Rock music continues to dominate our listening habits here in Australia and for good reason.
Baby Animals is Suze DeMarchi on lead vocals and guitar, Dave Leslie on guitar and backing vocals, Dave Bortolin on bass guitar and backing vocals, and Mick Skelton on drums and percussion.
The Australian group’s sound is rooted in classic Aussie pub rock, informed by 70’s Rock and Roll music from around the world.
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The band built a solid regional following here in Australia to sold-out shows across the country and are known to provide memorable performances.
Three of the band’s albums have made it onto the ARIA Albums Top 20 Chart. Baby Animals (September 1991) – which peaked at number one, Shaved and Dangerous (August 1993) – which reached number two and This Is Not the End (2013) which made the top 20 at No.19.
Baby Animals continue to tour, demonstrating a lasting love and dedication to the live music scene. Their next show will see them headline Wanstock Day Festival on March 4 for a celebration of Australian rock music.
Baby Animals are a fan’s band. They’re a rock band, having fun with it, and they’re just as genuine today about their love for what they do as they were back in the 90s when on tour with Van Halen.
Dave explains, “we really love what we do, we really enjoy each other’s company, and we’re really grateful to be one of the bands getting away with it after all this time.”
On their latest album released in 2013, This Is Not The End, Baby Animals maintain the band’s original sound and musical integrity whilst delivering tunes reminiscent of the rock produced in the 70s and 80s while blending it with the sounds the early 2000’s.
The result is an amalgamation of influences that created a decade of rock music whose legacy lives on in Australian music culture.
As rock music continues to dominate our listening habits here in Australia, it also occupies much of the band’s interest.
“I’m still discovering rock music from the ’70s that fell through the net,” says Dave.
These discoveries include artists such as Ronnie Wood, best known as a member of The Rolling Stones, whose solo projects began in 1960 and continued through the decades until 2021.
Ronnie is among many famous musicians who have made concerted efforts to enlighten younger audiences about rock and roll roots.
Emerging in the 1950s in the United States, rock and roll have its roots in gospel and country music. Its direct influence, however, is in the Blues originating in the deep southern plantations worked on and by the African-American diaspora.
Sounds and rhythms found in Jazz, Rhythm and Blues, Gospel, Country, and Rock and Roll were brought to light in the voices of the enslaved people singing songs of resistance as they worked.
The first wave of Rock and Roll to hit Australia’s shores came primarily via the United States and Great Britain, with added influences from Japan and other European countries.
In 1975, however, Australian rock became a staple with the founding of ABC’s Double Jay radio station. The station literally rocked the profoundly conservative nation by dedicating 24 hours of the day to rock music and hiring female disc jockeys and hosts.
Classic “Aussie” pub rock, the type of live music you could catch on the pub circuits, was now available to radio audiences all day and night. The music scene in Australia was forever changed.
Bands such as Cold Chisel, AC/DC, The Angels, Dragon and Rose Tattoo dominated the radio waves. These bands remain to this day staples in the fabric of Australian music, with Dragon and The Angels still touring in 2023 to sold-out shows across the nation.
Baby Animals were of course influenced in much the same way as their fellow musicians during the 1990s. Growing up throughout the 70s and 80s, their sounds aligned with what others were producing at that time. Valen Halen, Queens Of The Stone Age, The Clash – loud, unapologetic, fantastic music.
These musical greats continue to swat Baby Animal’s songwriting. “Whilst we were recording Baby Animals’ third record, This Is Not The End, I was listening to a lot of Queens of the Stone Age at the time.” Tells Dave, “And I reckon it shows in our album.”
Influences aside, the Baby Animals sound is and continues to be genuinely unique. Dave attributes this to the band’s makeup. “We’re one of those funny bands that help but kind of sound like ourselves because of the chemistry and makeup of the band.”
Dave Leslie also draws inspiration from the music surrounding him in his hometown of Melbourne.
Making a point to attend live gigs around town where he often runs into mates such as Nick Barker (Nick Barker and The Reptiles); the live music scene offers an abundance of new and established artists performing every night of the week.
“I like the fact that Melbourne has got that many locations creating opportunities for bands to play at. So even though it’s taken a bit of a hit over the last few years, it’s still pretty good, and people should be grateful that they can still go out and see so many acts.”
With over three decades under their belt, the band don’t appear to be slowing down any time soon. Dave is quick to respond when asked why and how they do it. “When you play live, that’s your reward. I still play the guitar like I’m 22 years old.”
The band has built resilience in the face of a changing music landscape. In terms of advice for the younger generations in the music industry, Dave says, “remember the reason you first got into the music industry, no matter whether you’re on stage, front of house, producing, mixing, or on monitors. That should be your payoff.”
Baby Animals are touring in 2023, with several dates lined up in the year’s first half. The band will be headlining Wanstock Day Festival on March 4 at the Shoppingtown Hotel in Doncaster.
Alongside Baby Animals is a lineup of new and old faces in the Oz Rock scene. Dragon, Standing Room Only, Nick Barker And The Reptiles, Stonetrip and newcomers Daydreamers.
The bass player from Truck, Kevin Cole, is playing with Baby Animals at Wanstock. “Our amazing bass player Daria can’t make the gig”, tells Dave, “So Kevin Cole is jumping in. He’s going to do the day, which will be great fun.” Dave adds, “He’s a monster bass player.”
Truck is an Aussie Rock band made up of cherished Aussie greats; Dave Leslie from Baby Animals on guitar, Kevin Cole on Bass and Horsehead’s Andy McLean on vocals.
“It’s going to be one happy night of rock and roll”, says Dave cheerily.
Find out more info and grab tickets to the festival on March 4 here while they last.
This article was made in partnership with Wanstock.
