The Wet Fish are a Brisbane-based instrumental-surf rock band featuring bass, keys, two guitars and drums with a cheeky saxophone here and there.
Their eclectic collection of songs are short and sweet, to the point and guaranteed to entertain with a blend of originals and a unique twist on crowd-pleasing gems incorporating a good mix of surf, reggae, soul and good, old-fashioned rock & roll. Guitarist Brendan Murphy discusses the band's “fun, party” style.
What's The Wet Fish story; how did the group start?
A few of us had done instrumental things in the past and we wanted to bring some authentic, surf rock to the Brisbane music scene. From there we mixed it up with other styles and The Wet Fish began to take shape.
Your music encompasses a lot; from classic surf, spy and soul to high-energy rock and roll. How would you describe a night out with The Wet Fish?
The aim of the band since day one has been to play fun, party music, so that's what we hope to bring on a night out with the band. We also play quieter, day-time gigs occasionally so the band knows how to show their more sensitive and mellow side too.
The next two months will be busy for the band with a string of live dates around Brisbane… looking forward to the extended run of shows?
Feeling a bit overwhelmed but definitely looking forward to a heap of winter shows. It'll be great to get down the Coast finally for the Cooly Rocks On festival. Loving some of the new venues around town too, so looking forward to lots of good times around Brisbane.
Do you have plans to tour interstate this year?
That would be nice, but we'd just settle for some more dates up and down the coast!
The band plays a mix of originals and covers; what bands/ artists do you feature in the live set? Do you take requests on the night?
All the latest stars of today like Duane Eddy, Dick Dale, The Ventures, Link Wray and Booker T and the MGs. We're not big on requests but we did play Hawaii Five O three times for one over enthusiastic punter.
The band is instrumental… has there been discussions to include vocals with future songs?
Not really, we have too much fun without a vocalist. Many people are very close-minded to music without vocals but we do manage to turn most of them around.
The band's name… has it ever placed the band in awkward/ funny situations?
Hmm. When we chose the name we didn't realise there were some rather unsavoury connotations. A female member of the audience took the liberty of explaining one of those meanings to us in between songs at our first gig. That was a little awkward.
That said, what's your favourite fish recipe?
Mullet fettuccine.
With the surf-rock aspect of your music, is surfing a big part of the band's lifestyle?
One of the guys is a surfer actually. He's down the coast a lot. The rest of us rarely get to the beach but we're there in spirit.
Your music sounds like it belongs on the beaches of Hawaii – what would be the dream location for The Wet Fish to play?
Any stage on any beach would be fine. Book us instead of a DJ!
What is the process for writing your songs? Did you write any of your music on the beach?
Wish I could say it was written on the beach but most was written in a lonely, dark room. It was good enough for Brian Wilson.
The Wet Fish Tour Dates
Sat 23 May – Brooklyn Standard (Brisbane)Sun 24 May – South Bank, River Quay (Brisbane)
Fri 5 Jun – Brooklyn Standard (Brisbane)
Sat 6 Jun – Redacliffe Place (Brisbane)
Sun 7 Jun – Cooly Rocks On Festival (Gold Coast)
Fri 12 Jun – Greaser Bar (Brisbane)
Sat 20 Jun – Brooklyn Standard (Brisbane)
Sun 12 Jul – Brisbane Powerhouse
