Bahamas

During this run, Jurvanen would begin his sets by performing a rendition of ‘Someday Baby Blues’, a blues standard from the 1940s that has been interpreted by countless artists. Although it’s over three years ago now, Jurvanen remembers it well.

“When I was really young, I was into Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker, guys like that,” he says. “I loved the guitar playing. I loved how punk rock it was – those guys just did whatever you wanted. I remember when I started playing that song, I was kind of doing it on tour to try and get people’s attention. Everyone’s got their own way around doing that. Some will try and do it as loudly as they can, but I’ve found that my instinct leads me to do the opposite. I like to play as quietly as I can and then lead people into my set that way.”

Last year saw Jurvanen release his third studio album under the Bahamas moniker, the simply titled Bahamas Is Afie. Having since picked up Juno nominations and some of the best reviews of his career, the album was initially of humble origins.

“The majority of these songs ended up being written in the kitchen,” says Jurvanen. “That’s where I tend to play most of my guitar – and I tend to want to play a lot if I’m working on a record. Ironically, I don’t get to play a lot on tour – you’re travelling most of the day, you actually play for maybe an hour at the end and then you’re exhausted. When I was off the road, I would get up in the morning, make coffee and just play guitar all day. Some ideas were great, some were terrible, but I kept going. Soon enough, all the ideas started connecting up and the album started to form. The same guitar that I was playing every day is the same one that you can hear on pretty much every song on the album.”

When it comes to the lyrics and the central themes of Bahamas Is Afie, Jurvanen explains that the majority of the songs on offer stem from feelings of looking back – not so much in the sense of nostalgia, but more observing moments from your past in a different way.

“It’s about being able to reflect on something,” he says. “When you’re in the thick of it, it’s easy to let your emotions get the best of you. You do all kinds of things that you’d do differently if only you had more time. These songs are about time and perspective. You can look back on something and have an entirely new outlook on it. You can reflect on how something wasn’t as big a deal as you had originally made it out to be, or it can be the exact opposite. It’s about allowing enough time to pass in order for you to properly assess what went on in your own life.”

Jurvanen – along with his full band – will be touring through Australia in late September and early October. In addition to a string of headlining shows, Bahamas will also be appearing at no less than four festival dates – Brisbane Festival, Yours & Owls, Wave Rock Weekender and Dashville Skyline. Although this is only Jurvanen’s second tour through the country as Bahamas, his previous work with a certain chanteuse was what brought him here in the first place.

“The first time that I came out to Australia was as a part of Feist’s band,” he says. “Of course, the shows were great and the people were great. The coffee, though, man… we couldn’t believe how great the coffee was! The food, too – for me, those are two of the most important things as far as visiting a new place is concerned. I think it’s a great foundation – if you have a great coffee spot or you come across a great meal, that can be enough to make you remember that place as being amazing. That’s definitely what happened with Melbourne. Whatever you can grasp onto is what will make it the most memorable.”

Jurvanen admits that, while the transition from being a side player in a backing band to the centre of attention was difficult at first, it’s something he’s come to fully embrace over time. “I’m very lucky that I’ve gotten to do both,” he says. “When I was younger, I played on so many people’s albums, played in so many people’s bands. I just wanted to help out as many people as I could. I got to travel the world because of that. I now get to do the same for my friends – they get to play in my band and I get to take them around the world. It’s something I don’t ever take for granted.”