Australia’s Sticky Fingers launch their UK tour next week at Bristol’s 02 Academy supporting their third studio album, Westway (The Glitter and the Slums) which is released on September 30.
Andy Howells recently put questions to Freddy Crabs from the band who encompass Reggae, psych, pop, rock and bourbon into their sound.
How did you first start out in music?
For most of us the band was the first time we had any experience playing an instrument. Paddy (bassist) and Beaker (drums) met our lead singer and guitarist Diz, who was busking on the street in Newtown in the inner western hub of Sydney. Before long, the boys were jamming in Beaks’ mum’s garage playing some house reggae beats under the working title of ‘Greenleaf.’ Although we call ourselves ‘Sticky Fingers’ now, not much has changed since.
Who or what has inspired you most on your musical journey?
Probably the prospect of plain music outta Oz. We’re bout to hit Europe for the fifth time and we’re selling out shows. We can’t believe it really. Cats are wanting us to play songs off our first EP which we wrote in the garage at the beginning of it all, so even that’s pretty surreal.
Unfortunately we’re not playing Wales again this time but we had some good ol laughs there last.
Can you give us some background about your latest release?
We recorded it in a luxurious studio in Pattaya, Thailand. It’s known in the Western world as the sorta sleazy Thai capital, where all the fat, sweaty, topless Euros and Ozzies come to strengthen their swords, but it’s actually a really beautiful place and we made some good pals there!
The studio itself was like a Big Brother house. We had a pool, maids cooking us meals, pool tables and a fridge constantly replenished with Singhas so we were never uninspired. We ended up spending a month there and got all the tracks done! You can expect a bit more of a darker sound and some tighter ballads bringing us back even to our very earliest sound. Some harder bangers and dub favourites too so it’s set to be a real mash up.
You’re touring shortly are you looking forward to that?
Of course. I can’t wait to get back into it and see some of our good pals in the UK. Or England, don’t really know what to call it now..
What are you enjoying listening to at the moment?
I love Anderson Paak from LA. The kid can rap and his live show is wild! The Avalanches are a big influence of ours and their new record is really gonna pop so i’m excited for that too. Also, my close pal from the inner west ‘Joyride’ is set for a big release. He’s one half of electro duo ‘The Meeting Tree’ and he’s about to release a solo album which I’ve heard and is sounding tight! The man is built like a front rower but he’s as soft as they come.
What else have you got planned for the rest of the year?
More shows. We’re gonna hit the Canadian Rockies and a few shows in Cali before coming home to release the record and doing it all again in Aussie summer. That’s all we know what to do really
- For more details check out www.stickyfingerstheband.com