Forward propulsion and a genuine interest in creating art that goes beyond the basic functions of a gig or a recorded work have typified Teeth & Tongue’s career thus far. This is exemplified by their upcoming collaborative performance with visual artist Keith Deverell, as a part of The Shadow Electric’s Visions series.
“I can’t really explain it, but Keith does this live video feedback loop from the desk and then it’s triggered by what’s happening onstage. It’s a video response to the sound,” Cornelius says. “When we’ve worked with him in the past he has these images that he uses, but for this one we’re creating our own images and footage for each song, so we’ve got a bit of work to do.”
As if this weren’t enough pressure for Cornelius – the band’s driving force and sole core member – much of the projections will be accompanying brand new songs.
“We’re working on a whole heap of new material that we’re going to be playing, which is really exciting and nerve wracking. It’s our last show for a long time ’cause we’re also making a record,” says Cornelius. “In terms of doing projections and videos, I’d love to do a lot more than we’ve done in the past. It would be great to have something like that as a permanent element, but of course with costs and logistics it’s not always possible. So this is a great opportunity for us to really go to town on it.”
The Melbourne-based songwriter has been very busy over the last year. Teeth & Tongue’s third album, Grids, was released last March to winning reviews, and the band followed-up with tours around the country, both as headliner and as support to Courtney Barnett. Cornelius also undertook a two-month artist’s residency in the small town of Skagaströnd in northern Iceland.
“It was a very unstructured residency. Every day you went to the studio and sometimes you’d just go and stare at the wall, sometimes you’d do some work,” she says. “You couldn’t do any walking; it was just really cold and windy. It was a six-hour bus ride to the nearest city, and no one had a car. My whole existence existed within about one kilometre.”
During her stay Cornelius managed to record and release a single, Cupcake, with layers being added by her bandmates via email, along with an accompanying film clip, shot largely on her iPhone.
“It’s funny because it was an open plan studio, nothing was sound proofed and nothing was private,” she says. “When I was at my desk I’d have headphones on, singing into a microphone and I’d just forget there’s this room full of people. The video was like that as well; everyone’s just doing their work and I’m lip-syncing to the song.”
Although an album’s worth of material was written during those two months, at this point the singer has decided to put those songs to the side and continue writing. “I thought I’d come back and be like ‘Yeah – let’s make a record,’ and I basically turned around and went, ‘I don’t think I like any of those songs’,” she says. “It was good to get it out of my system, but I’ve got a much more concise plan for the sounds now. In the past I’ve tracked everything myself and then we’ve put it together live, and this time I just want to get it ready as a band and then record it.”
BY ALEX WATTS
