Last/Tuneless is a punk, cumbia and psych music project inspired by artists such as Violeta Parra, Maria Luisa Bombal and Horacio Quiroga among others.
After releasing 3 EPs (on DIY cassettes) this year, the Perth band is preparing a new project to be released at Badlands Bar later this month. Band member Fabian Rojas fills in the blanks.
There is very little about the band on the old internet; is that on purpose to cultivate a mysterious presence in real life?
[Fabian] I guess there's not much, but we still have Instagram (@lasttuneless) and YouTube accounts to keep the loop. The internet is old, but still young compared to the big ol' real life #mysteries.
You have our attention now; can you delve a little into the Last/Tuneless bio?
Last/Tuneless is a project that started a bit ago. It is mainly music, but started going in a different direction since collaborations with artists Alma Kuschel (designs/ artwork); Matvey Nechaev (paintings/ comic); Korrin Stoney (masks). We have played gigs in very different venues in Perth such as 208, City Farm and Dadas.
"I met a new dog called Rogue the other day; he's a very, very calm dog."
Can you tell us about the new project you are currently prepping to launch at Badlands Bar?
The new project titled 'Portal Deambulante' is an 18-minute track that continues the narrative of our second release from June.
It is going to be released on cassette and YouTube and will have a comic attached to it. It is also the second collab with Nat Pavlovic who recorded and mixed it.
DIY cassettes seem to be a favourite of the band… do you think cassettes can ever match the vinyl resurgence of the past decade or so?
Yeah definitely. It is a format that has never 'died' in a way.
The best difference to vinyl is that re-recording onto old cassettes that are collecting dust in op-shops is not that tricky to do. It seems that a lot of bands are using cassettes these days to complement the good-old-digital downloads.
Aside from Last/Tuneless, what other projects do you occupy yourself with?
At the moment we are linked to bands/ acts: Shit Narnia, Plastic Farm, Moistoyster, The Pissedcolas and Grant Touchell.
What do you most admire about WA's music scene?
WA is pretty big and don't know much about what is happening outside Perth unfortunately, but it is pretty sick that there's a big, community sense in the 'scene' here.
There's a lot of people releasing music, but there's also a lot of fundraisers for either organisations or just to help out mates that are having rough times. It can always be more inclusive and diverse, but I feel it's going in a very good direction.
It's nearing time for album of the year best-of lists… which acts/ bands have been populating your playlists the past ten or so months?
Stella Donnelly 'Thrush Metal' (Perth); Meridian Brothers 'Donde Estas Maria?' (Bogota, Colombia); Lia Nadja 'Demos' (Concepcion, Chile).
The upcoming summer… will it be an endless stream of trips to the beach/ pool?
Yeah, of course. Probs South Beach doggo beach and then go play pool at Mojo's or something. No frío en Freo.
You've got a weekend to binge on some quality TV shows… what are you your streaming selections?
Mmmmn... not a fan of TV to be honest. Probs just download some 'Twilight Zone' episodes though.
With Trump in power, what are the chances the world fails to see 2018 arrive?
We are pretty close to 2018 now, so we will make it I reckon. Trump is dangerous, very dangerous though. I do feel that the Earth will probs [sic] send us to the extinction at some point; we as humans are f%^&ing it up at so many levels.
On a lighter note, what's the cutest thing you've seen this week?
Pink galahs hanging out at Britannia Reserve in Leedy are always very cute. Also met a new dog called Rogue the other day; he's a very, very calm dog.
Who is a local in the music scene (maybe behind the scenes) that you admire/ respect the heck out of?
It always impresses me the work Chris Wright does as live sound engineer at The Bird; kills it ALL the time.
Also have had the chance to record with Nathalie Pavlovic, Jordan Shakespeare, Alex Patching and they are amazing in their own recording/ mixing tricks. Also Mikey Young.
We're headed over to your place for a fed and catch-up/ good times; what's on the menu? Are you cooking or ordering in?
There will be pizza this time and it will be a fusion of ordering (first) and cooking (later) in the pure style of @pizzagram420 (Instagram, check it out).
