Live music lovers may have noticed a steady resurgence of classic-rock-influenced music seeping back into the Sydney scene recently.
Now, local audiences are ready to meet Roses For Jack, the next group to bring their voice to the noise – and boy, are they noisy.
In anticipation of their show this month at Oxford Circus, the Sydney friends plan to use the opportunity to let music fans know they’re here and ready to rock. Frontwoman Ariane Campbell talks of the gig with a lot of excitement. “We’ve been together since February and we click like a house on fire. We’re a cohesive group and we’re excited to show people what we can do.”
With undertones of influence from the likes of AC/DC and Divinyls manipulating their sound, the creative process behind the group’s forthcoming record is surprisingly laid-back. As Campbell explains, “I’ve written the songs with Sarah McLeod [The Superjesus], and we then take them to the boys and ask them how they feel about it.”
According to Campbell, fellow members John Romeo, Rob Di Marzo and Tim Sampson are generally stoked with what she and McLeod have produced so far. “There’s space for John [guitar] to add his flavour and do his solo,” says Campbell, “but they’re loving that I’m taking the lead on songwriting.”
And that’s a pretty important aspect of Roses For Jack – not only are they unique due to the new musical twist they bring to the classic rock genre, but they’re fronted by a female singer at the head of what could potentially be a pretty powerful group. With a voice that’ll knock you down and plenty of international experience under her belt, Campbell cites frontwomen of classic rock as some of those that have inspired her and the direction of her band’s music.
“I saw Garbage play recently, and Joan Jett is still touring; she certainly kicked down a lot of doors in rock’n’roll, so she sort of set things apart where there were a lot of guys running around in the industry. I think inspiring anyone to do something they’ve always wanted to do is always great.”
Naturally, girls taking the lead with this kind of music isn’t new, but it’s still something that, especially given the calibre of talent in Roses For Jack, will garner a lot of attention and potentially impact a lot of people.
“I don’t make it gender-specific, but it is exciting to think I’d empower somebody – to think they might see what I’m doing and say, ‘I want to do that and I can do that, because I see her doing it,’ and for young girls especially, I think it could be inspiring.”
Roses For Jack’s influences will always remain clear in their music, Campbell says. “It’s an original sound as well as being clearly connected to a style of rock’n’roll that we like – we’re always coming from the heart, the lyrics are important to what we’re saying. There’ll be touches of Aerosmith and Guns N’ Roses filtering through the songs, and it’s a rush of awesome excitement for us and affects how we deliver them.”
Even the story behind Roses For Jack’s name evokes classic rock stereotypes, stirring up images of ’80s LA dive bars. “We were at my place and were having a laugh with one of my friends because she noticed I was using an old whisky bottle for flowers,” says Campbell. “She asked me if I’d ever swap roses for a bottle of Jack Daniel’s and I told her, ‘It depends on who it is offering the roses.’”
Roses For Jack appear at Oxford Circus on Saturday August 20, with Versus Fate.
