Northern Lights are a five-piece alternative rock band from Ipswich, Queensland.
Active since 2017, the band was originally the solo project of Dustin Schmidt who recorded and performed all the instruments on Northern Lights' debut EP, 2019's 'Happy'.
After a hiatus of a number years that included Dustin directing the award-winning indie drama film 'The Last Of The Pretty Boys' (filmed in Brisbane and Ipswich), Northern Lights are amping things up once again.
With the recent release of the single 'Leave Me Be', and with a new collective of musicians joining Dustin, work is progressing on Northern Lights self-produced debut album, which is slated for release in 2026.
"The band originated as a solo project with Dustin recording and performing our debut EP 'Happy' himself. He then brought in other musicians for the launch show and the band have been blazing a trial around south east Queensland, their music appearing in film and TV as well as 4ZZZ's Hot 100.
"Angie was initially recruited on backing vocals and tambourine to help fill out our sound when one of our former band members couldn't make it to a show. We loved the dynamic she brought to the band and she's been with us ever since," the band says.
"Dane joined us on rhythm guitar so we could expand our sound even further, allowing us to venture off into new musical territory. Dane's younger brother Fraser joined us on bass after our previous bass player (who was Dane and Fraser's older brother) left to start his own business.
"We recruited Logan on drums after seeing him perform at an open mic night at Banshees and were impressed by his playing. It felt like we needed all the right elements to really fit into place in order for this band to live up to its potential and this line-up just really clicks.
"There's a great chemistry here and everyone brings something really unique to the table that's helped to elevated our sound. There's even more freedom to branch out of our comfort zone and push the boundaries of what Northern Lights can be. The band sounds bigger and better than ever before."
We sound like... Nirvana and Fleetwood Mac getting into a punch-up in the parking lot of an Oasis show.
Our first gig was... At The Witch Hotel in Ipswich where we launched our debut EP 'Happy'. It's also where Dustin played his first gig as a teenager and where Dustin and Angie met before Angie joined the band. We recently returned to The Witch where it all began for us to launch our last single 'Leave Me Be'.
When did you settle on the group's name, and was it a unanimous decision... The name Northern Lights is taken from a book by Philip Pullman. It's set in an alternate universe where the world is ruled by an oppressive, authoritarian government and a young girl travels through a portal under the Northern Lights to escape into other worlds.
Our band name represents the freedom and escapism that music has to offer. Northern Lights is a place where we're all free to be who we wanna be and where we can make the music that we're all passionate about. It also happens to be the name of a strain of weed, a wrestling move and a DZ Deathrays song, which is a happy coincidence.
In the studio we usually... Buckle down and get to work. It's a surprisingly calm and smooth process whenever we get into the studio together. There's no pressure, besides the pressure we put on ourselves to do our best work.
We've usually fined-tuned the songs long before we start recording them, but we always leave ourselves the freedom to try out new things and go with the flow if we're feeling inspired. The studio really is a sanctuary where we can just come together to work towards a shared goal without anything getting in the way.
If we could tour with anyone... Bob Dylan. He's the greatest songwriter of all time. There's so much to learn from him and I'm sure he's got a wealth of stories to tell. The only thing better than playing a show would be to watch the GOAT performing some of the greatest music in human history afterwards.
Social media is... A necessary evil. It can be a great tool for getting your music out there, but it can also be incredibly disheartening and taxing if you spend too much time on it. The world exists online now though. If you're not using social media to put yourself out there you're giving yourself a major disadvantage.
My favourite app at the moment is... GuitarTuna. It's reliable and it doesn't make you increasingly depressed the more you use it like most other apps.
To date, our most embarrassing moment was the time... Earlier in the year a young woman started getting her gear off in the moshpit and our bass player (who was only 14 at the time) turned his back to crowd for the rest of the show out of embarrassment. The rest of us found it pretty amusing though. It's also given us a great tagline for the band: 'Northern Lights - Music To Get Naked To.'
Life on the road can be... An adventure waiting to happen.
The most scary scenario we've found ourselves in, was... Angie was nearly kidnapped as a child. Thankfully she managed to outrun her would-be abductors.
What celebrity/ famous person would you love to be spokesperson of the band... The ghost of Macho Man Randy Savage. Just like Randy Savage, we're the cream of the crop and the cream always rises to the top. Oohhhh yeahhhh! He also knew that the peak of masculinity meant dressing as flamboyantly as possible and writing diss tracks about racist bootlickers.
If you had to live in a city abroad, where would you choose and why? Tokyo. The food's great, the music scene is vibrant and they've got some of the best wrestling in the world. Then you've got the fashion and vintage toy shops. I think Northern Lights would fit in nicely there.
Three people you'd like to invite around for a dinner party... Jared Leto and two people in gimp suits. I think the reason why is pretty self-explanatory.
If we were coming over to your place, what would you cook us? Angie's famous vegetarian meatloaf with creamy cauliflower. It's also a Christmas tradition in the band house (although we're much bigger Halloween lovers here).
When it comes to pets are you a lover or hater of our furry friends? We're definitely pet lovers here. We're always taking in strays.
No matter the expense, send me a case of... Passion Pop.
The last time I saw the inside of a gym was... Never. Who needs a gym when you're always lugging around heavy music gear?
Would you ever partake in a reality show? Most of us live together in a band house so I think an Osbournes-style show about our everyday hi-jinks could be fun.
Best local takeaway joint for a midnight feed that will leave you with a food coma? Guzman y Gomez is always our go-to.
Which fictional character best describes your personality? Lazarus F...ing Graves. I think there's a bit of Lazarus in all of us. You need to be free to be yourself and to express yourself however you feel comfortable with; and sometimes you've gotta push back against the people and systems of oppression trying to keep you down.
Last show you binge-watched? 'Ink Masters'. The artistry on display is just incredible.
What's next for the band? We're currently in the studio recording our debut album which is due out in mid 2026. We just released the first single from the album, 'Leave Me Be', and we've got a number of new singles we'll be rolling out in the lead-up to our album launch. Next up we've got a blues-punk song about the chaotic mess of a world we're living in called 'Doomsday Blues'.
Northern Lights play Greaser (Brisbane) on 11 September. They then perform as part of of the music festival Causeway N FX at Spring Garden Park (Ipswich) on 11 October.
