Last week, Melbourne four-piece Money Boys independently released their debut album 'New Modern Architecture'.
Produced by Greg Rietwyk of Press Club, the album features ten tracks steeped in witty commentary and an abundance of metaphors. The opening chords of 'New Modern Architecture' keep resonating as the sentiment "callous streets make Jesus weep" provides some penetrating ambiguity.The album makes reference to the likes of Maimonides, Bowie, St Augustine and the natural world. To date, the band have released two tracks from the album.
'Gun' is a nostalgic sentiment for a country shorn of its complexities in a time that never was. While 'The Future Is A Lonely Place' is about the isolation the new world has brought to us. A blue note in the chorus, a blue sentiment throughout. The song explains its purpose only halfway through with a lengthy spoken word excursion about losing friends at a time of loss.
Who is... We four Money Boys knew each other from the underage punk scene in Melbourne, back when we were ratty kids. As the years went on, we didn't stop loving the music, we probably just got better at playing it.
We sound like... We write pretty catchy punk songs with a big focus on the lyrics. Everyone in the group has played in heaps of other guitar bands, so all the parts are really well thought out and really tight. Maybe if the Menzingers and Idles had a kid and raised it in Australia, we're what it'd sound like.
Our first gig was... We formed during the pandemic and recorded an EP during a brief interlude in the lockdowns. Out of that we were lucky the record fell into the hands of The Smith Street Band who really got around it. They booked us as the only support for three sold-out shows at the Croxton in Melbourne. Couldn't hope for a better start than that.
When did you settle on the group's name, and was it a unanimous decision... We'd initially started up as a cover band of our favourite punk-ska band from the late '80s – a group called Operation Ivy. In tribute we played a couple of gigs under the name Slop Ivy.
After a few rehearsals we decided to write an original, and the first chorus lyrics Carlo (singer) wrote were 'I wanna be a Money Boy', which ended up sticking.
In the studio we usually... Drink beers and hang out. We always record with our best mate Greg Rietwyk from Press Club. While he is incredibly talented and super professional, the man knows how to have fun.
If we could tour with anyone... We'd never knock back a holiday with Press Club; Joyce Manner would be cool for an international; Amyl are slaying it so that would be fun too.
Social media is... A constant pain in the ass. A necessary evil perhaps?
My favourite app at the moment is... We use Splittr when we're on tour. Keeps track of who's paid for what and does the maths for us at the end.
To date, our most embarrassing moment was the time... Our guitarist Paul had a violent bout of food poisoning about an hour before a sold-out gig in Adelaide. His gag reflex took control of his entire body and completely incapacitated him – we'd never seen anything like it.
To his credit, he somehow got his sh.t together a couple of minutes before the set and performed. But the crowd had no idea what had happened and without any warning, four songs in, he spray-vomited all over his pedal board. Ew!
Life on the road can be... The best holiday you could hope for.
If you'll have us on your bill, all we ask is that our rider contains... A briefcase full of clean, unmarked notes.
The most scary scenario we've found ourselves in was... A 6am flight after a night out on the Gold Coast.
If you had to live in a city abroad, where would you choose and why? We know a bunch of people in London and there's so many good venues to play there.
Three people you'd like to invite around for a dinner party... Tina Arena is/ has always been a big inspiration for us. Billy Bragg has plenty of interesting things to say, and maybe Bowie's ghost just to get things a bit weird.
If we were coming over to your place, what would you cook us? We would order you some Tasty Subs.
When it comes to pets are you a lover or hater of our furry friends? We rehearse at our drummer JP's house and his dog Zeus is an absolute legend, so we're definitely okay with pets.
No matter the expense, send me a case of... Money. Clean, unmarked notes.
The last time I saw the inside of a gym was... We all hit the gym together once. It was on tour and it was only because the pool was shut.
What's the one chore you dislike the most? Selling merch is one task that can either be a huge highlight with all the people you meet, or an absolute chore when you really wanna get stuck into the rest of the night.
Do you have any phobias... Equipment failure. We've had pedal boards die and kits completely f... up. Fixing those sorts of issues onstage and keeping the crowd entertained while it's happening is the mark of a truly good band.
Would you ever partake in a reality show? Years ago Regurgitator set up a recording studio/ apartment in a see-through plastic tent and plonked it in the middle of Melbourne's Fed Square. They didn't leave their bubble until the album was finished and had the whole thing recorded Big Brother-style. Maybe we'd do that.
Best local takeaway joint for a midnight feed that will leave you with a food coma? Tasty Sub in the Melbourne suburb of Coburg. It's like Subway, only heaps cheaper and way sh.tter. But each sub is prepared with love and there is some sort of mysterious x-factor that has us coming back. Plus their chips are 10/10.
Which fictional character best describes your personality? Our band dynamics are like an op-shop version of 'Succession'. Four blokes scheming against each other to head up Money Boys Incorporated.
Last show you binge-watched? Highly recommend NOFX's 'Backstage Passport'. You can stream it all on YouTube. Basically them on tour with their manager trying to prevent them getting arrested and the band trying to keep Fat Mike sober enough to play shows.
