It's been three, long years since Melbourne funk act The Bamboos joined forces with Aussie rock legend Tim Rogers, of You Am I.
Now they're teaming again for a new collaboration, 'Rules Of Attraction'. Their first joint effort, 'Medicine Man', had Tim, renowned for growling rock vocals, singing smooth falsetto on the oh-so cool and irresistibly funky track, 'I Got Burned'; and Bamboos frontman, Lance Ferguson, was keen to get Tim back for something just as wonderful. “When I wrote 'I Got Burned', which featured on our 2012 album, I knew that was the right tune for Tim,” Lance explains.
“He came in and absolutely smashed it in only the way he can – in one or two takes in the studio; it was all over very quick. He can certainly deliver and when we came to make this record, I definitely wanted to do more music that had him singing in that range as well, so he sort of covers all of the sonic territory of his voice over this record.”
Combining The Bamboos' much-loved funky-soul sound with the inimitable poise, talent and stage presence of Tim Rogers has resulted in one of the most dynamic collaborative performances in Australian music. “He is one of Australia's great frontmen as well, he really just gets on stage and ignites the joint.
"So it's great to be around that energy and it's great to be on stage with that controlled and often uncontrolled chaos, which is such a great thing … Tim always downplays his vocal ability, but he can actually sing the hell out of stuff and clearly we wanted to showcase what he can do on this record.”
Released earlier in May, 'Rules Of Attraction' has already garnered extended radio airplay as well as acclaim from critics and fans of both bands alike, boding well for the upcoming tour which will feature the full band live on stage. “Tim will definitely be there and Kylie Auldist our regular lead singer is also going to be on the team, so everyone's going to be there,” Lance says.
“We are obviously playing the new record and I think we'll be playing it pretty much in full so we're going to pull some other things out. Some duets with Tim and Kylie, we're going to feature everyone in the band doing their thing which I think is always really fun and people love to see us let off the leash and breaking out some solos.”
Fans of both The Bamboos and You Am I will have plenty to look forward to with the upcoming tour, as Lance explains. “We might even throw a couple of You Am I covers, Bamboos versions of those in there as well which I think will be fun; we might even deconstruct some tunes and just do them as just piano and voice or break things down with a couple of songs of just guitar as well. So a bit of light and shade and hopefully something people will walk away from having had a great time.”
It's a good year for The Bamboos as well, with the release of 'Rules Of Attraction' coinciding with the 15th anniversary of the band making music together. While that's an impressive milestone for any band in this day and age, Lance sees it more than just a measure of their success. “Well, I don't know if I'd say that we 'made it' but what's happened over these 15 years is we've put out a bunch of records that we're generally proud of and we've become a real family,” he says.
“We've just been through a lot together and I think the human relationship side of it is the main part for me; I've met and gained friends that I'm just going to have for life and those are the things that matter most in the end.”
'The Rules Of Attraction' is now available.
Tim Rogers And The Bamboos Tour Dates
Thu 18 Jun - The Triffid (Brisbane)Fri 19 Jun - The Metro (Sydney)
Wed 24 Jun - The Corner Hotel (Melbourne)
Thu 25 Jun - The Corner Hotel (Melbourne)
Fri 26 Jun - Torquay Hotel
Sat 27 Jun - Theatre Royal (Castlemaine)
Fri 3 Jul - The Gov (Adelaide)
Sat 4 Jul - The Rosemount (Perth)
