We’ve all heard the stories and the legendary tales, and this Saturday we have a chance to catch the phenomenon first-hand. No, I’m not talking about the large, hairy mythological creature. I’m delighted to announce that Melbourne’s own soul sensation Saskwatch will be appearing at Melbourne Zoo as part of the Twilights Series.
“We’re so happy we’ve been asked to play!” admitted the congenial trumpet playing virtuoso Liam McGorry. “We’ve never played the series before and I think it’ll be a great experience.”
On March 7 the sizzling nine-piece will be joined by retro-soul singer Charles Bradley – and the honour is not lost on McGorry. “We’ve been fans of Charles Bradley forever. We’re stoked to finally play a show with him, and hopefully I’ll get a chance to meet him.”
The chance to meet a hero is not the only exciting event on the horizon for Saskwatch, with the release of their swinging new single, ‘Born to Break Your Heart’, revealed as just a taste of what’s to come from the upcoming LP. Nose Dive is the follow-up to their critically acclaimed debut, Leave It All Behind (2012).
“The new one is definitely a representation of the album, so hopefully everyone likes it. We’ve been writing and working on this release for almost two and a half years. All that hard work culminated in a three-week recording session in November last year.
“We were invited up to Queensland to work with [established Aussie producer] Magoo. It was a really awesome experience and a total change for us – last time we only had days to record our album! More time was a luxury, and we learnt heaps while we were there, too.”
Liam told me that Nose Dive is scheduled for release around the 11th of April and that they couldn’t be happier with the result.
“We’re all in a really good mindset at the moment. We’ve been playing together for a fair while now. We met at Uni and it’s just been a natural process. We’re are all very different, but we come together so well.”
Saskwatch fortified their cult following after winning a sought-after residency at The Cherry Bar, Melbourne’s inner-city live music mecca founded by former Cosmic Psychos drummer Bill Walsh.
If the last few years are any indication, Saskwatch are destined for big things, and it seems that the rest of the world has taken notice. Their touring resume includes a rigorous series of shows at The Edinburgh Fringe, Spain’s Black is Back and the world’s biggest music festival, Glastonbury.
“We’d love to get back to the UK this year. We’ve been there twice in the last two years and going back with the new album, that’ll be great … Hopefully later on this year.
“In the meantime, besides Zoo Twilight we’ve got more one-off shows leading up to the album release, and we’re playing at WOMADelaide as well.”
If you miss out on the fun this weekend, Liam promises a full-scale album tour in May or June – so stay tuned.
When&Where: Melbourne Zoo – March 7
Written by Natalie Rogers