This year marks the 15-year anniversary for Aussie rockers Thirsty Merc.
For frontman Rai Thistlethwayte, it’s a milestone that’s come around all too quickly. “We're pinching ourselves asking if it's really been that long and then we look back at the maths of it and it's correct, it has been 15 years,” Rai says.
“It's also a bit of a 'time flies when you're having fun' scenario too.”
Since coming together in 2002, Thirsty Merc have created four studio albums, each spawning singles that have become sing-along staples.
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For all the highs that have come with being one of Australia’s most-loved modern rock bands, they have also endured their own share of crushing lows.
“Any band that's been together longer than a couple of years is going to find that it's a very non-linear existence, and we've had a huge amount of ups and downs – it's been a veritable roller coaster actually… inside the [tour] van and also with our audiences, it’s been a great dialogue.”
"We’re trying to age gracefully."
In 2004, Thirsty Merc released their self-titled debut album, which featured hit singles ‘In The Summertime’ and ‘Someday Someday’. Their latest album ‘Shifting Gears’ was released back in 2015 and saw the band complete an extensive series of tours in support of the record.
“'Shifting Gears' was a huge campaign for us,” Rai says.
“We did 150-plus gigs across 3 main tour periods and that took about 18 months from when the album came out in 2015. We wrapped everything up in about April or May this year, so I jumped over to the US and went to Los Angeles where I’ve been spending a lot of my time over the past six years now.”
It was not long after starting their 2015 album tour when the band faced perhaps their most difficult challenge they’ve experienced.
In September 2015, the vehicle in which the band were travelling was involved in a fatal accident that severely injured drummer Mick Skelton and, sadly, took the life of their stage manager, Shane Cooper. “It’s one of those things that at the time everyone reacted differently,” Rai says.
“I think I fell into being a really stoic dude who became a bit emotionless, and I went through a weird couple of months trying to focus on life [and] holding it together. I didn’t drink any alcohol for a few months; I needed to stay really stable.”
Though the tragedy rocked the band and may have derailed them entirely, Rai explains how the process of recovery eventually brought them closer together.
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“Looking back on it I realise what it did was help us realise we get the one life and hearing Mick’s stories about the emotional ride he went on helped us realise you’ve got to be good to each other, you’ve got to look after your family… It deepened the experience as a working unit I think, looking back anyway.”
The ‘Shifting Gears’ album also represented a shift in how Thirsty Merc operated as a band in terms of recording, releasing and distributing their music, deciding to adopt an independent approach outside of mainstream record companies.
“We decided that we were at a certain age where we know a lot about how [the industry] all works now, and as long as we’re prepared to put in the work we’re happy to go independent. Thus far it’s been a very busy time but it has also been extremely rewarding.”
This summertime, Thirsty Merc will take fans back to the sweet times and hot nights on their national ‘Take Me Back’ tour.
After 15 years of making music together, the band has amassed an enormous back catalogue of never-before-heard and rare material that Rai says they’ve been delving into for the setlist. “We're trying to do something a little bit different on this tour,” he says.
“Instead of just playing a setlist of stuff in a good order and that's that, we thought we'd try to bring the audience on a bit of a musical journey through our lineage. The road map we’ve settled on is to start off with some tunes people might know, but then go right back to some of those lesser-known songs maybe that were deeply embedded on some of those earlier albums.
“We've also got some B-sides and some rarities we're thinking of pulling out, then obviously we want to leave everyone with a smile on their face at the end so we'll play some more of what I call ‘the hits’ – the songs that have received airplay and the songs that people have heard on the airwaves over the past decade and a half.”
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It’s close to two years since Thirsty Merc released a new album and although Rai says there are no immediate plans for one just yet, the upcoming tour may prove to be a fruitful catalyst for their next release.
“I can’t say that there’s any new album or anything on the horizon right now but that said, I’ve been thinking about it and now I know how the dynamic works after 15 years, and if you get us in a van, get us in a plane or a rehearsal room and doing a soundcheck every day for weeks on end, creative discussions just start happening,” he says.
“By the end of this touring period; I don’t think it will be a full-on body of work set in stone, but I have a feeling there’s going to be some early ideas of what might come next. It might just be five songs we release next year, but at that point we might say ‘we’re halfway there, so let’s do a full album.”
The ‘Take Me Back’ tour will see Thirsty Merc perform throughout November and December.
At this point of their career, Thirsty Merc have achieved the level of credibility and respect that comes with being longstanding and prolific contributors to the zeitgeist of Australian rock.
The band’s status as statesmen of rock has been cemented with their inclusion on the Hotter Than Hell tour line-up next year alongside essential Aussie acts like Grinspoon, Killing Heidi, Eskimo Joe and The Superjesus.
“A lot of the bands there had music out for about five or ten years before us, so it's really nice to be included in that [line-up] because now after 15 years we’re starting to feel like we’re getting into a nice stride and into being in a more established part of our career,” Rai says.
“We’re trying to age gracefully and to be in that company is really great.”
[Update 2 January, 2018: Thirsty Merc join Pete Murray and others at Get Your Groove On at Bella Vista Farm Park (Sydney) 24 February, 2018.]
Thirsty Merc Shows
Thu 23 Nov - The Cambridge Hotel (Newcastle)Fri 24 Nov - Taren Point Hotel (Sydney)
Sat 25 Nov - Australian Brewery (Sydney)
Thu 30 Nov - Manning Bar (Sydney)
Fri 1 Dec - Long Jetty Hotel (Central Coast)
Sat 2 Dec - Narrabeen RSL (Sydney)
Wed 6 Dec - Sooki Lounge (Melbourne)
Thu 7 Dec - Macs Melton (Melbourne)
Fri 8 Dec - York On Lilydale (Melbourne)
9-10 Dec - Gasometer Hotel (Melbourne)
Thu 14 Dec - Village Hotel (Adelaide)
Fri 15 Dec - Norwood Hotel (Adelaide)
Sat 16 Dec - Fowler's Live (Adelaide)
