A hard-rock quartet from Brisbane who first formed in 2019, Scandal Tree recently released 'Nothing To Lose' their first single since their 2020 self-titled EP.
Recorded at Core Studios on the Gold Coast under the guidance of Nik Carpenter, 'Nothing To Lose' details the pressures of everyday life and how it's never too late to break free of the shackles that hold us down."'Nothing To Lose' was originally a song conceived by an idea brought forward by rhythm guitarist Adam," the band's drummer, Rip Ryder says.
"At first it was just a basic groove, over time it developed into something more.
"We all immediately felt that the song's pure drive had the potential to be something that could get people back into the genre of hard rock and to appreciate what we were trying to do and say."
Who is Scandal Tree... We hear you ask. Well we're a pure, hard-driven rock act straight out of Brisvegas. Scandal Tree was formed in 2019 after Jase and Rip decided, after a previous band imploded, to pursue something together.
Jase and Rip have been jamming and writing for many years. Initially we wanted a bassist and lead guitarist, but when we couldn't find a bass player Jase switched to the bass and finally with the addition of lead and rhythm guitars, Scandal Tree was born.
We sound like... A blend of Alice In Chains meets Rose Tattoo. This would sum up our sound the best. We do have hints of other '90s rock/ grunge acts in there, but this is us we think.
Our first gig was... At The BBQ Bazaar on the Gold Coast in August 2019. We had a blast dusting those musical cobwebs off with some live action.
When did you settle on the group's name, and was it a unanimous decision... We settled on the name early on in the piece, as it's quite original and there's no other band around that has a name remotely like it.
It was based on a song written and sung by Rip our drummer and it just had what we thought were the right vibes/ undertones for a hard-hitting rock act. Plus band names are such a struggle to find at times and we didn't want to get bogged down with it.
In the studio we usually... Use it like a men's shed thing where we can get together as a group to socialise and connect while taking out all our frustrations by ripping it up and jamming. Nothing like letting the music do the talking at times.
If we could tour with anyone... Alice In Chains or Soundgarden; our bassist Jase said Ratcat. . . who is this guy?!
My favourite app at the moment is... Spotify as it links you to all your old favourites as well as introduces you to the latest and newest in music. We all love listening to tunes from all different genres on Spotify.
To date, our most embarrassing moment was the time... We got to this question and we didn't have one to talk about. It's all about experiences, so there's no such thing as being embarrassed. We don't judge, we're all human and that's just life people. We all do silly, unpredictable things at times.
Life on the road can be... Interesting, entertaining and revealing.
If you'll have us on your bill, all we ask is that our rider contains... Finger sandwiches with the crusts removed, fruit salad (yummy, yummy) and some pitted prunes to aid our digestion and a pot or Earl Grey tea.
Seriously, throw us some American barbecue food, Jack Daniel's and plenty of craft beer and some Pepsi Max for our lead guitarist Grant, who isn't a huge boozehound, and you've got a happy crew.
The most scary scenario we've found ourselves in was... Well, we're all as cool as a bunch of Fonzies really. Totally relaxed bunch we are. Nothing rattles us much.
What celebrity/ famous person would you love to be spokesperson of the band... Frank Walker from National Tiles. That voice is memorable. Or. . . Donald Trump.
Love him or hate him he knows how to run a good campaign and he does have a good point about fake news in a day and age where people can say whatever they want without checks and balances, or a benefit of a doubt.
This is the era of no accountability or responsibility for what one says on any platform or medium in this interconnected, self-entitled world; bit heavy I know, but hey no apologies there.
If you had to live in a city abroad, where would you choose and why? Seattle as so many musical legends came out of this town in the '90s, such as Nirvana, Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam.
Three people you'd like to invite around for a dinner party... Kurt Cobain, Jimi Hendrix, and John Bonham, because after dinner we could head to the studio or chill in house and just jam it out. Could you just imagine the sounds and the music that'd come out of that room with that combination?
If we were coming over to your place, what would you cook us? Baked beans on toast. We're poverty stricken musos. We don't have a lot and quite often the cupboard is bare.
When it comes to pets are you a lover or hater of our furry friends? We prefer furry friends as they never disappoint or let you down. Love cuddling up to something with a bit of fur.
No matter the expense, send me a case of... Buffalo Trace OFC Vintage 1995 Kentucky bourbon whiskey. We love a good bourbon and at 10K a bottle, a case of this should go down nicely.
The last time any of us saw the inside of a gym? Never. . . we've never seen inside of one. What's a gym? Have you seen a pic of us at all?
What's the one chore you dislike the most? Scrubbing the barnacles off the WC porcelain bowl.
Do you have any phobias... Heights because no one likes to get too high that you don't want to ever come down, as it impedes your performance.
Would you ever partake in a reality show? 'Survivor' as we'd love to see which one of us could outwit, outplay and outlast the other.
We'd have said 'The Bachelor In Paradise', as I could just see us all on the beach in our budgie smugglers lathered up in sunscreen and zinc strutting our stuff along the sand like David Hasselhoff from 'Baywatch' (cue the theme music), but the girls would go too crazy and we'd melt screens. It'd be too smoking hot for television.
If you could prank any of your friends, who's your target, and how are you bringing them down? We're not into pranking friends or bringing anyone down, that's for impudent teenagers, lost souls and politicians with an agenda.
Best local takeaway joint for a 2am feed that will leave you with a food coma? There's not a lot of options open at 2am apart from Maccas. Wouldn't necessarily say it's the best takeaway joint, but it'll definitely leave you in a food coma and is budget friendly.
Which fictional character best describes your personality? For our drummer Rip it'd have to be Deuce Bigalow because he's always finding himself in strange, manic or awkward situations that he's always finding his way around with a laugh and a smile.
Grant would be Captain Spalding from the 'Devil's Rejects' as he has a thing about clowns. Jase has to be Fabio as it's all about the hair when the rest of the band is seeing Ashley & Martin.
Last show you binge-watched? There's just so many, but Rip is currently binging on 'Law & Order SVU'. Who doesn't like seeing a Tutuoloa (Ice T) take down or seeing Stabler and Benson collaring another perp. Not everything on this show is cut and dry or black and white in line with the real world. What you think you know isn't what is known or true.
