What do you get when you combine slick blues-rock guitar tunes, enough '70s hair to make a rug, and teen-guy humour? Well, that would be The Sheepdogs of course.
The best thing made in Saskatoon, Canada, after their eight bridges, The Sheepdogs were the first unsigned band to front the cover of Rolling Stone's US magazine, thanks to their ridiculously good songs and exceptionally tight live performance.The band's style of humour is shown in their music video for 'Feeling Good', where the band is reimagined in GI Joe form, defeating a tonne of GI Joe ninjas using various hilarious methods, before naturally saving some half-naked barbies and driving off into the sunset.
"We wanted to come up with something badass, and we didn't have a lot of money for big-action budgets," frontman Ewan Currie explains. "So we got out the dolls."
Melding humour and music has been an integral part of Currie's life since his creative journey began. "When I learnt guitar in school, it was a nylon string, and you had to have your foot up on a block of wood to play it, and I was not into that.
"Then a guy in my class showed me how to play 'Hey Joe' by Jimi Hendrix, and I got right into it.
"The coolest thing was when I figured out I could play chords, and come up with my own songs. It was like learning a new language or finding the door to Narnia, this world opened up to me.
"So I would write these stupid songs to make people in my guitar class laugh. They were very silly."
Far from the world of nylon guitars, Currie's current axe is far more rockstar. "I have a black Les Paul custom from 1973 that I have played the most gigs on, and I just got a new ES335."
Both of which come in handy when slashing out blues riffs live like those from 'Rough Rider 89'.
"'Rough Rider' was a bunch of riffs that I had that didn't make sense, they were all disparate. Then we smashed them together into a song, which is ridiculous and silly.
"I like that because I'm a silly guy, and I like humour in music. Now we play it as our encore, Sam on the kit, and we come out one by one. I put a cowboy hat on, and it's just really ridiculous. I really enjoy playing it live."
Fun and passion are key elements for The Sheepdogs' performances and creative process. "I think somewhere in my 38-year-old brain and soul I'm still trying to remain a teenager in the way I feel about music, because I felt so passionate about it then, and I still do, I'm just more jaded and bitter now.
"There's a magic to the way a teenager thinks about music, and so I try to tap into that mode because it's important to keep the magic alive. You can't be too clinical, you gotta let the magic happen."
Some things from his childhood Currie is keen to forget, however touring brings them back up. "I was never good at camping as a kid, and touring is like the ultimate camping, because you're sleeping in weird places and going to the bathroom in weird places.
"But the best part of touring is the adventure – having a crazy, awesome show or going to a new bar or restaurant and meeting new people."
Despite the name, the band is sadly lacking in ownership of their own sheepdog, possibly the only negative thing that can be said about them. "I like dogs, I have an English bulldog. I live in the city, so I gotta work up to a sheepdog."
The Sheepdogs 2023 Tour Dates
Wed 19 Apr - Eltham Hotel (NSW)Thu 20 Apr - The Brightside (Brisbane)
Fri 21 Apr - The Great Club (Sydney)
Sat 22 Apr - The Gum Ball (Hunter Valley)
Mon 24 Apr - Northcote Social Club (Melbourne)
