Although they were already well into the writing process at the time, the DVD vindicated the boys’ own natural progression as well as inspiring the overall sound of the new tracks. “Most of the songs were kind of already half written so it was already where I suppose we were going anyway,” Palmer says in regard to the band’s direction. “But after seeing that (DVD) we were just like, ‘Fucking hell, let’s make it have really good guitar tones, let’s make it really psychedelic and cool!’”
With Vultures, the band has shed their previously more blues orientated sound by incorporating a much heavier dose of psychedelic rock. For the guitarist, the addition of an array of pedals and effects was also a significant factor in the band’s progression. “I kind of became obsessed with guitar tones a couple of years ago,” explains Palmer. “I never used to use pedals because, not out of a bluesy arrogance but just more like sticking to blues traditions.”
It’s a change that has worked remarkably well for the band and they couldn’t be happier with the end result. “We’re really happy with how it (the EP) turned out. I suppose we morphed from being a more bluesy band and then we got a bit more rock-ier but actually kind of taking on real guitar tones was the really exciting thing for me. I used a lot of vintage gear to make it sound like actually pretty legitimate sounding psycadelic rock you know? I think we kind of did it.”
Ten Cent Pistols are not a band to shy away from their musical influences and in fact they wear them proudly on their sleeve. “I mean, you listen to music because you love it. You make music that you want to love; you want to like the music that you’re making,” he explains. “So I think it’s a natural step to try to sound like the stuff you’re really inspired by.”
With the help of some good friends and some free studio time, Vultures slowly came together during a number of small recording sessions. “We actually recorded most of it in little bursts at SAE,” says Palmer. “We then recorded the rest of it at Tom from Big Scary’s house. We just did the last week with some overdubs, and a few vocal bits and then he mixed it.”
One of the most notable differences compared to the band’s previous releases is the fact that Ten Cent Pistols have now grown to include five permanent members. The addition of these extra musicians has meant a newfound ability to be able to explore and expand on their sound. “When we recorded our first EP we were a two piece blues band playing a lot of slide guitar and stuff,” says Palmer. “And then we did the EP and I suppose during that we always wanted to have piano as being a part of it and other stuff so we kind of just layered this EP with all these other things.”
Luckily, when it came to finding people to join the band in order to replicate their sound live, there were more than enough friends who were willing to join the brothers. “I think it’s much better to be good friends you know?” adds Palmer on the current line-up. “It’s more fun. We don’t want it to be too business orientated.”
The culmination of the entire process will come in the form of the official launch for Vultures on 12 inch vinyl at Cherry Bar. For Ten Cent Pistols, the evening will not only mark a chance to show off the fruits of their labour but also to share the stage with another one of their musical heroes. “It’s been a huge process making the record,” admits Palmer. “It took us a long time to make. It’s kind of like a triumphant moment actually because the vinyl’s coming out and we’re launching it at Cherry. One of the support acts is Collard Greens and Gravy who are a band we’ve been huge fans of since we were teenagers.”
BY JAMES NICOLI
