1.Growing Up
I was always doing something musical as a child. Even today my family brings up my early ‘stardom’ when, as a toddler, I sang a Sri Lankan song on the SBS Sinhalese community program. I’m surprised I didn’t hang up the boots then, at the peak of my career! Neither of my parents formally played any music but my mother was reportedly quite the singer when she was younger, so some of those genes must have made their way down.
2.Inspirations
My biggest influences are Coldplay, The Script and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I love the way that each of them has carved out their own sound and managed to find the right balance between pop sensibilities that can be appreciated by Joe Bloggs on the street, and more creative musical details that musicians can appreciate on a more technical level.
3.Your Band
While Francisco’s Fortune is a solo project, I have been lucky enough to have a rotating group of great musicians and good friends play with me in the studio and onstage. The two main musicians who joined me in the studio were Gana Aruneswaran on the bass guitar and Billy Cordiner on the drums. Both are amazing musos and great guys who have been a pleasure to make music with. My studio recordings were produced by Lachlan Mitchell, who has produced extensively with The Jezabels (whose music I love!). He was amazing to work with, being a laidback, flexible, constructive, honest and hard-working gentleman with a real talent for creating and capturing music.
4.The Music You Make
I always struggle with giving my music a genre, and every time I’m surprised that there isn’t a neat little label to attach to it. The most accurate description would be ‘alternative pop-rock’. There are bits of jazz, bits of blues, bits of folk and bits of classical in there for good measure. With every song I try to do a few things: to make musicians think, to give teenyboppers a good hook, and to create a unique feel. I recorded my debut EP with Lachlan Mitchell at Jungle Studios in Sydney, and I can’t wait for you to hear it. My live show is usually with a four-piece band.
5.Music, Right Here, Right Now
Listeners are spoiled for choice with music these days. Digital music has made distribution of songs so much easier, meaning that if you have music, people can access it. However the new challenge is that people are getting flooded with songs, making it difficult to stand out in the torrential musical deluge. Like any field, though, if you have a good tune, it will find an audience if you take the intelligent avenues. The many community radio stations around are fantastic for promoting local talent.
You can see Francisco’s Fortune atOxford Art Factory onThursday March 19.
