Regardless of whatever preconceived idea you have of Sticky Fingers, you’ve got to admire their ability to give it their all. “We’ve put it all on the line, if this doesn’t work out we’re all fucked,” says bass guitarist Paddy Cornwall. “If you’re going to go for it you have to put all in, otherwise there’s no point doing it half-assed. Because so many bands that do it half-assed you can smell it a mile away.”
It seems giving it their all is working wonders for them. Fresh from a tour of Europe, the band has just released their second album, Land of Pleasure, are embarking on a tour to support the release, and are already thinking of the next album.
Land of Pleasure introduces a new sound for the Sydney band, with a ’90s rave track and a heck of a lot of synth thrown into the mix. Paddy admits that it’s a louder sound than their previous release and with much more production, but where did it all come from?
“As corny as it sounds, travelling the world I guess. Also playing with lots of bands, meeting lots of people and hearing lots of music that we hadn’t heard before. I guess that, in combination with us learning from our own crowds what people enjoy to hear live and what we enjoy to play live,” he says.
While it seems they’ve only just come back to Australian shores, with a new album out it means they’ll quickly be jumping on a plane for another round. This time around the tour will showcase tracks from their new release, giving fans and the band members a chance to familiarise themselves with the new sound.
“We’re just having lots of fun and trying to figure out how to fuck with it to make it work live,” Paddy says.“We just can’t wait to get all these new songs on the road because they’re so much fucking fun to play!”
And for the band there’s just as much fun off the stage as there is on it. Known for their antics, the band has been involved in broken walls, arrests and many band members MIA. Paddy is currently nursing an injury after a Splendour after-party went awry and he was thrown in the pool.
“I was keeping a diary of everything that had happened in Europe and I showed it to our manager and he thought it was really funny. He showed it to The Music and they decided to publish it,” Paddy says.
On top of giving it their all, the band also live by the ethos of not taking life too seriously – something that may be misunderstood in their offstage antics.
“I think that should apply to anyone at anytime really,” Paddy says. “And in music everybody is way too serious. Maybe especially Australia because it’s a smaller kettle of fish, I’m not sure.”
It’s refreshing to see a band comfortable in their style and with where they sit in the industry. Sticky Fingers is a band that has stayed true to what they are, and that’s musicians doing what they love.
“I guess Sticky Fingers is never a band where we’ve said, ‘oh we’re just this or we’re that’. We’ve always sorted just created music that we’re enjoying at the time. We all do this because we love it and we wouldn’t want to be doing anything else really,” Paddy says.
When&Where: The 170 Russell, Melbourne – October 8 & 10 & The Karova, Ballarat – October 11. The band also plays Falls Festival
By Amanda Sherring