“It’s not like we’ve just been maxin’ and relaxin’. We’ve been really busy with other things. Oscar is doing his new Key Sung thing quite a bit. I’m in The Harpoons, that’s my other band. I’ve been working with The Harpoons on an album for about two years now so that’s a big part of what’s been sucking my time lately. I’ve been working on some solo stuff as well.”
Oscar + Martin are being rather selective with the shows they play at the moment and their next public appearance will kick off weekend three of The Garden Party on Melbourne’s Southbank, alongside Van She. The band are experienced with gigs in unconventional outdoor settings, most recently performing as part of the Federation Square live series. Outdoor conditions aren’t always ideal but Martin resolves that a good crowd will overcome any technical impedance.
“Outdoor gigs can be really hard. You might make the loudest sound that you’ve got on your sampler and not even hear it. It’s much more about the vibe of the crowd then it is about the place itself. We played quite a strange but fun one ages ago in Melbourne Music Week. It was on this rooftop and it poured the whole night and we were not in top form either because we were quite sick. So the gig was essentially a disaster but it was also awesome because the people who did go, despite the rain, were really into it and didn’t give a fuck about the fact they were being drenched the whole set. It’s just vibe, anything can go either way.”
Oscar + Martin’s extensive incorporation of sampled sounds and looping beats might suggest their live show follows a well-wrought script. However, there are points when the feeling swelling on stage directs them into impulsive territory.
“Some songs we basically have to execute something perfectly every time. Some songs you can ride it out and play it a bit looser and, if people really like it, take a bit longer to finish the song. There’s one song that sometimes, you know Bootylicious by Destiny’s Child? We do a little part of that song in one of our songs. If we think it’s a good idea at the moment when it’s going to happen we might do it, or might not do it. We might just look at each other and suss out the vibe.”
Oscar + Martin have a penchant for weaving threads alongside one another in a complementary manner. Martin speaks of a shared attraction towards particular elements of music, which enhances their collaborative chemistry. “One thing we’ve both noticed after playing music together for a long time is we have very similar appreciation of what’s good in a piece of music, regardless of what style that piece of music is. I’ll say to Oscar, ‘Those harmonies are crazy’ and he’ll know exactly what I mean. With some other people you might not have the same understanding of what’s good about something.”
The duo don’t feel pressured by the industry standard of release frequency to squeeze out a follow up to their debut album For You. Martin explains that they’d prefer to be patient and ensure they make a broader impact with the next release.
“If we do more stuff we want to make it next level. We don’t want to just put it out, play some international supports and have it run its course the same way For You has. We really want to be behind it and make it really happen. If we got too worried about rushing the next thing it wouldn’t be very good. People would be like, ‘This isn’t as good as the last thing I heard from Oscar + Martin’. Whereas if we take a bit of time and make something awesome they’ll be like, ‘Oh that’s right, I remember Oscar + Martin, this shit’s awesome!’” In the meantime, there’s a few other goals pinned to the corkboard that they’re working towards actualising.
“We’ve also talked about making a movie together, a sci-fi movie. But that’s unlikely to be a profitable business venture; that’s going to suck money rather than make money. We thought about a whole number of things. Making the NBA is pretty high on the list – you’ve got to aim high.”
BY AUGUSTUS WELBY
