On Saturday I went out to Wallington to catch up with Bin while they were recording some new material. Having followed them pretty closely the last year or so I was pretty chuffed to find out that they were finally recording more songs.
When I got there and asked if the songs being recorded are for an upcoming album I wasn’t answered by a ‘yes.’ Instead, I received the first five lines of the ‘Malcolm in the Middle’ Theme Song. “If all goes to plan we are hoping to do an album and so far all has been going to plan,” laughs Lys.
The recording process being somewhat spontaneous was also the case for the album’s producer Jasper Jolley (Bones and Jones), who learned days before that he would also performing bass on the album.
“We had Will on bass and he went to South America for a year so we replaced him with Mick who went to Europe…” states Tim Fluker before the group’s other guitarist Cal Shortal chimes in, “They all keep pissing off, lucky we have Jassy. He’s pressing some buttons and laying down phat bass lines, he’s got it all.”
“He’s the most talented person in the band,” laughs Lys.
Recording over the course of two days, Bin has been tracking songs written and performed over the last year. “It’s kind of like a diary from last year,” remarks the group’s vocalist Lachie Baulch. “It’s just songs we have been playing for a while so before we started making new songs we thought we should record them and put them out properly before we move onto the next phase of Bin.”
When questioned if two days was a standard recording time Cal remarked, “From past experience, it is usually a three-day process and that’s like 15 songs. If you think about Eddy Current, they recorded their first album in eight hours and it was mixed and mastered the next day.
“It’s just a completely different ball game to playing a gig,” continues Cal. “We had a gig last night and played all the same songs and it was fine but as soon as that red recording button goes on everyone just freaks out, but, it’s still been coming along nicely.”
Having a home studio has also enhanced their recording process with the homily environment allowing the band the option to don shithouse footy-team dressing gowns and two-piece velour tracksuits while jamming in the cool room. As mentioned in previous articles, ‘the cool room’ is a cheeky jam-space/recording studio on a farm in Wallington, the same house that majority of the band lives at. Originally a huge walk-in freezer, the room provides incredible acoustics and as a result, hosts many other incredible bands from around the region.
Recording there is not as often as it may sound, especially considering the one jam space finds itself hosting the likes of Bin, Baked Beans, Orb and Bones and Jones. “Last time it was recorded at mine and Baulch’s place, and here is a far better set-up to record in,” recalls Fluker. “For us, it’s really good because it’s literally an old fridge so it’s completely soundproof so we can use it whenever it’s not being used by any of the other bands that live in this house.”
It’ll be closer to the end of the year by the time Bin’s album comes out, so if you can’t wait and want to hear some of the newer material make sure you get down to one of their shows soon!
Written by Alex Callan