Brisbane band Bricklayers are quickly cementing themselves as a no-frills, uncomplicated rock act with nothing on their minds except having a good time.
And before you ask, no, not one of them is an actual bricklayer. “We're basically a group of four dudes from Brissie making music,” frontman Nathan Glen says. “We've all come from different bands. There's nothing too crazy going on here.
“We're not trying to be rock & roll stars or nothing [sic] like that; we're just making music, having fun and hanging out.”
Having fun is definitely at the heart of what Bricklayers are all about, otherwise what's the point? Bandmate Ben Smith says: “It's got to be easy and enjoyable and we definitely have a lot of fun doing it.”
With Nathan adding: “A lot of the thought behind it is, if it's not fun to do then it's probably not very good.”
Bricklayers have released their debut full-length album 'Tan, Black And Brown', which was written and recorded with the same laid-back approach they take to being a band. “We did the album over a year and a half, off and on,” Nathan says.
“I was going away overseas to America so we recorded three songs before I left, and we didn't really know what we were going to do with them. As soon as I got back me and Ben went into the studio to do another two, and from there we formed as a band and decided we were going to record an album... we didn't really over-think it.”
The title track serves as an open letter to Nathan's beloved dog Django, who also appears on the album's cover and is, by all definition, a very good boy. “I've had him for five years now,” Nathan says.
“He comes to all the recording sessions and most of the jams. He comes everywhere with me really. What is there to say about him? He's brilliant, he's as good as a dog gets.
"He's a spoilt boy and gets to do a lot, a lot more than other dogs but he deserves it. He's a bit camera-shy too, old Django. You can see he looks a bit pissed-off in the photo, he wasn't happy about it,” he laughs.
The unofficial fifth member of Bricklayers, Django also features on the record doing backing vocals, or should that be 'barking vocals'? “There's some vocals from him in there too,” Nathan laughs. “On the last track of the album he's in for a bit.”
Bricklayers are now preparing for the next few months of live performances, including several Brisbane shows and a set at Magic Pond Festival. “We're pumped. We're putting in a lot of new songs as well, so we'll have a good mix of both.”
As for what to expect from their stage show, Nathan says “it's pretty intense. Old Christian [Driscol] the drummer likes to get the angle grinder on the cymbals.”
