Like Leaves

Fri 14th Jan, 2011 in Features

Adelaide band Like Leaves are an exciting prospect and things come to a head with the launch of their self-titled debut album this weekend. Along for the ride are fellow locals Lady Strangelove and Steering By Stars. Guitarist Patrick Saracino delves further in to the goings on for Like Leaves.

The future for Adelaide ba Like Leaves is looking incredibly and they’re all excited about the upcoming launch. The band are stoked to announce the release of their debut, self-titled album at Jive Bar on January 14. Playing in support are our good friends Lady Strangelove and Steering By Stars. The album was recorded & mixed by the band at Broadcast Studios with Evan James ( The Mark of Cain, Pharaohs) and mastered by John Golden ( Sonic Youth, Melvins). The CD features cover art illustrated & designed by Ross Paxman.

Patrick from the band also mentioned how busy things have been in the lead up. “The lead up to the launch has been both hectic and exciting. We’ve had access to a very good rehearsal space for the last month and have put in a lot of time working on both new and old material in preparation for the gig. We’re quietly confident we’re ready to put on a good show and make it a night to remember.”

Along with the launch comes expectation and maybe a little pressure. “We see the launch on Friday as a party in honour of our hard work and a chance to share our tunes with people who engage with our music. We love playing live and we take our music seriously; we want to play shows in as many places as possible both within Australia and overseas in search of people who dig what we do. The launch is hopefully just the beginning of some momentum, there’s a heap of hard work to follow it up.”

Despite the ways people consume music it seemed like this had impact on how the record was made. “The tunes themselves are not influenced by the ways in which people access or consume music. We just wanted to make a good record which sounds relevant to it’s time but also tips its hat to the past. I guess one of the positives of the current environment is that we had the luxury and possibly of using an array of vintage and modern recording equipment in the process.”

The pertinent question had to be asked whether it is more challenging to recoup costs when most people expect music for free or seek it illegally. “The prospect of recouping costs does seem to be challenging given the potential for it to be available for free online. However, we don’t feel that we should cater to those who expect music for free or can really do anything about those who seek it illegally. As a band of avid music fans we need to get our music out there to those who will appreciate it enough to spend the money equivalent of three beers on our music – we reckon it’s worth it!”

For the uninitiated Patrick describes their debut. “The album is epic. There are a lot of sounds, influences and personalities coming together so it’s pretty eclectic. Some of the songs began as jam-based ideas and were refined in the studio so there’s a lot of heavy, psychedelic moments and instrumental jams along with more focused and arranged ‘songs’. Sonically, the layered, atmospheric tracks seem to sit well with the heavier side of the band and over the course of the record I personally think the album is a trip! I’m sure that people will have their favourite tracks, but it’s one of those albums that is rewarding to those who put in the effort to listen from start to finish.”

Having being satisfied with the final product Like Leaves are looking to improve next time round. “There are two sound-engineers in our band (including myself) so we knew from the beginning that we would want to have a hands-on part to play in making the album. We split the process between Broadcast Studios and our home-recording setup, so inevitably it took a while longer than everyone expected. Whilst the creative freedom of the home studio was worth it, we learned a lot about the importance of setting deadlines. The studio also puts your skills as a musician and songwriter under the microscope (in a good way) and we’ll definitely use the experience of recording this album to streamline the process of making the next one, striving to make it better than the first one.”

Patrick also added, “For a self-managed, independent band on a tight budget, there were times during the process when we had to tread the line between being very ambitious and making necessary compromises. In saying that, we feel lucky that we were able to record at a great studio, work with a world-class Mastering engineer (John Golden) and Ross Paxman’s artwork is even more amazing than we’d hoped. At the end of the day we’re extremely proud of this record, we think it represents our band well and are grateful to those who lent their skills to help us make it happen.”

From day dot the band has evolved and seen some subtle sonic changes. “The band started out as a three-piece and played for over a year in this formation before Juliet joined. It was then a process of integrating the violin and vocal parts to some songs that were completed as well as Juliet bringing ideas to the band and us writing together collaboratively. The recording process was a cool way to experiment with running Juliet’s violin run through a vintage amp and guitar effects to get some really interesting and unique sounds from a classical instrument. Juliet’s addition was like the missing puzzle piece falling into place – her violin tone and amazing voice bring a really distinctive vibe to our sound. We’re in the process of writing new material for another album and our sound and musicianship is constantly evolving and improving, so we’re excited to be releasing the record as a musical document of the past eighteen months of our lives.”

And the future? “The plan for Like Leaves is to have as busy a 2011 as possible. Now that the album is out, we’re really looking forward to heading interstate to play shows, as well as playing shows in our usual haunts with our favourite Adelaide bands. We’ll be playing lots of shows this year and it’d be good to see some new faces in the crowd.”