Having just played the inaugural Vroom! Festival alongside British India and Bluejuice, John And The Inverarities have achieved more exposure in two months than many Perth bands spend years striving for. According to saxophonist Grey Johnston the band’s speedy productivity has been the by-product of creeping competition entrance deadlines. With the majority of the band first meeting at St George’s College, the 6-piece proved that UWA’s residential colleges are good for more than keeping the local cask wine industry healthy, ranking a respectable second in the state final of the National Campus Band Competition, the contest responsible for breaking now-hailed acts such as Eskimo Joe and Jebediah. “We started the band in early September pretty much solely for the Campus Band comp,” says Johnston. “Before that we hadn’t played any shows together.” with only a mere three weeks of rehearsal,
it’s hard not to be impressed by how easily John and the Inverarities got it right the first go round. It seems this mixed netball loving group of jazz nerds find it hard to fail.

All still students at UWA, the band has received a lot of support from college residents who seem to appreciate their eclectic blend of jazz infused poprock. “It’s hard to define our music…we all came from a background of playing Jazz but influence-wise I think we all just really enjoy a lot of dance music,” says Johnston. “So really I think you could say we are playing a combination of dance, rock and jazz music. Jazz definitely has to be in there somewhere.”

However, with St George’s residents cleared out during the summer, John and the Inverarities have found themselves dispersed between their native Mandurah, Bunbury and Margaret River. Johnston assures this time apart will be used for writing and possibly recording a more polished set of demos. “We won some studio time with our place in the National Campus Band Comp, so we’re planning to get 15 songs or so down and then hopefully get a proper EP out some time,” he says.

Packing keys, two guitars, drums, bass and a sax, as their Vroom! performance showed John and the Inverarities are quiet the live spectacle. While somewhat green on the circuit, their blend of laid-back jazz grooves and psychedelic hooks has began to catch the ears of promoters around the city. With Vroom! support on their resumes, the band has teed up shows in their native Bunbury and Mandurah as well as a slot at the UWA O-Day. “At the moment we’re just having a stab at everything,” says Grey. “We’ve entered Stagebound, Unearthed and a competition to play the Big Day Out.” If their current record with competitions victories prevails, who knows if John and the Inverarities could fill Tame Impala’s crown as the festival season’s village bicycle?

The humble beginnings and lucky breaks of John and The Inverarities short history is the stuff of the garage rock dream. In a time where complex home studios seem to be a necessity and schmoosing an inside contact is an easy road in there’s something inspiring about the simplicity of their collective “nothing to lose” attitudes. “We just need to work hard, write some songs and if people like our music that’s great” concludes Johnston, mirroring this sentiment. It will be interesting to see how they refine their sound with a little more time on their side and no more deadlines to meet. Considering they already have a stand named after them at the WACA one would think it’s all up from here.