How DZ Ruined My Life

Fri 11th Sep, 2009 in Features

Easter, 2009. A Sydneysider steps foot into Fans club night at the Alhambra lounge in Brisbane’s swarming Fortitude Valley. The smell of sweat and beer pierce her nostrils as a band in the adjoining room sounds out its last chords.

Minutes later, two boys take the stage, a mop of blonde hair behind the drum kit and his early-20-something bandmate sporting a Young and Restless t-shirt up the front. The distortion, dancing and delirium that would come next meant nothing could stay the same for that Sydney lady. This was the Night that DZ ruined my life.

Six months on, Simon – œSci-Fi’ Ridley and Shane – œParty’ Parsons sit across the table from me at the Courthouse Hotel in Newtown. It’s a sunny Sunday afternoon, but the boys look a little worse for wear, telling me they had been out till 5:30am that morning. Doing what? “Ruining lives,” drummer Ridley explains.

The Brisbane two-piece met while Ridley “was working on a cruise ship as a barmaid,” he recalls. “Shane was on there with all his Japanese businessmen friends. He was really into that scene back in the day.”

“Sci could do a magic trick behind the bar, he got a dish rag and turned it into a pony, named it Roger and gave it to me,” Parsons adds, smiling his crooked smile and playing with his feather white-man fro.

“I forgot about that trick!” Ridley interjects excitedly.

“And I asked him if we wanted to make a band, he said yes! So we played the final party on the cruise ship when we docked back into Australia. It was crazy,” Parsons finishes, smiling.

Watching Ridley and Parsons feed off each other, elaborating on what the other has said and building a world around a lie, you can tell this is no fly-by-night relationship. Friends since they were 13 after meeting at a party in their hometown of Bundaberg, their ten-year-long bond seems to have had a definite impact on their live shows.

Known for their ferocity and energy onstage, there is a sense of comradery as they hurtle through their house party thrash; driven by simple, but dance inducing riffs and storming drums. Watching each other through their signature strobe light, DZ consistently produce performances worthy of bands twice their age and stature.

Rising from the ashes of Brissy band Denzel, who hung up their sticks after its drummer moved to Europe, DZ came together under the new banner in February 2008, when the boys first experimented with playing as a two-piece.

“The songs were really dodgy because I still couldn’t drum, but it just seemed so effortless compared to [Denzel],” Ridley recalls. “We wrote down a list of bands we’d like to see play at house parties, and then we tried to make something that sounded like all those bands playing at the same time.”

Since then, they have supported Crystal Castles, Ratatat, Temper Trap and I Heart Hiroshima as well as playing Come Together and Essential Festival, and scoring a coveted DJ set at Splendour in the Grass.

But the music is only half of the DZ legend. Their first unofficial single The Mess Up comes complete with a video clip which documents the boys downing an entire bottle of Jager in three minutes flat. No easy feat. Their penchant for tequila and seemingly mystical peer-pressure party powers see anyone in their vicinity waking up the next day wondering what happened, where they are and why they aren’t wearing any pants.

Which is how they scored a record deal.

After being approached by labels both major (EMI) and indie (Rice Is Nice), DZ decided to go with a purpose built label closer to home. Useless Art Records was created by the same handful of Brisbane dudes (and the boys drinking partners) who run Fans club night in the Valley every month. The label was created with the initial sole purpose of unleashing DZ on the world.

So why choose a bunch of newbees over seasoned professionals? “All the other labels had a different vibe,” Parsons says. “They all had their set list of, – œthis is how we release an EP,’ they were like a machine.”

I guess it can’t hurt that the label offered to send them to their EP launch in a limo, supply free beer, and get DZ tattoos either. With the support of the fledgling label, DZ went to work with Cam Smith from Incremental Records, recording the five track EP in Smith’s bedroom. The hot little tracks were then sent to Big Jesus Burger studios in Sydney, where Berkfinger of Philly Jay’s fame mixed it over the Come Together weekend.

The resulting EP, DZ Ruined My Life, is set for release on the 11th of September. As well as the video clip for their first single Blue Blood (which sees the boys covered in blue blood and engaging in some pretty Crouching Tiger moments), a 12-minute band documentary has been created for release with the EP. “We think we’re going to do a special edition USB with the EP and the videos on it,” Parsons reveals.

Announced last week, DZ will embark on a national tour with Wolf & Cub and Vasco Era as well as playing both Brisbane and Sydney Parklife shows. However, before that, the duo have their own sneaky little East Coast EP tour to destroy. So what can people expect from this tour?

Parsons rubs his impressively cultivated sideburns as he contemplates the question. “Probably Andrew W. K.” he says. “We’re going to dress like Andrew W. K. and give each other blood noses before we play. It’s going to be so mad.”

“And High Fives,” Ridley suggests. “I’m just going to pick one guy out and just take him down with High Fives. Bam bam bam bam bam bam bam,” he says, slamming his long armed hand into mid-air repeatedly. “I’m going to bring back the High Ten.”

“I think at Parklife I’m going to have a really old Megadeath shirt, cut the sleeves off, look like a bogan, and then wear really, really tight black jeans. That would be awesome,” Parsons exclaims. “Whitest. Arms. Ever.”

“Just wear stubbies, if you’re going to go Bogan,” Ridley suggests. “And then just have one foot up on the fold back. Testicles blowing in the breeze,” and the boys are off on another tangent.

Glancing over at the knitting club who have taken residence at the table next to ours, I long for the simple life I led before Easter. Before DZ ruined my life.

DZ will – œRuin Your Life’ at the following events.

Friday, September 11 – Empire Corner Bar, Brisbane
Saturday, September 12 – Coaster Festival, Gosford
Wednesday, September 16 – Beach Rd Hotel, Sydney – FREE
Thursday, September 17 – Birmingham Hotel, Melbourne
Friday, September 18 – Pony (2am), Melbourne – FREE
Saturday, September 19 – Oxford Art Factory (Gallery Bar), Sydney