Tasmanian indie rockers Chase City have released a new single and with it a new sound for the band.
Veering away from the bright indie-pop style of their early work, Chase City have taken on a dirty, electro-punk vibe for their new single ‘A-N-X-T’ released in May.
Vocalist Tarik Stoneman says the shift was a gamble that’s been paying off for the young band. “We’ve been releasing stuff that’s really different to what we’ve been releasing before,” Tarik says.
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“It’s a new venture and a new style, so I wasn’t fully sure if we were good at it or not. But the response has been pretty good.
“I wrote most of the new material well over a year ago. I went on a holiday to Europe last year and before I went I was writing this type of stuff. ‘A-N-X-T’ was a song just sitting there waiting to be recorded for half a year and we got around to doing it earlier this year.”
‘A-N-X-T’ is a significant progression for Chase City, embracing a heavier synth sound inspired by bands like Joy Division and New Order. “I don’t remember a huge amount about writing it,” he says. “We were just mucking around and we were at the point of looking to get away from that indie-pop sound. I personally got over it a little and wasn’t listening to much of it.
“We were playing our old music and I just wasn’t into it. I think it started because we were covering an LCD Soundsystem song and every time we played it live that was by far the highlight of the set for me and I think for the rest of us. So we decided to mix it up and find something where we feel like that with every song we play.”
While it’s certainly a risky move, Tarik says he wasn’t concerned about alienating current fans with their new sound. “I don’t think we had that big a following to worry about that stuff,” he says.
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“We’re still pretty early in our career and we’re still trying to find what works best for us and I think this is definitely a step in the right direction.
“We’ve got some newer stuff we’re writing now that is sounding even better, so I don’t think it’s something we need to worry about as a small band. Maybe if we had gotten more traction on the older stuff that might have been something to think about.”
With shows in Sydney and Melbourne this weekend, Chase City will also embark on their maiden tour to the UK next month. “We’re really keen,” Tarik says. “We’re doing the UK and a bunch of European dates. We’ve got about 20 shows over there; some of it will be great and some will be like when we started in Australia.
“For us it’s mainly a bit of a holiday and to test the waters for our music over there. We’re going to have a good time and not take it too seriously.”
Chase City Shows
Fri 14 Jul - Hotel Steyne (Sydney)Sat 15 Jul - Yah Yah's (Melbourne)
