Sirens released their debut self-titled EP on October 1 2021.
Even from the beginning of 2021 we knew Sirens would have a big year. And when we included the Bellarine based group in our piece on the ‘12 Victorian Acts to Keep an Eye On’, it really seemed like they would.
Unfortunately, COVID persisted and the group’s headliner show, in support of their debut EP kept getting pushed back further and further.
“It felt never-ending, almost like we were extending our own birthday party,” laughs Mila
“I think all up because of COVID the recording process actually ended up getting pushed back by a year as well. We had these songs for a long time, most were actually finished when we were still in year 11. Initially, we had planned to record in the Summer of 2020 but it kept getting pushed back again and again and again.”
“It was actually a bit of a blessing in disguise,” adds Lily. “Over that year we were able to refine the songs and improve on them, because a lot of the songs we had been working on since 2019.”
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Having only finished up high school in 2020, the group found a great working relationship with Bones and Jones’ Jasper Jolley and George Wilson, an introduction initially made by the band’s VCE music teacher Sarah Caroll.
“Sarah was our VET music mentor in high school, she was actually the one who pushed us to record the songs. So she set us up with Jasper at the Big Fridge in Wallington,” says Mila.
‘The Big Fridge’ being a decked out home recording studio that has seen the likes of Beans, Bones and Jones and Orb all record there over recent years.
“It worked really well and it’s a team that’s close to home so it’s not something we are keen on changing,” continued Mila.
A sentiment backed up by Connor who added, “I just think it’s unreal how everything unravelled so quickly.”
“One second we were finishing school and the next second we were being introduced to all these connections and being booked for shows. It was really overwhelming but in a good way.”
With the group’s self-titled EP being described as “a collection of songs that we have had with us for the last few years”, its release marks a shift for the band, who are almost using it as a full stop in the signature Sirens sound that they have developed over the last couple of years.
As Erica explains, “2020 was a big year for myself and all of us in exploring different styles of music, which I feel shows in some of the songs. ‘Inevitable Shift’ and ‘Absence of Pleasure’ were the two newest and are the two songs and I really feel like they helped the EP span out into different genres.”
“It’s something we want to do more of,” affirms Mila, “just keep playing with the tonal shifts between it being happy and bubbly, whilst also feeling not quite right through the dissonance in the music.”
“It’s airy, fairy but also kind of scary,” laughs Lily.
“But now we are kind of shifting from that a little bit because we have a few funky songs and a few punk songs which are kind of different to the sound we came out with at the start.
“I would like for our newer music to be a bit more grunge as well. I feel like when we play live it’s quite loud so I’d love to have some songs that showcase that a bit more. Especially with the girl vocals and the harmonies and screams, it could be really cool.”
Having been a few months since the release of the group’s debut EP, Friday the 17th of December will finally see the band hitting the stage for a headliner show at The Barwon Club.
“We are excited, we’ve missed playing live,” says Mila.
“We wanted to make it a launch party instead of a launch gig” adds Erica, “an event that everyone can just have fun and celebrate the end of lockdown.”
Sounds pretty good to me.
Catch Sirens this Friday at The Barwon Club. You can score tickets here.
