It’s always unusual to hear a musician talk about their work in a hesitant way.
Even up-and-coming bands are often buoyed by their own burgeoning success, and use any press opportunity to sell something they are 100 per cent sure of.After all, interviews are ads in their own way, and most musicians – particularly frontpeople – have the air of the salesman about them.
Eddie Burton, lead singer of The Lulu Raes, is the exception to that rule. Though that’s obviously in part due to his exhaustion levels – he’s been at work all day, building sets for a company as part of a job he’s had since he was 21 – he still proves more critical of his work than even his band’s most ardent objectors. In fact, the biggest praise he affords himself over the course of his interview with the BRAG concerns the title of the group’s new EP, All Our Parents Are Divorced.
“It wasn’t me [who came up with it],” he laughs. “It was the bass player Marcus. But as soon as I heard it, I was keen on it. It really reminded me of The Brian Jonestown Massacre’s Thank God For Mental Illness. It reminded me of that, that style … though it’s a double-edged sword really. We’re taking the piss with the title, but the reality is that it’s true.”
All Our Parents Are Divorced is the first significant release for The Lulu Raes, despite the fact they have been courting media attention and a flock of their own devoted fans for over a year. The EP was in part released to satisfy those people – as a way of providing something concrete for the punters who have been following the Raes for some time now. “We’ve had all those songs for a while,” says Burton. “It was just kind of a question of people wanting to have a physical copy of what we’ve been doing. But it’s just a bridge to get us over to the actual album.”
The Lulu Raes are yet to settle on a specific style – something that Burton seems acutely aware of. Their tone has varied wildly from single to single, and while a track like ‘The Way Life Runs’ sets up camp in the indie rock territory dominated by Oasis wannabes and Britpoppers, the Sydneysiders’ experimentation with electro and soul has stopped them from sounding like so many other emerging pop acts. ‘Burnout’ is a different proposition entirely, and whenever it begins to seem like the Raes are heading in a certain direction, they’ve already thrown a U-turn.
Furthermore, the success they’ve had so far wasn’t just handed to them, and they are a singularly hard-working group of young men – even if Burton sounds laid-back when discussing all the blood, sweat and tears they have shed.
“[We practise] once or twice a week,” he says. “I usually just go after work ’cause I live close to where we practise. It’s not bad at all. I like doing it; it’s something to do. Sometimes I don’t get sleep because we practise really late and I have to get up to work in the morning. But I enjoy it.”
Nonetheless, despite the love he might have for rehearsal, Burton admits he is only now really getting into the experience of stepping up onto the stage. “I’m enjoying playing live now more than I have for a while, because we’ve got more of a set, and it feels a little bit stronger. I used to get nervous before when I felt like we didn’t have a strong product. But now I feel more comfortable onstage.”
Suddenly, Burton begins to um and ah, and that brief showing of confidence starts to bubble away. “I think we still haven’t completely clicked,” he says eventually, with an awkward laugh that can’t quite hide all that concern. “We all have different tastes and influences, and it’s difficult to narrow it down to what we all want. And that’s kind of our adversity. It’s probably why we don’t have anything down pat yet. I think after the album, it’s going to be very significant. It’ll be which direction we’re going to head in.
“We’re still evolving what we’re doing. I think it’s just to do with trying to find a distinct sound, and having our own sound. It’s just about sounding different from the pack. And still sounding strong.” He laughs again. “It sounds very vague, but uh, it just didn’t always used to feel [right]. It felt more like a garage band, just a couple of mates playing. Now we’re making an event for people rather than just being a band down the RSL.”
Maybe when his long-desired full-length album finally gets released, Burton will be less hard on himself. Although, oddly enough, all his hesitation seems somehow fitting. After all, his humble, self-depreciating realness mirrors exactly what makes The Lulu Raes an interesting band.
“The songs we’ve all created, they’ve all been in different genres,” Burton begins, trying hard to make his point. “We’ve always tried to keep it clean. Just with very clean tone and a basic production…” He laughs and gives up. “I’m just going on a tangent. To be honest with you, I’m just, uh, just talking shit.” He is. But isn’t that the Lulu Raes way?
[The Lulu Raes photo by Leila Maulen]
All Our Parents Are Divorced by The Lulu Raes is out now through Verge. Catch them at Oxford Art Factory, Friday September 9, with Wild Honey.
