Interview: Skegss
If you’re familiar with any part of the music scene, then you will know that Australia has a lot more to offer than just barbecues and kangaroos. Their new music scene is as diverse as it gets, swaying between trippy pop/electronic bands such as ‘No Mono’, ‘Bus Vipers’ and ‘Hachiku’ and then going to the complete opposite side of the spectrum with punk-rock bands, ‘Dump Punts’ ‘Verge Collection’ and ‘Pist Idiots’.
Among these punk bands are Skegss, who dip their toes in and out of a more laidback sound, reminiscent of stoner and surfer rock. ‘My Own Mess’ is their debut album and as you can imagine, it charts the lives of a group of young lads exploring the world they live in and feeling angst about certain things among the way – in particular, in the songs ‘Up in the Clouds’, ‘Transaction Fee’ and ‘Smogged Out’ which deliver an element of Blink-182’s ringing guitar hooks and the candid personal narrative that comes through in their lyrics.
Ben Reed’s scratchy drawl is at its best in songs like ‘Margarita’ and ‘Midnight Eyes’ which lean to the 70’s psychedelia days of music. Jonny Lani’s classic drumbeat perfectly complements the steady bass line of Toby Cregan which forms the imagery of prom night at Rydell High. ‘In My Own Mess’ is a strong debut which makes it easy to see why Skegss are at the forefront of the Australian punk music scene.
For those that are not familiar with you as a band, can you tell us a little bit about how you got together?
Jon and Ben were already in a band playing gigs together and then toby played the bass one gig, we then changed the band name and started playing as Skegss.
Who do you take inspiration from and were there any specific bands you were listening whilst recording In My Own Mess?
Lots of bands, just a little bit of everything. No specific bands but when you hear a song sometimes it can get you psyched to want to go and write a song with a similar vibe.
There’s a strong sense of relatability in the lyrics. Do you always write songs from personal experiences?
Yeh I like trying to make my life rhyme.
How does the London punk scene compare to that of Australia? Do you feel like it is as widely received?
Not to sure, but Australia definitely has a strong music scene at the moment and good comradery between the bands.
If you had to convince someone, in five words, to buy In My Own Mess, what would you say?
Hi, buy this record please.
Interview by Tyler Damara Kelly