Comprised of an engineer, a physics student, a music student and a botanist, new wave, indie rock band Neon Tetra came on the scene in 2017 with singles that scored them critical acclaim and some pretty exciting opportunities.
“All the guys in Neon Tetra, we've all played in our school orchestras from when we could pick up an instrument,” drummer Oscar Westell says, “and we've come together in this band and really had a go at it without any expectations."
As a young band, Oscar says they have already achieved a lot. “For me personally, I was very much into the dance music scene at one point.
"We supported Miami Horror last year, that was a massive show for us. And it was only six months after we'd released our first EP, so to get put on and approached by their management personally was a huge confidence boost for us. And we won't forget that night for a long time.”
Earlier this year, Neon Tetra were announced as one of six bands to have won a place as part of Music SA and Adelaide 500's Bands On Track programme.
The guys will be on the same stage as Robbie Williams at the Adelaide 500. “We've seen so many bands do [Bands On Track] before and we applied last year as well,” Oscar says. “It's such a big support slot in the Adelaide music calendar and it's amazing to have been selected this year.
"Every band wants to play on a huge stage like that with massive headliners. It's going to be a new experience for us to play on a stage and on a sound system that big.”
Although Neon Tetra began making music without many expectations, Oscar says they still find it important to make the most of everything that comes their way. “We can expand our band of four guys to a ten-piece orchestra and it'll all still work.
“Having something like [the Robbie Williams support] come up is just another checkpoint for us. It makes us think about how we can make our live show even more entertaining. When you get these opportunities, you don't want to let them slip.”
Neon Tetra are super keen to be open for Robbie. “[We are] huge fans of Robbie Williams, he's just such a showman and has so many great hits. Also, Sheppard is a pretty sick band with a similar way to us. It's going to be a pop-rock disco-y night, and we're definitely going down that soul-funk tick with our current releases,” Oscar says.
“There's obviously a fantasy we're all sharing that we will have beers with Robbie at some point in the night... if he still drinks... I don't know.”
2018 is set to be a busy year for Neon Tetra. “We want to play more shows and get out around Australia a lot more. We're starting to build our networks interstate.
“In March we start a campaign for our next EP, which is called 'Pollen'. That's going to be a four-track EP down the disco, funk, soul-genre spectrum.
"Then we'll do a few residencies around town and interstate and then we'll be planning on attacking the festival circuits a the end of the year hopefully. Lots of releases, lots of shows, interstate tours.”
