Melbourne-based, five-piece family affair (save for a token boyfriend bass player) Perch Creek are forgoing their old moniker and releasing their first self-titled album this month.
The decision to change from Perch Creek Family Jug Band freed the group from their “raucous hillbilly” confines, says drummer and vocalist Lear Hodgkins. “We were kind of boxed in a little bit, in terms of what kind of music we could put out.”
Perch Creek’s travels are imprinted in their new album; songs are embellished by styles of playing picked up abroad and threaded with stories from far-away places.
The lyrics of funky new single 'Gold Shop', and it’s Anderson-esque music video, were inspired by a gig the band played at a Dubai shopping festival. “It was just the most bizarre thing, right in the middle of the desert, playing a huge shopping mall that one of the sheikhs owned, or something like that,” Lear says.
“We heard a story of this particular mall being robbed by two Mini Mokes… they’d just driven through the glass and robbed a couple million dollars’ worth of gold and jewels, and had driven away.”
Growing up busking in the NSW Northern Rivers region taught the Perch Creek siblings an important skill: the art of growing and keeping a crowd.
“The dynamic and the energy that’s on stage when we play live - we’re quite a visual band, a lot of us sort of dance around and really connect with the audience - is what I suppose we’re really good at, because we’ve been performing for so long on the streets,” Lear says.
The band’s appetite to magnetise an audience on the street has translated to their love for festival stages, where they win over crowds across the world. “Each festival has its own, unique flavour or particular thing that really captures you.
“We played a festival on one of our European tours called the Green Man festival in Wales, and it was an incredible lush green [location],” Lear says.
“I think it had been raining for a couple of weeks, so there was this huge mud pit; but just like thousands of people. For me, that would’ve been one of the highlights of touring.”
Spending weeks at a time in near constant transit with three other family members is not everybody’s ideal situation, but the Perch Creek drummer seems well adjusted to the “full spectrum of experience” that comes from life on the road with siblings.
“For the most part, we have an incredible ball and it’s super super fun,” he says.
“You’ve definitely got your moments of sibling rivalry and perhaps petty disagreements, which can sometimes be pretty explosive, but in general, it’s pretty smooth sailing.”
'Perch Creek', the self-titled first release of the reborn group saw the musicians work more collaboratively than ever, taking “a more organic approach” to assemble an eclectic and exciting album over three years.
A week spent jamming in the Welsh countryside was followed by an extended period of refining and perfecting the songs, which could be “really brutal” at times. “Nobody holds back,” Lear says.
“Everybody kind of has their own idea and everybody’s deciding on which is best. So it can be a lengthy process, in the end it’s the most satisfying for the whole band.”
It’s certainly difficult to imagine the old jug band performing the hip hop-infused single 'Mama Sings'. The Perch Creek siblings were raised on Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
But now the musicians personal tastes peek through their songs, flavouring tracks with Amy Winehouse or Lana Del Rey. “We can kind of bring in styles that us as individuals really like, and then work on it together to come up with the song that [we] most want to write, or to sing and perform.”
'Perch Creek' is out 13 April.
Perch Creek Tour Dates
20-22 Apr - Fairbridge Festival (WA)Thu 31 May - Fly By Night (Fremantle)
2-3 Jun - Denmark Festival Of Voice (WA)
Thu 7 Jun - Lizotte's Newcastle
Fri 8 Jun - The Metropole Guesthouse (Katoomba)
Sun 10 Jun - Smith's Alternative (Canberra)
Thu 14 Jun - Black Bear Lodge (Brisbane)
Fri 15 Jun - Miami Marketta (Gold Coast)
Sat 16 Jun - Star Court Theatre (Lismore)
Sun 17 Jun - Pelican Playhouse (Grafton)
Thu 21 Jun - The Workers Club (Geelong)
Fri 22 Jun - Theatre Royal (Castlemaine)
Sat 23 Jun - The Evelyn (Melbourne)
Fri 29 Jun - Jive Bar (Adelaide)
Sun 1 Jul - Thornbury Bowls Club (Melbourne)
Fri 6 Jul - Major Tom's (Kyneton)
Sat 7 Jul - Sandy Point Music Club (VIC)
