the low notes
Isaac (Dangerbird) Mawson hits the pots and pans
And myself Will I play the electric guitar and sing.
What other musical projects has everyone been involved in?
Alice plays in a Wellington band called Kitten Tank. Isaac and Aidin both play in a band called Red Country and Isaac also plays in a group called the Pickups I play in a band called Thought Creature
How does Full Moon Fiasco differ from those other bands?
Ummmm. . . I guess its just really really psychedelic.
How does being a “super-group” inform how the band operates?
Super? Well of course we have our Head Quarters hidden in the rocks by the Sea. And when we tour we fly in a space machine. A psych rock space machine!
Tell us about the debut album ‘Cosmic Palms’…
I recorded Cosmic Palms in my bedroom. Most of it is just me. Although a couple of tracks feature differn’t drummers. I think i just wanted to hear music sound a certain way and I used the process of making the album as a way of teaching myself how to get the sound I wanted. Newtown, Wellington where I live provided a lot of inspiration. There is a lot of colour and dreamy charm here that I know is reflected in Cosmic Palms.
How and where were the songs written?
I think most of the songs were written on an acoustic guitar in my room or while playing around with a tape deck somewhere. Although I know something like the song Full Moon Fiasco was created firstly as a concept and then as a musical idea.
What is the single biggest influence over the album?
Probably where I live and New Zealand as a whole. This place has had a pretty over whelming affect on me and I have travelled around a lot. Psychedelic experiences and the sub-conscious are no doubt present. Colour, Form and Shape take precedent over meaning in most of the art I make. I don’t find conventional use of meaning a particularly use-full tool. Well, it can be rather boring. Lets say, the biggest influence over the album is the Sky - this would not be untrue of most things!
What are you most looking forward to about your upcoming tour?
Going to all my favourite NZ venues and seeing all my amazing friends around the country.
Do you have a favourite venue to play?
For there uniqueness and charm I would say the Wunder Bar or El-Santo. The gems of Lyttleton.
What about a favourite band to play with?
Oh way to many to name!!
What is your live show like?
It’s a big sound. Simple things all played together at once. We tend to roll into each other in big washes that fall and separate then crash back together again at the appropriate moment. Its pretty hypnotic and a lot fun!! Oh, and for this tour we will have our amazing friend Erica create a live light show which she actually plays on stage with us using an old spinning wheel. Its pretty impressive and a performance in it’s self.
What are the things you have to have with you on tour?
Ha ha. Our instruments!! Our Van. A good sound man. Uppers, Downers.
Where was the best gig you ever played?
Probably New Years Eve as part of the Field Of Dreams Festival. It was on a big full moon in the Forest! Perfect.
And the worst?
Our drummer got arrested on the way to a show recently for drinking in public. That was a bit of a killer. But it worked out OK. We ended up playing with drummers from the bands we were on the bill with. Not the best thing to happen before a show though. Lucky for us Die!Die!Die!, TFF and The Dance Asthmatics all have amazing drummers!!!
Who are five musicians living or dead, that you’d like to punch for their musical crimes?
Well I’m not a violent man so I probably wouldn’t be incensed to commit aggressive acts against other musicians. I am not a fan of Bret Michael's though. Chauvinist Pig!
What would a Full Moon Fiasco look like?
A hell of a good time!!!!
What are you listening to at the moment?
The Horrors, The new Die!Die!Die! album, the new Golden Axe album. The Cure.
What does the rest of 2010 hold for the band?
More touring. New material. Rock and Roll Adventures. Memory's lost, memory's made!!
The state of NZ music is…
A good state to be in.
------------Cosmic Palms is available now at all good record stores and muzairecords.com - check out track two "Eyes and Ears" below.
