In the Green Room: TOWNHOUSE
Following their recent single ‘Vin Wiesel’, making an exciting splash in the local scene, emo rockers TOWNHOUSE swung by to chat about their meticulously curated sophomore EP Look At Me Now and upcoming launch.
Interview Millah Hansberry // Image Ava Scroop
Congrats on your upcoming sophomore EP Look At Me Now, dropping on September 12. Tell us about this project.
Look at Me Now is kind of the truest TOWNHOUSE that there is right now. We focused a lot on making sure this EP was a step up from what we’ve done before - in every regard - from songwriting to performances and production. It was of the utmost importance to us that this felt like a cohesive product, not just a collection of songs that we’d tied a ribbon around, so with this in mind, we not only picked our 7 favourite tracks, but those that fit together both thematically and sonically.
This EP is made up of seven tracks, including the three singles ‘BAD LOVE’ ‘Rugrantz’ and latest release ‘Vin Wiesel’. What energy can we expect from the remaining songs?
We’re three pretty high-energy fellas, and we think that’s reflected in our music - particularly the final single off the EP ‘Vin Wiesel.’ We’ve always liked to be quite dynamic, have our huge ‘wall of sound’ moments and then dwell in some quiet, delicate aspects, and that doesn’t go missing on Look at Me Now. This being said, ‘Vin Wiesel’ is a bit of an outlier, expect things to get a bit heavier when the EP drops.
Is there a lyric on the EP you’re most proud of, or that still hits you every time you hear it?
“Look at Me Now” is a little excerpt from the closing track of the EP, ‘Avengers Level Threat.’ “Do you see it when you look at me now?” is the hook of the song; a cut about feeling like you’re falling behind and staying where it’s easy and comfortable, whilst all of the people around you are growing up. It’s very confessional, all about taking off the mask and actually being brave enough to talk about how you feel, and the chorus line “Do you see it when you look at me now?” poses the question, ‘Now I’ve told you all of this, is all my self-loathing and suffering going to be all you see when you talk to me?’ It’s something we all battle with a bit.
In August, you released your latest single ‘Vin Wiesel’, featuring Sammy Gilchrist from local indie band The Fuss. How did this collab come about and what made her the right fit for a TOWNHOUSE feature?
We absolutely loved getting Sammy into the studio, and we couldn’t be happier with how the collab turned out. Sammy, as well as all of The Fuss, are really close friends of ours, inside and outside of the music scene. We knew we wanted a female voice on 'Vin Wiesel’ from the second we jammed it for the first time. You see it a lot in the American emo scene, on the split records from the 2010s and dotted all over Mom Jeans. Albums that juxtaposition between the front man of the band who’s just hollering and yelling to get his point across and a truly beautiful woman’s voice harmonising with it.
For this EP, and your broader work, you write, record and mix all of your tracks yourselves. How do you find the writing and recording process, and how do you determine when a track is done?
It’s certainly tricky, but we wouldn’t want to do it any other way. We write extremely collaboratively; any of the three of us will bring an unfinished riff to the table, and we’ll pad it out together from there, often all having input in the song structure and lyrics. Even the three singles – ‘Rugrantz’ was Burgo’s Riff, ‘Bad Love’ was Cooper’s and ‘Vin Wiesel’ was Dan’s. As far as recording, it’s definitely tricky to know when to call it a day, but for this EP in particular, we did really stick to the good old ‘less is more’ rule.
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TOWNHOUSE are known for releasing emotionally charged, upbeat, fast and punchy sad songs, while labelling yourselves as ‘emo’. What’s the pull towards this genre label?
There are just so many ‘indie’ bands. In Adelaide, ESPECIALLY in Australia and everywhere you look on the internet. Not only do we not want to be another drop in the humongous ocean that is the current indie scene, we also all bonded over our love for emo bands. Cooper showed Dan the band Prince Daddy & the Hyena once in year 9 and it’s all he’s listened to since, and all we talk about when we hang out. There’s also this underlying feeling in the culture right now that ‘emo’ music isn’t fun and isn’t sexy, and the three of us are a bit tired of that. We want to make emo cool again.
Over your career, what has been the biggest ‘Look At Me Now’ moment for TOWNHOUSE?
In April, we were lucky enough to open for one of our biggest inspirations Origami Angel at Jive. The three of us have been fans of them since before we even made TOWNHOUSE, and meeting the members and playing with them was seriously surreal for us. Just seeing the poster was enough to have us all freaking out a bit.
You’re taking to the Adelaide Unibar stage on September 20 to launch Look At Me Now. What should audiences expect from your set?
We’ve taken pride in our live performances, and we love to get theatrical when it comes to release shows. We’re really working hard to make this a concert, performing a show rather than just playing a gig.
What are some pre-show rituals the band has to get yourselves ready for a TOWNHOUSE set?
The Clap! Right before we go on stage, we all stand around in a circle, do a little stretch, look each other in the eyes, and then clap simultaneously. If it’s at the EXACT same time, it’s gonna be a great show.
On support for the night, you’ve got local hard-hitters Dropsink and indie darlings The Fuss. What made them the right fit for this show?
The Fuss are such good friends of ours, and Sammy, [their lead singer] is featured on our record, so the story writes itself there. Dropsink are immensely cool and we really wanted to prioritise picking bands that would complement our sound, so the choice was easy.
Catch TOWNHOUSE at Adelaide UniBar on Saturday 20 September. Tickets on sale now via moshtix.com.au.
