ALT. have released their debut album ABEYANCE. I caught up with Dan (vocalist) ahead of their shows with Thornhill hitting Aotearoa this weekend!
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ALBUM PRESS RELEASE:
Abeyance: a state of temporary disuse or inactivity. More accurately, the polar opposite to Adelaide rockers alt.’s modus operandi, emerging from a turbulent few years armed with rejuvenated focus and ferocity, as well as their debut full-length album ABEYANCE officially out today via Resist Records in Australia and SharpTone Records for the rest of the world.
With ten tracks lying in wait on ABEYANCE, alt. run the gamut of the human experience and sonic flexibility, from the electronic bounce of the introductory PARASITE to the glistening menace of A.D.D, oscillating rock and sparse pop-fuelled hip hop on THE ONLY GOOD THINGS and the soaring emotives of BETTER OFF LEAVING. Equal parts multifaceted, confident and dynamically cohesive, ABEYANCE ultimately also finds alt. unequivocally exploding beyond their comfort zones.
Wielding songs capable of breaking hearts, shattering speakers and bewitching ears at every twist and turn, ABEYANCE expertly flexes alt.’s staggering technicality and flourishing grasp on vivid modernity amongst moments of sentimental flair. And while lyrics like “I just wanna feel right / Truth is that I’m broken” or “I cannot see without you and me” dole out plenty of the alt. sentimentality witnessed on earlier releases, ABEYANCEmarches defiantly into the dark, emerging with cathartic vigour and unwavering relatability.
Teaming up on ABEYANCE alongside Marcus Bridge (Northlane), Landon Tewers (The Plot In You), Zach Britt(Dream On, Dreamer) and Trenton Woodley (Hands Like Houses), producer Callan Orr also returned after his work on alt.‘s 2020 debut EP dysfunctional – and the end result is nothing short of astonishing.
Spending years honing their signature brand of punk, pop, electronic and alternative rock since first erupting onto the scene in 2019, alt. have previously performed with the likes of Karnivool, Cog, sleepmakeswaves, Belle Haven and, most recently, as the national support for American rockers Saosin and Brit rock party-starters Don Broco during their respective Australian tours. Also recently appearing at Unify Off The Record 2023 at Hindley St Music Hall in Adelaide, alt. are now primed to join Windwaker and the UK’s Caskets around Australia this July.
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YOU ARE HEADING TO OUR SIDE OF THE DITCH WITH THE THORNY BOYS. HOW DID THAT COME ABOUT?
Our Guitarist Goose has done some work for them previously in terms of photography and videography so he had a relationship with the band in that way. Also when the tour got announced we put our hand up and said we wanted to do it with them and they were happy to have us.
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HAVE ANY OF YOU BEEN TO AOTEAROA BEFORE?
I actually just got back from Aotearoa about a month ago, I spent three weeks there with my wife, exploring both islands and it was honestly breathtaking.
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HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE AN ALT. LIVE SET?
Energetic is probably the first word that comes to mind. Though really we all go up there and just try and have fun and I think that shows on our faces. We love it if the crowd decides to have some fun with us too. Really though it’s just 5 dudes collectively trying to get their shit together.
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I WAS LUCKY TO SEE YOU OPEN FOR DON BROCO IN MELBOURNE. YOU ALL HAVE GREAT ENERGY AND SOUND GREAT LIVE. HOW WERE THOSE SHOWS FOR YOU?
Absolutely incredible! The Don Broco guys are absolute legends and incredibly kind. The shows just snowballed and got better night on night and anyone who got to go was extremely lucky to witness and incredible band in DB. I also got the pleasure of joining them on stage in Brisbane and it has to be one of the highlights of my short musical career.
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I FELT LIKE I HEARD YOUR EP ‘DYSFUNCTIONAL’ AND LISTENED TO IT A LOT BUT THEN IT FELT LIKE THERE WAS A GAP. UNLESS I DROPPED OFF. BUT NOW THERE’S NEW MUSIC, SHOWS AND A DEBUT ALBUM ON THE WAY. WHAT HAS THE PROCESS BEEN LIKE FROM THAT EP TO THIS NEW ALBUM?
We got to writing straight away as soon as that EP came out, the main issue was the EP had been out for a year and we practically had ’t played any live shows. So the cycle was prolonged as there was still people all over Australia who hadn’t seen us play the EP and we believed we had the room to do that. We did release Devil’s Cut as a standalone single to give people something new during that time but singing contracts with labels takes time and we wanted everything for the album to be done properly so to make sure of that more time was needed.
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4 NEW TRACKS RECENTLY, WITH THE MOST RECENT FEATURING JACK BERGIN OF VOID OF VISION. HOW DID THAT COLLABORATION COME ABOUT?
Again our Guitarist Goose did some work with Void of Vision and we love Jacks voice and it is so easy to spot that we knew his voice would give APEP a new level and give it a much needed change of vocal sound in that piece and he absolutely slayed it.
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THE NEW ALBUM ‘ABEYANCE’ IS OUT IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS OR SO NOW. HOW ARE YOU FEELING?
Excited and nervous. Excited because we have been sitting on some of these songs since April 2020 and can’t wait for everyone to hear it. Releasing new music is also quite daunting too especially since this new album is somehow more personal for me and I feel like the band was really firing on all cylinders on this one so we have all put a piece of us on this record and that can be quite nerve-racking. Hope the fans love it as much as we do.
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ABEYANCE MEANING “A STATE OF TEMPORARY DISUSE OR SUSPENSION”. WHY THAT NAME OFR THE ALBUM?
It means different things to different people. It could be during the pandemic we were all cooped up in our homes not really contributing anything to world and just existing in our own sort of limbo. This record to me though feels like not loving the world we live in and the growth of hate, segregation and chaos is making me feel unattached and not wanting to be a part of it anymore. As well as having a crippling fear of death and not wanting to take an out, it is as if I don’t want to die but I can’t stay here.
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HOW DID THE ALBUM ARTWORK COME ABOUT? BECAUSE THE CROP THROWS ME AND FASCINATES ME AT THE SAME TIME.
Can I mention him again but Goose does all our visual work and we are really proud of what he created. I wanted to do an old style oil painting symbolising what the album means and Goose thought it would be a great idea to use that idea and depict it like being in a museum and look at it like something it was and not necessarily is anymore. The painting reflecting the chaos in the world and the cloak of the wraith in cabinet below covering all bases.
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SO I WAS TRYING TO LOOK AT YOUR SHOWS AFTER ALBUM RELEASE AND IS NZ ONE OF THE FIRST? THOUGH I AM ASSUMING THERE MAY BE A RELEASE SHOW RO TWO? FEEL FREE TO HOLD OFF UNTIL NZ THOUGH.
Nope. NZ is our first shows post release and we can’t wait to play some new songs for you all. In saying that we have never played there so, we will definitely be playing some older songs too for the NZ fans who haven’t got to see us so far.
OKAY SOME RANDOM FUN ONES:
FAVE SNACK?
When they’re on sale I can’t go without Sour Cream & Chives Grain Waves. Wife and I love those.
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ESSENTIAL TOUR ITEM?
Clothes, phone charger and a book. I read on every plane from take off to land….don’t talk to me.
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IF I SAID NZ TO YOU, WHAT POPS INTO YOUR HEAD FIRST. INSTANTLY, DON’T THINK ABOUT IT.
Lord of the Rings right? Has anyone ever said anything different? But also scenery is obviously right there too.
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IF YOU COULD START A RUMOUR ABOUT YOURSELF AS A BAND, WHAT WOULD IT BE AND WHY?
That we are secretly Sleep Token. Because every band is secretly Sleep Token at the moment right? Think about it we just so happened to be on the same tour with them with Northlane and we weren’t touring when they came last time. It’s believable (please don’t say it isn’t.)
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ABEYANCE OUT NOW