A group who dig the sounds of 1970s rock & roll, Adelaide's Kozmik Landing came together through their collective love of an era dominated by the likes of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Janis Joplin.
The group's core songwriting duo features Vena and Robert Cartledge, who maintain the retro vibes by dedicating themselves to pursuing songwriting with a poetic licence, infusing rockin' riffs, and maintaining tight instrumentation throughout."I hear it said all the time," Robert (founder of RVC Records) says, "why don't we hear music being written like it was written in the '70s?
"Great song structure, poetic and memorable lyrics, sung with energy and passion along with a powerful rhythm section, strong guitar riffs and solos. That's what Kozmik Landing represent to their fans."
After releasing a couple of albums since forming in 2019, the band are currently working on material for their third studio record, titled 'Wanderer', that they'll launch with a home-town show in early October.
The make-up of the band; how did it all start, who met who and how long did it take to realise you may have a group of musicians who could have some success (even locally) together?
[Rob] The music of Kozmik Landing was created by Vena and Robert Cartledge. We started writing over 20 years ago, but shelved the concept for around 10 years until the end of 2019 when we decided to produce an album for posterity.
Once that was produced, we realised we were onto something. We then found our drummer Neil through Facebook, who happened to be in my (Rob's) first band when they were just 16.
We also had a great young bass player by the name of Anthony Ciccarello who was willing to help us out for the first year and a half. Our bass player now is Bill Carapetis. Bill saw us live at our fourth gig at the Rhino Room and loved what he heard and with a bit of enticing he joined the band. Neil and Bill are now rock-solid members of the band and there's great chemistry between us all.
The focus on '70s-style classic rock; what exactly about that era draws so much inspiration that influences the music of Kozmik Landing?
We are most musically inspired by the classic rock era, and so when we write songs, without even meaning to, they always emerge sounding very retro. I believe it has a lot to do with the way Vena and I connect musically and what we listened to mostly growing up, and of course the classic rock drumming and bass playing of Neil and Bill.
The band have their third album, 'Wanderer', on the way that you began recording in late May; how's it progressing and what sort of style, lyrical themes are at the centre of this release?
To us, we believe it is our best album to date and reflects exactly what we feel. This album was developed by more band input than previous albums, so it is more of a group effort, yet the songs themselves were written by me and Vena in our typical fashion.
We will have the album completed and ready for our CD launch concert on Saturday 8 October. It is a very retro classic rock and blues album with deep themes relating to being lost in life and searching for our way home – both relationally and spiritually.
How does this batch of songs showcase the current incarnation of the group?
Definitely shows off a new wave of KL, very exciting, and potentially more retro than previous albums.
The bass playing in this album is superb and adds a new funkiness to the songs. Neil's drumming is brilliant and creative, and Vena has just hit her straps and produced some of the most outstanding lyrical lines and vocal phrasings you'll ever hear in rock.
With the amount of experience the band have collectively, do you feel even though some members are no longer spring chickens that this is the best musicianship you had collectively?
Definitely and easily the best, although we aren't spring chickens, we have a huge amount of energy for performance; although we will probably pass on the after-concert party, way past our bedtime – hehe!
The scope of audience that attend Kozmik Landing gigs; is that geared towards are older crowd (who lived through the '70s) or do you have a broad range of punters attending the shows?
Sure, our demographic seems to be '40s-'60s; in saying that, we also get a lot of younger fans as well. The younger generation who have had parents that introduced them to the music of the '70s, tend to realise midway through their 20s, that the '70s was the golden age of rock music and so they can identify with what we are doing.
Speaking of live shows, the band have a launch show for 'Wanderer' at Bridgeway Hotel in early October; what can punters expect on the night (anything extra special planned)?
That's right. They can expect a huge show at the premier music venue of Adelaide, the Bridgeway.
We will be playing every song off our latest album, as well as a selection off earlier albums. But we also will be playing quite a few new songs, which will be on our next album. The Bridgeway has a completely new sound system and some brilliant techs, so it is gonna be fantastic.
Given the band's collective love of '70s rock, if we were to dig through your persona, record collections, what sort of LPs are we finding (and don't be shy in sharing some of the less hip ones, ha!)?
Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Free, Melissa Etheridge, Janis Joplin, Eurythmics, Billie Holiday, Neil Diamond, Elvis, Beatles, Roberta Flack, Nora Jones, Adele, Eva Cassidy, Pink Floyd, BB King, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Carole King and many more. My (Rob) personal favourite is an album by Kitaro called 'Silk Road 2'.
So this is a toughie, but if you have to choose your Mount Rushmore of classic '70s rock bands which four bands get the nod (and why)?
Rob: Led Zeppelin, their musicianship and songwriting and production is still the best of all classic rock bands.
Vena: Led Zeppelin; Robert Plant's voice has influenced me the most and I love their songwriting and phrasing.
Neil: Deep Purple has always been Neil's favourite band and I remember a lot of Deep Purple covers when we were jamming at 16, in those days I (Rob) was on keys and Neil got off drums and was playing bass.
Bill: Free – Bill just loves the energy and power of the band, especially the not so well known tracks.
What else is in the pipeline for the band? Maybe interstate touring?
An interstate tour is definitely in the pipeline, as well as continuing to develop our style and producing more albums. We would love to do a few big festivals, so hit us up if you are organising a festival.
What's the one chore you dislike the most?
Vena: Ironing, what's the point? Rob: Mowing our lawn, (I'm a landscape gardener).
Best local takeaway joint for a midnight feed that will leave you with a food coma?
Hungry Jacks Whopper after a gig.
Which fictional character best describes your personality?
Maybe our fans or our kids could answer this one; we're not sure.
Last show you binge-watched?
We're just now binge-watching the last season of 'Stranger Things'.
Kozmik Landing launch their new album 'Wanderer' at Bridgeway Hotel (Adelaide) on 8 October.
