What’s your name then? Oh. And the name of your band…?
Audrey Powne and James Bowers and together we are Au Dré.
And what do you do?
Together we make ‘bangers’, ranging from ‘90’s dance tracks to funky disco floor fillers and new jack swingers.
When did you start doing that?
We met at the VCA when we were both studying jazz and I think we first played together in a neo-soul band called The OMG’s, which used to play at Lucky Coq in Prahran every Monday night for most of 2009-10.
Why did you start doing that?
We were both pretty sad and unfulfilled by our lives as lonely and ostracised gingers and we both happened to share a love of music written by Donalds. Most notably Steeley Dan frontman Donald Fagan and 70‘s funk/disco mastermind Donald Blackman.
What makes you happiest about what you’re doing?
Playing with our live band, which includes fellow ginger and drummer extraordinaire Gareth Thomson from Sex on Toast and the best producer/multi-instrumentalist and nicest guy in Melbourne, Nicholas Lam, who may be known to the lucky ones amongst you as hit maker DXHeaven.
And what makes you unhappiest about what you’re doing?
Being poor and having to borrow money from our mums to buy baked beans.
Photo by Emma Matsuda
AU DRE launch their debut single Fool Me at The Workers Club on Thursday July 2.
