Peno had been introduced to Cam Butler at a Penny Ikinger show at Yah Yahs, and, swept up in the emotion of the moment, invited Butler to write some songs with him. “I really liked the orchestral stuff that Cam has done with Silver Ray and his solo work, and that appealed to me,” Peno says. A few days later Butler gave Peno a call and headed across to Peno’s South Yarra apartment to start writing the songs that would appear eventually on the Future Universe record. The starting point for the pair’s songwriting efforts was Peno’s then interest in Burt Bacharach and David Bowie. “At the time I was also really into Burt Bacharach and Jimmy Webb, and I suppose I was also conscious of my age and wanting to do something different – I wanted to make the songs really rich and beautiful, with lots of heart and soul,” Peno says. “I was also listening to a lot of Bowie – especially Young Americans – I love the way he sang on that album; and the melodies.”
Peno’s original choice for his new outfit’s name was RSVP And The Return To Senders, a moniker that announced the band’s first round of gigs before being changed in light of peer group pressure. “I thought RSVP And The Return To Senders was quite good, but some people told me that no-one knew who or what RSVP was, so they said I should have my name out the front,” Peno says. “So I changed the name so people would recognise the band. And a couple of the guys weren’t that keen on the Return To Senders, so we changed that as well. It was like starting over again.”
After playing in Melbourne for over six months, Peno, Butler and the rest of the Superstitions – drummer Mark Dawson, guitarist and keyboardist Tim Deane and bass player Andy Papadopoulos – headed into Soundpark Studios late last year to record what would become Future Universe. Peno is understandably proud of the final product. “I think the songs Cam and I have written are really strong – they’re very strong in structure,” Peno says. “And some of the melodies I’ve come up with are the best I’ve come up with are the best since Doughboy Hollow.”
Having played exclusively in Melbourne so far, Peno is open to the idea of returning to his former home city of Sydney to promote Future Universe – though not just for the sake of it. “I’d like to wait til the album’s out, and see how people like it, and then think about playing interstate, or even overseas,” Peno says. “Playing in Melbourne, there’s such a beautiful community here, people support each other, lots of collaborations,” he says.
