After a national tour in December, King Parrot are looking forward to a host of dates in regional centres.
The band began their hectic 2018 with a slot at one-day festival Thrashville, in the Hunter Valley, in January.
Matt Young, King Parrot’s frontman, says that “having King Parrot playing [Thrashville] was something a bit different to what they were used to. We certainly turned the place upside down!”
While he enjoyed the “unique” experience of playing the festival, the touring veteran says he would rather stay in a hotel room than the close quarters of a campsite. “Our bass player, Slattz, was right next to me. I could here some strange noises coming from that tent, let me tell you,” he says.
The next two months will see King Parrot embark on their ‘Regional Rampage’ tour to support new album ‘Ugly Produce'.
But first, the lads will launch their rampage at Download Festival in Melbourne playing alongside powerhouse acts like Korn and Limp Bizkit. Matt says the festival is a welcome addition to the local, heavy scene.
“Since Soundwave is unfortunately no longer, there’s certainly a hole in the market,” he says.
“So it’s a great thing that Download is taking the chance to come to Australia and hopefully it can build over the years.”
King Parrot take a lot of pride in their live show, which is as much an outlet for them as it is for their audience. “I like being the ringleader of a bunch of psychopaths on stage,” Matt says.
“We’re all just sort of normal guys off stage, but when we get onstage we flick the switch and we really turn it on.”
Matt is pro-active in acknowledging the metal scene's burgeoning grassroots scene. “The Australian metal scene at the moment is really great, it’s a really strong scene.
“It’s great that people are able to live out their dreams, or whatever, playing this type of music.”
While King Parrot have been touring for a decade, they’re still surprised by some of the crowds they play to and the global reach of their fan base. The band’s first time in Japan last year was an “incredibly unique” experience.
“The audience are really polite and quiet, which is strange because we’re used to this raucous kind of thing.
“In Japan, in between the songs, everyone is dead silent. No one heckles and no one says anything! It was really bizarre for us because it was the total opposite of what we’re used to, [but] they still go crazy and have a really great time.”
Nonetheless, the band are more than happy to play to familiar audiences again.
“We’ve had so much great support from people in regional areas [of Australia] and we pride ourselves on taking the time to go and tour in these regional places where no other bands will go,” Matt says.
“We think that’s really important and I think that a lot of the work we’ve done over the years has been heading to those sorts of places and paying our dues there.”
While the heavy scene is still outside the mainstream, the frontman says “it’s definitely got its place and the people that support it really love it.
“Even though the landscape of the music industry has changed, the passion in fans is still the same.”
King Parrot Tour Dates
Sat 24 Mar - Download Festival (Melbourne)Wed 28 Mar - Albion Hotel (Albury)
Thu 29 Mar - Transit Bar (Canberra)
Fri 30 Mar - Dicey Riley's (Wollongong)
Sat 31 Mar - Long Jetty Hotel (Central Coast)
Sun 1 Apr - Small Ballroom (Newcastle)
Wed 4 Apr - Gollan Hotel (Lismore)
Thu 5 Apr - Miami Tavern (Gold Coast)
Fri 6 Apr - Sol Bar (Maroochydore)
Sat 7 Apr - The Back Room (Brisbane)
Sun 8 Apr - The Northern (Byron Bay)
Wed 11 Apr - Tattersalls Hotel (Maryborough)
Thu 12 Apr - Railway Hotel (Bundaberg)
Sat 14 Apr - Dalrymple Hotel (Townsville)
Sun 15 Apr - Edge Hill Tavern (Cairns)
Thu 19 Apr - Spotted Cow (Toowoomba)
21-22 April - Under The Southern Cross Festival @ Bald Faced Stag (Sydney)
Tue 24 Apr - Musicman Megastore (Bendigo)
Wed 25 Apr - Karova Lounge (Ballarat, early show)
Thu 26 Apr - Barwon Club (Geelong)
Fri 27 Apr - The Evelyn (Melbourne)
Sat 28 Apr - Pelly Bar (Frankston)
For ticket info click here.
