Rook
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Rook

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Late 2010 saw a parting of the ways for the band however, and their name has now been consigned to Aussie alt-rock history. The members have all gone on to other excellent musical projects.

Punters heading to the prestigious Rock the Bay Festival at St Kilda’s Esplanade Hotel are in for an absolute treat, as the band are reforming to play a set. Frontman Forbes McKail, speaking from his home in Brisbane, tells us it’s strictly a one-off show, so fans should get in while they can.

“It took a little bit [of convincing],” he says. “I was wondering whether it was the right time or not, because our bass player is in New York, so he’s actually going to have to miss it, which is a shame. So I was a bit torn.”

McKail feels there was something very special about a Rook show that set the band apart from other bands doing the live rounds at the time, and he’s looking forward to recreating that vibe at Rock the Bay.

“It was big, big loud tunes,” he enthuses. “We wrote good songs and we had a good stage energy… You felt something at a Rook gig that you didn’t really feel with other gigs. It was a family vibe; within the guys on the stage, within ourselves and with the people that we were playing for.”

It’s not just a reunion for the guys in Rook and their fans, two other high profile alternative rock acts from a similar era are also making comebacks at Rock the Bay, making this show a big rock’n’roll family reunion.

“Bushido reformed at the end of last year, and Rook and Bushido always had a sibling relationship, which was really wonderful,” he recalls. “Competitive, yet healthy and full of love. .hinge, they were like the big brothers. We grew up watching them, and they blew us away every time. A dream gig for us, which we were able to do a few times, was always Rook, Bushido and .hinge, to have those three on the same night was always good.”

McKail has not wasted time since Rook parted ways. He’s now a family man, and also has at least two other high profile musical projects on the go: The Khyber Belt, which has been going for a few years now and has released one EP; and a brand new project called Three Tonne Deep, which can only be described as an alternative/progressive rock supergroup, featuring current and former members of Dead Letter Circus and Melodyssey. This band’s released a lone single so far, but it’s an exciting prospect for Aussie rock if that single is anything to go by.

“The Khyber Belt have got a show the week before Rock the Bay at The Prince,” he says. “The Khyber Belt has been good, we never went anywhere, we just slowed down. We all got busy, we all started businesses and had babies and got married. Sometimes that stuff takes some focus away from music. But we’re writing again very soon, and we’re midway through releasing a single.

“And Three Tonne Deep, it just sort of happened really,” he continues. “Scotty [former Dead Letter Circus drummer Scott Davey] wrote this song on the drums. A friend of his Govinda [award-winning producer Govinda Doyle] put some bass down on it, and then sent it through to Vinnie from DLC. He put some guitaring on it. Then they sent me the track and said, ‘Do you want to have a go at singing on it?’, and I was like, ‘Yeah man, absolutely’.”

He’s quick to point out that Three Tonne Deep are not necessarily a full blown recording and touring band, being more of a ‘project’ at this stage. “It’s not a full band in the sense of touring and let’s write, but it’s sense where we were really happy with what we created with the first song, and the inspiration to create more is there.”

BY ROD WHITFIELD