Ahead of their return to Australia next week supporting post-hardcore mainstays Touché Amoré across the country, LA's Militarie Gun are taking a moment to reflect.
Not on what's next, but on the songs they wish could've been theirs.Militarie Gun's sound thrives on contrast: the sweet spot between melody and abrasion, pop and indie punk.
Fittingly, vocalist Ian Shelton's picks for his 'Top 5' are all masterclasses in that exact balance. From the melancholic drive of Elliott Smith to the shimmering grit of Royal Headache, and the unfiltered minimalism of John Lennon and beyond, these picks offer a glimpse into the DNA of Militarie Gun's sound.
'Bled White' by Elliot Smith
It's the poppy melancholy that stands out in the song and it has the get up and go of a rock song. It's a driving song, but it has that contemplative feeling to it; and I think that for Militarie Gun, it's something that we're always striving to combine together; the melancholy versus catchiness.I think 'Bled White' by Elliot Smith, and a lot of Elliot Smith songs in general, do that super, super well. Shout out Elliot.
'Cold Turkey' by John Lennon
This is one of the most pure rock & roll songs you can get. It does a trick that I've been trying to unlock for a long time, which is that the choruses don't have guitars.The rest of the song is so sparse that you could take away the guitars because there's other elements driving it, and I think that's just amazing. Like you listen to it and it's desperate, it's emotional, it's raw. Those are all things that we strive for in our writing.
'High' by Royal Headache
'High' by Sydney's own Royal Headache is a song that I've been obsessed with ever since I heard it. We were on tour and Waylon, who plays bass in Militarie Gun, played it in the van. I had never heard of Royal Headache before this and I was like, 'what is this?!' – that's always a great sign, when someone plays a song that can cut through the noise of hearing the over-saturation of someone else's playlist for hours on end – and it was 'High' by Royal Headache.
It's such a sweet, beautiful song. It's driving, it's essentially got a hardcore beat to it but you would never think of it as a hardcore song; and I'm just obsessed with it.
'Drain You' by Nirvana
This is my favourite Nirvana song. It's a song that I continually revisit. I mean, the lyric, 'I don't care what you think unless it is about me,' is such an amazing lyric. It's such an absurd song framed through the lens of one baby meeting another.I think it's just a perfect song. It has a noisy bridge, it has the disgusting grunge and it has the pop, and that balance is so amazing.
'Love My Way' by Psychedelic Furs
I think this is just a perfect, perfect song. It's so dark while also being so poppy. I feel like this whole list is like that – there's a darkness and an edge that exists within a very poppy song in all of them.I think 'Love My Way' feels like a bummer, but is not a bummer. That's what makes it this mystifying thing that you want to unlock. How did they do that? That answer would be my qualification for what would make me wish I wrote it.
Touche Amore & Militaire Gun 2025 Tour Dates
Thu 10 Jul - The Triffid (Brisbane)Fri 11 Jul - Mo's Desert Clubhouse (Gold Coast)
Sat 12 Jul - Hamilton Station Hotel (Newcastle)
Sun 13 Jul - Manning Bar (Sydney)
Tue 15 Jul - Dicey Riley's (Wollongong)
Thu 17 Jul - 170 Russell (Melbourne)
Fri 18 Jul - Lion Arts Factory (Adelaide)
Sat 19 Jul - Lynott's Lounge (Perth)
