Dappled Cities Interview

Interview by: Carl Pocket
Big Wheel Music Scene Reporter

I had the pleasure of having the chance to interview the Australian group Dappled Cities before their early set at the Aussie BBQ at The Echo recently. The Australian quintet consisting of Tim Derricourt (guitar and vox), Dave Rennick (keyboards, guitar, and vox), Alex Moore (bass), Hugh Boyce (drums) and Ned Cooke (keys), got a late start over to the venue due to the time change (thanks daylight savings time) and a night out drinking. The hung-over bunch, all adorned in sunglasses, chatted with me out on the streets of Echo Park.

So what is it like coming from Australia over here?
Dave Rennick (DR): Food portions, you know, the food portions are bigger.

One question in and we already had a visitor. An older transient decided to ask some questions of his own as he threw his arm around Tim.

Transient (T): Do you have Zig-Zags? A pipe?
Tim Derricourt (TD): No, we don’t smoke.

T:  You don’t smoke? But your Australian, I can tell, it says outside the Echo Australian BBQ and you are Australian.

The transient walked away and Tim turned to me.

TD: Is Zig-Zag code for weed?

No, it’s like rolling papers.
TD: Well that’s the biggest difference from Australia and the US, we call them Talley-Hoes and you call them Zig-Zags.

After a bit of laughing we got back to the questions.

What was the recording like for your new album "Zounds"?
TD: Well we recorded the whole album in Sydney in the basement of this place which was said to have a ghost.

Did anyone see this ghost?
Everyone shook their heads

DR: I thought I did. My friend said she could feel it
TD: She was lying.

I read that you used a $40 build it yourself coardboard keyboard for the recording of the album? How did that work out and hold up?
DR: The cardboard broke soon after it was built. We put it into samples. But I guess we look way less cool with a Macbook.

"Zounds", being your third album is a bit of a departure from the other two.
DR: I wouldn’t say it’s a departure.
TD: I would say it’s a departure the album is very chunky and while recording we weren’t as lighthearted.
DR: Yeah we were more pissed off in the recoding of the album..it’s a big storm cloud of a recording.

What has been your most memorable moment while promoting the album?
TD: We were at this festival in Australia and another band fell sick and we were put on. I thought it would suck and when we started there were 10 people. We kept playing and the area filled up. It was like in a movie.

Do you notice a difference in the crowds in the US and the crowds in Australia?
TD: There is an age difference. Every place seems to be 21+ and it sucks cause our music speaks to underage fans in the America and they don’t get the chance to come out.
DR: We should do a show on a boat. Then the underage kids could come. They would have to sign a release form.
Ned Cooke (NC): We’d have to sign releases

Before this got any more risqué I did some shots with the guys around the Echo. Time was running short and the group had to get back to sound check. Tim wanted to grab some tea and I walked with him over to the Brite Spot restaurant and asked a few more questions.

How did you guys get together?
TD: Well most of us knew each other in school. We have been friends for a long time. We started as Periwinkle but that name sucked so we changed it. We started with the 4 of us but added Ned later

Where did the name of the band come from?
TD: It came from a Jim Joyce novel.

Do you think there is a reason that Australian bands don’t hit it big in America often?
TD: It seems like most bands just wait to get big in America but it doesn’t happen. You have to come over here and scrape by for two years to even get a following, do you know what I mean? It’s tough and it’s like starting over, over here.

So you are getting some tea for the vocals?
TD: We had a rough night. We went to this place with a mechanical bull and a fight broke out with guys running around. You guys don’t have tea places out here. I just want some tea for the vocals. And maybe a whiskey before I go on stage.

Would Tim have a whiskey on stage? Would we even get back to the Echo in time? Check my review of the Aussie BBQ to find out.

Band Website: www.myspace.com/dappledcities