Expect a double dose of sweet and raggedy Alt Country tunes this Autumn when the award-winning Lachlan Bryan & The Wildes teams up with rising up and comer Ben Leece (& Left of the dial) on their Friends & Acquaintances tour in Geelong and Bendigo. We chat to Lachlan ahead of the shows.
Hey thanks for chatting to Forte mag! First up can you tell our readers who aren’t familiar with Lachlan Bryan & The Wildes a little bit about yourselves and your music?
We play the kind of music people call ‘Americana’ – but really we’re just storytellers who are into a whole lot of stuff from soul music to country music. We’ve been together in some form or another for the best part of a decade and our music has allowed us to travel the world and Australia with regularity – so we’re very grateful.
You’re currently halfway through your Friends & Acquaintances Tour. How do you find the touring circuit, are you guys more at home with music on the stage, or in the studio?
Well two of us work together as record producers, so we are very comfortable in the studio – but we love the immediate response of performing live. The touring circuit that we’re on is full of music lovers and interesting people – so we find it inspiring and rewarding most of the time.
The venues you’re visiting are great humble places that embrace live music – what do you enjoy about performing in places like this?
We are playing some quite intimate places – and I think the personal connection to the audience is the best part of that.
You’ve teamed up with rising up and comer Ben Leece for this tour. How did the collaboration come about?
We have a mutual friend who is a great music lover with taste we both trust. She suggested it and we both went for it. I’m a fan of Ben as a person and his music – so that helped too!
We hear you’re set to drop a new single – The Road – in June! Can you tell us a bit about what inspired this one?
It’s very autobiographical, which is not my usual bag. It’s a story of my adult life so far, which I didn’t realise until after I’d finished writing it.
This will be off the forthcoming fifth album. Not having heard the album, what can you tell us about the new record and the differences between previous releases?
It’s kind of a feel-good album – as we mature more we’re getting a lighter touch on our records. The arrangements are in some ways getting more simple and rudimentary – but the songs are heartfelt and uplifting.
You’re also set to head to Europe for some more shows. What were your experiences and memories of touring Europe last time? How do you navigate the challenges of touring in a foreign country?
Europe has been very kind to us these last two years. We’ve been invited to return to our favourite festival – Maverick Fest – for the third consecutive year and we just can’t wait. If anything, touring in a foreign country is easier because you don’t really have to deal with everyday life.
Thanks for chatting! We’re looking forward to catching you in Geelong and Bendigo! To finish up, if you could sit down with one artist – dead or alive – just to talk music, who would it be?
Ray Charles
When & Where:
Pistol Pete’s Food n Blues, Geelong – May 30
Billyroy’s Grassroots Music Club, Allsaints Bendigo – June 2