The release of Another kicks off the Sydney-bred trio’s first Australian tour in around a year, with only one show happening in London since last September. As hinted in those shows from last year, the band are in the process of somewhat of a metamorphosis. “We’ve changed it quite a lot, with more singing being added. There’s quite a new dynamic. Alex [Cameron] isn’t just the drummer and instrumentalist anymore; in a sense, he’s taken centre stage. But there is still a lot of style retained from the old Seekae show in this one. It’s kind of going to be a blend of the two, really,” he assesses.
The band’s previous LP, the exquisite +Dome, was released back in early 2011. We can forecast an approximate three year gap between that album and the upcoming full-length, as Hassel reveals. “We have the video and single coming out very, very shortly. It’s basically going to be the first glimpse of the first album. A lot depends on how my computer goes today,” he laughs. “The album’s coming along well. We are finishing it all off before I go away in the coming months, and the plan is to release it early next year with a couple of singles beforehand. The ball’s already rolling; when the single comes out this Friday is when it all takes off I guess.”
Just as +Dome marked a stylistic leap from debut album, The Sound Of Trees Falling On People, the upcoming album will diverge from any discernable linear creative path. “It’s our main goal with each record to introduce a new element in a way that feels natural for us. Singing obviously is a big thing, and it’s something that I feel has come along naturally. We’ve given it a good two, three years since the last album. The way things have gone, I think people are still going to hear a lot of Seekae in this record,” Hassel assures. “But at the same time, we’re giving something new. It’s going to be interesting though. After doing two practically instrumental records, you’re obviously going to have people with differing opinions when you add vocals. It’s great – Alex surprises me with the way he sings like he does, because it just came out of nowhere. I’m excited, but you can’t help but feel a little bit nervous when you’re waiting to hear what people think.”
Though +Dome resulted in a huge influx of Seekae fans, with sell-out shows becoming a given, the electronica characteristics of the record found their way into the broader mainstream in a big way through various other acts. This sense of being ahead of the curve is an uncanny one, according to Hassel. “I think we’re just lucky in that respect. We just listen to the music we want to listen to, and a lot of the time what turns out to be a future trend is a reinterpretation of what happened a few years ago. And I wouldn’t go as far to say that we’ve set any trend. A lot of the music happening in Europe takes a couple of years to sink in to Australia. I think this is going to be interesting, because with the vocals we’re not following the predicted trajectory people might think we’d head.”
In between crafting new Seekae material, the trio found an outlet providing soundtrack work for various projects, including recent advertisements. Translating their musical style to the format of visual score is a natural fit. “We love that kind of stuff – it’s a lot of patience and getting to know the right people, which we’re trying to do at the moment, but I guess we’re just waiting for the call. We’ve been lucky with the couple of ads we’ve done in the past few years. We can’t wait to do the Bring It On 4 soundtrack or something like that,” he laughs, as I sheepishly raise the possibility that Bring It On 4 possibly has already seen a straight to video release (turns out it has).
Throughout the interview, hints of an English accent shine through Hassel’s Australian cadence. I ask if the band would consider following in the suit of some of their compatriots in becoming Euro-based expatriates. “We don’t have any plans in terms of relocation. But I’ve actually been living in England, so I’ve been coming back to help finish the album. That’s partly why it’s taken so long. I think George [Nicholas] and Alex are pretty happy in Sydney. But sometimes these things jump out at you – how the album goes, how things go overseas. It’s hard to say, in the next year things are going to be decided for us. It’s going to be turbulent, in a good way, I think.”
BY LACHLAN KANONIUK
