“We started the act off as a bit of fun, as a bit of a side project on top of other things we were doing at the time, and then it just kind of kept going and going and now we’re looking back and it’s been ten years,” she says. “It’s really good looking back on all the shows we’ve done and the songs we’ve sung…now we’re just putting together a show that’s different to what we did at the Comedy Festival, kind of celebrating all our stuff.”
Taking their audience on a trip down memory lane, the trio are set to deliver the stand out tongue-in-cheek musical comedy that they’re known for, by belting out all of their hits from years gone by (cue: the 4 Chord Song – you know the one.)
For Jordan, Benny and Lee, the celebration show is a personal reflection of their career. But it’s also a chance for their fans to bask in the ten years worth of material that they have so masterfully delivered.
“For people that didn’t see us at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, there will probably be songs that they haven’t heard before, but there’s nothing new written specifically for this show… this show will be a bit different because it’s more of a retrospective rather than putting out new stuff.”
Revered and always in hot demand, it was esteemed comedy and live music venue The Yarraville Club, who approached the band and asked them to play a celebration show. Belly laughs and sing-alongs are promised, with a delightful atmosphere and show bags full of gold and knives to to boot. ‘Knives?’ you ask? Well, while Jordan doesn’t divulge too much about the idea behind the peculiar take-home gift, she does promise that they are not your standard kitchen knife, but rather pretty and decorative ones – all for a bit of a laugh.
The celebration show comes amidst the bands already heavily packed touring schedule. Having smashed through the domestic scene throughout the first half of the year, including their acclaimed MICF show, the trio are now slated to take to the international stage in the second half of the year.
“We’ll do the Edinburgh Festival and then I think we’ll probably start writing again, working on a new show for next year and a new album,” Jordan explains.
Their ability to write quickly and effectively is something especially notable about this group. With seven albums already under their belt for the decade, and a host more sure to come, there’s no question that The Axis Of Awesome are masters at their craft. Their latest offering, Viva La Vida Loca Las Vegas, dropped in February and sees the trio continue to impress.
“We’re really happy with how that album is going,” Jordan says. “For me a lot of the newer stuff that we’re doing is some of my favourite work.”
Looking back on the ten years of the band, and Jordan certainly has some highlights. For her, it was the first time that they played to audiences overseas, where English wasn’t the first language that really got her spine tingling.
“We went to places like Sweden, Germany and Amsterdam, and that’s when it really hit home that our music had travelled beyond where we ever thought it would. To think that other people, whose first language isn’t English, knew the words to our songs, was a real milestone for us,” she says.
Heavily influenced by the pop genre, Jordan says that the band make a point of staying in the loop with the latest in pop music trends, in order to stay constantly fresh and relevant.
“Music is an international language, and I think because we perform pop music, that can kind of cross cultural barriers.
“But I think that it’s kind of our job to keep our finger on the pulse of what’s happening in music,” she explains. “Now that we’re kind of a bit older we sometimes look at the music kids are listening to and think, ‘That’s not like my day’. But then we make fun of it in the same way that we also make fun of the music from our day as well.”
Although a decade deep into their musical comedy careers, The Axis Of Awesome show no signs of slowing down. Old fans just keep flocking in, while new ones are constantly jumping on the bandwagon and it’s all because of this trio’s clever and simply lovable style.
“I think [people keep coming back because] we have a fun show, it’s inclusive, it’s not mean spirited or anything like that,” Jordan says. “It’s cool because it is music, but it’s also about music, which people enjoy. They can see a familiarity when we’re ripping on something that they like and are familiar with, and that’s enjoyable.”
BY ABBEY LEW-KEE
