Things are on the move for Australian band The Soul Movers.
The musical union of original Red Wiggle Murray Cook and vocal powerhouse Lizzie Mack have rocked audiences for years, and feel it's now time for them to get un-soul-y, officially changing their name to Murray and The Movers to reflect the band's truest musical expression.
"It's something we've thought about for a while," Murray explains. "We don't just play soul, there's a bit of rock and a bit of funk. Murray and The Movers more accurately reflects what we've always been."
"It's more about high-powered energy," Lizzie confirms. "We realised that it was time. Soul is everywhere now, Soul Burger, Soul Origin. It's become a bad cliche.
"We've also had a line-up change, we've got Paul Larson on drums, very well known for rock with The New Christs and Celibate Rifles. We tend to play to people's strengths and make hay while the sun shines!"
In the vein of moving audiences, Mack and Cook have spearheaded Rocktober at the Metro Theatre, giving Sydney audiences free rock every Wednesday night of October, featuring the likes of DZ Deathrays and Hard-Ons alongside female forces Hot Machine and DOWNGIRL.
"We like passing the baton on to younger acts," Cook says. "We thought it was a good juxtaposition to have more established acts alongside newer acts."
"We love giving bands the opportunity to perform on a good stage with good sound and connect them with older bands to create a brother and sisterhood," adds Mack, "and for the audience, we want people to socialise, chat and experience things together.
"Roadies in the '70s broke their backs, destroyed their health and lost their families and marriages in the service of rock & roll. The industry has always made huge sacrifices to service the bigger scheme of rock & roll.
"What we're doing is a tiny tile on the road of what Australian music has survived and will hopefully continue to deliver to people that need to feel something really powerful in their lives."
To solidify the name change, Murray and The Movers are set to release a brand new single 'If I'm With You' (on 24 October), a '90s alt-rock inspired anthem celebrating the nights you never forget. "The track has fabulous backing vocals from STO/NES, this young artist we know," Cook shares on the track's creation.
"A fabulous local musician, superstar triple threat, rugby league spectacular," Mack confirms. "We gave her the brief and she came back with the sickest parallel vocal you've ever heard that makes the whole track shine. It sounds like The Go-Go's meets The Bangles.
"When I walk past the remake shirts of Nirvana, Jane's Addiction, Rage Against The Machine, and Faith No More, I have vague memories of having spent lots of time with those bands and faces in green rooms for big festival stages all through the '90s. We distilled those memories of people being present and a strong spirit of camaraderie.
"The idea came from Murray and I experiencing a perfect night in Toronto with a bunch of bands after a festival; and also my twin nieces, both playing in bands and loving The Strokes, wanting to talk to me about what it was like back then.
"We combined the idea of a perfect night with the idea of taking people that you love back in time to experience something wild, whether it's someone you've lost or someone who's too young to be there. I was reduced to tears the first time I heard the master version. I rang Murray and said, 'we did it'."
Mack and Cook share the time and place they would revisit if they could. "The Stagedoor Hill Tavern or Bondi Lifesaver in the '70s," Cook says. "Lots of overseas bands came and played in the pubs here. The Cure did their first Australian tour in pubs and Simple Minds. That was really exciting."
"One band that saved my brain in those last few years of school was Violent Femmes," Mack says. "I knew every word to every song. I wasn't technically old enough to go and see shows, but I went. Seeing those actual people playing live metres in front of me, it blew my mind.
"The first experience that blew my mind was The Cramps. I got in underage at Canterbury Court to see Lux Interior in his cheetah skin g-string and stilettos and Poison Ivy in her red bugle belt dress.
"It blew my mind so much I went to the bathrooms, ripped off my Country Road shirt, stuffed it in the bin and came back out with my black lycra undershirt as my main ensemble. From that point onwards, my DNA changed and I was never a good girl again."
Rocktober continues at Metro Theatre (Sydney) with Hot Machine, Postcards From Pluto, Maisie's Vacation on 15 October; Hard-Ons, The Most Australian Band Ever! and Chimers playing 22 October; before Murray And The Movers, The Smoking Ruins and a DJ Murray set on 29 October. Murray And The Movers host the official launch of 'If I'm With You' at Django Bar (Sydney) on 28 November.
