Q&A: The Single Men's Drinking Club

Define your genre in five words or less: 

Not suitable for children.

Bearing the terrible clichéd nature of this question, what do you reckon people will say you sound like?
Nick Cave’s car accident, particularly if he had the Beasts of Bourbon on the stereo at the time and if Midnight Oil were driving the tow-truck.

What can a punter expect from your live show?
Four battle-scarred alcoholics and one wild animal wrestling with a violin.

So, someone is walking past as you guys are playing, they then go get a beer and tell their friend about you... what do they say?
I thought I was manly till I walked past that band – now my balls are internal.

Which band would you most like to have a battle/showdown with?
One Direction. I could be wrong, but I reckon we could take ‘em.

What do you think a band has to do these days to succeed?
Regurgitator pretty much summed it up on Tu-Plang in 1996. I don’t think anything’s really changed.

What inspires or has influenced your music the most?
Our debut record Last Laugh for the Landscape was inspired by the story of Gordon Wood and Caroline Byrne. She went off a cliff in Sydney in the ‘90s and he was recently acquitted of her murder – the court decided it was suicide. The record sets a man in the same situation, did she jump or was she pushed? And, as he runs from the scene of the crime into the Victorian wilderness, his reckoning is close behind and gaining ground.

Do you have any record releases to date? What are they? Where can I get them?
We’re three days away from releasing the album – but it’s already available at Thornbury Records, Readings Bookshops and online (Bandcamp, CDBaby, iTunes), just don’t tell anyone till Saturday.

Why should everyone come and see your band?
Because we’re the best damn band in this town – come along, buy me a drink and tell me why you disagree.

When are you playing live/releasing your album/EP/single/etc?
We’re launching our record Last Laugh for the Landscape this Saturday August 4 at the Grace Darling Hotel in Collingwood, with Brightstar and Pony Face.