There was no such issue for Melbourne alternative rock act Trial Kennedy, although it must be said that they took a little longer than usual in incubating the follow up to their debut. Their second album, Living Undesigned, is a powerful but fun rock album: dynamic, varied and full of energetic and catchy tunes. Guitarist Stacey Gray, along with the rest of the band, couldn’t be happier with the final results. “Yeah, we’re stoked,” he enthuses, “it’s been a long time coming for us, the last one came out in 2008.
“A bit’s happened in the last three years,” he grins. “The general consensus with musos usually is that, when it comes time to release a record, people are pretty stoked. But it seems it’s taken three years of hard work and a real struggle to get to where you are, and to have something that you’re incredibly proud of for people to listen to, it’s just a really humbling feeling, and the vibe’s positive.”
It’s a definite huge step forward and progression from the band’s debut, especially in terms of its cohesiveness and musicality as an ‘album’ proper. “I think it’s a mature step forward,” he agrees, “the dynamic has changed a little bit; we’ve got a new bass player. And also I think, as songwriters, in three years time people grow incredibly, and obviously musical tastes [change]. What I was listening to three years ago, compared to what I am now, is so very different and varied.
“We’ve tried to be more concise with the songwriting,” he adds, “and get the point across without trying to fill it full of wanky guitar solos. Which we don’t do!” he laughs.
The band launch the record this coming Saturday night at Ding Dong, and then head off on an extensive national tour in support of the album. Expect a typical full throttle Trial Kennedy rock show, but with a surprise thrown in, Gray enthuses. “[I’m] Pumped, mate, we’re really, really excited about it,” he states happily, his relief and sheer joy at being able to tour a new album palpable. “We did a short tour in March, which was the first run we’d done in a little while. It felt really cool with the new bass player Richie, and on this tour we’re also including an extra member, coming with us. So there’s four in Trial Kennedy but there’s going to be five touring. It’s the guy who mixed the record, Hayden Buxton touring with us, playing some extra guitars and extra keys. It’s like Trial Kennedy on heat!” he chuckles.
“We want to take it to the next level sonically, and increase the presence of it live,” he adds of turning the album into a live show. “It’s cool! Always having been a four piece band, to taking it to being a touring five piece with heaps of dimensions, and being able to replicate your album pretty much as close as you can get it. It’s a real exciting feeling for us.
“It’s version 2.0, the upgrade!” he continues enthusiastically, “it’s feels right. And when it feels good, you’re onto a winner,” he grins.
Next year will mark the decade anniversary as a band for Trial Kennedy (with certain members having played together for even longer), but with the new album out, the band feel as enthusiastic about it as they did in the very beginning… possibly even more so.
“Yeah it’s funny when people say that,” Gray muses, regarding the length of time the band has been together, “we’ve been playing music together… like I’ve been playing with Shaun, our drummer, since we were 14, 15. So the musical relationship has been going on even longer than that. Trial Kennedy formed in about 2002 or something like that, but it just feels like one of the things that we do, and we’ve put so much time and effort into it over the last five or six years, really intensely. It doesn’t feel like a drag at all,” he chuckles.
“At the moment it feels really energising, because of having a new record and a new vibe. It just feels really positive; the best in a long time. It’s been a bit of a roller coaster for the last couple of years, but the roller coaster years are good for you, as long as you can come out on top of it, and don’t let it beat you, you’re in a good position.”
So did Gray ever imagine that when the band started over nine years ago that they’d still be playing, and releasing a second album… all off into the mists of time in 2010?
“When you first start out, you set yourself a goal,” Gray recalls. “17 years old, you say ‘Imagine what it would be like playing in a pub!'” he laughs. “Then you play in a pub and you say ‘Shit, this is cool!’ And then it becomes if you could go to Sydney and play a show – how good would that be – and all these sorts of things. You set these goals and along the way with a lot of hard work, you achieve the goal and you just keep taking the steps up the ladder,” he nods.
“Sometimes,” he concludes, “you hit some brick walls, but that’s like anything really… it’s the way of the world!”
