Long Hair & ‘Finding Nemo’ Quotes – The Lazy Eyes On Their Newest Single And Much Anticipated Debut EP
{interview by Emily-Layne Kapetanovic}
The Lazy Eyes caught everyone’s attention after dropping their first ever single back in late January this year. But the Sydney based four-piece are no strangers to the music scene. They competed in the YouthRock band competition when they were only in high school taking out the top prize, but that was all just to kick them off. They’ve also featured on some of the biggest festival lineups this year: Laneway festival, tick. Farmer and the Owl Festival, tick. SXSW festival, tick. Splendour in the Grass, tick. Their first ever release ‘Cheesy Love Song’ racked up rave reviews and even national radio play - paving the way for their newest drop ‘Tangerine’. Their catchy and captivating psychedelic rock tracks are what has us so excited to see what comes next for these boys.
Let’s start at the very beginning, How did The Lazy Eyes come to be?
We all went to a performing arts high school for music, except for Blake who was a ballet dancer in a past life believe it or not. Harvey, Noah and myself quickly bonded as mates and then started busking around the city together to make a bit of money by virtue of being young, cute and having normal haircuts. Once we started growing our hair long and listening to Tame Impala, we wanted to be a 'real' band so we started searching for a bass player. We didn't have to look very far because we were already friends with Blake who played guitar and had beautiful curls. After we recruited Blake, we started gigging in and around Sydney and developed the band's vision!
What inspired your name?
I was on a plane going I forget where, and was scrolling through the albums they keep on the in-flight entertainment systems. I found a Beach House record (great band) and started listening. About halfway through, one of the songs had a lyric that went "the girl with the lazy eye". The way the lyric "...the lazy eye" sounded was an aha! moment. To my surprise the guys didn't mind it, finally lifting the spell of cringe band names off from us.
You released your second ever track ‘Tangerine’ on April 9, how does it feel to get this one out?
It feels awesome! Tangerine is the oldest original song we have as a band that we still play live. It feels like a relief to finally release the recording which has been collecting dust for the better part of three years!
What kind of things influenced this track? Were you listening to any music specifically that you think was a big influence?
We were all digging Unknown Mortal Orchestra at the time and getting familiar with the three records they had released by then. The lo-fi sound in the early stuff was inspiring and felt nostalgic to us. With Tangerine, I think it achieved a similar romantic quality because we were leaning into a bit of a rough around the edges sound, but also partly because we were still learning how to produce ourselves too. We can really hear that when we listen to the song now, it's kinda nice - like a time capsule back into those formative years.
What was the creative process like behind the track? Do you prefer to lay down the instrumental first then vocals or do you begin with a vocal idea and build on that?
Although in a live setting the songs grow up over time and mature with the band, the recordings happen in a very different, inorganic way. Harvey and I will sit in our home studio in Lindfield and just take our time layering bits and pieces of stuff we hear that should be in the song until we feel satisfied. We tend to build the recordings from the bottom up, starting with drums. From there we layer the other basic, most obvious parts like bass, rhythm guitar and lead guitar. Then, the sprinkles! On this track, we borrowed my brother's glockenspiel (shoutout Ben) to give the second verse some glimmer, and recorded an old detuned piano for the outro. Little things like that which add colour and interest are important to us. Lastly, we record vocals and harmonies and then spend some time mixing everything.
what would you like people to know about you if they haven’t heard your music already?
If it's possible depending on where you live in the world and of course when this pandemic passes, I would say come see us play a show! That's one of our favourite things to do as a band and everyone has a good time. We also love checking out other artists up close and personal in the mosh pit.
Did you ever think that you would blow up the way that you have?
The support so far has been really heart warming! As Dory from 'Finding Nemo' once said, "Just keep swimming!" That's what we're here to do and we'll see how far that gets us.
What is your overall goal as artists? Are there certain people you’d want to tour/record with?
As a general goal, we just want to grow together and be the best version of the band that we can be. We wouldn't be opposed to working with Dave Fridmann!
What does 2020 hold for The Lazy Eyes?
We have a few songs in the barrel and some tour plans will be made for after the Coronavirus passes. Beyond that, it is all very confidential stuff.
Find out more about The Lazy Eyes here.