So except for the Murray moment, the film has a number of elements in common with The Darjeelings, those plucky young roustabouts launching their first EP with an all ages show at the Northcote Town Hall as part of the 2012 Darebin Music Feast. A show for young people put together by young people (with a little help from the Victorian State Government’s FReeZa program and Darebin City Council), it’s a fantastic opportunity to foster the next generation of Victorian musicians and punters alike.
“There’s a bit of agony being under 18 and wanting to go see bands, but I think, relatively speaking, there’s plenty of opportunities, especially in Melbourne,” says Mairead O’Connor, the plucky young keyboardist for The Darjeelings. “And especially with programs like FReeZa, not only is it a great opportunity for young bands to play in front of people, but it’s a great chance for kids to get out and see shows.
“It’s a bit tough being under 18, but we don’t have that long to wait,” says the 17-year-old Mairead O’Connor. “Like, we’re all huge fans of Vampire Weekend, but they’re not doing any Big Day Out sideshows, so we might have to go to Big Day Out. That will be an…experience”.
Ah, the magical ellipsis, that few seconds of dead air denoting that, despite her young age, Mairead is still knowledgeable enough about the Big Day Out to be slightly wary of its reputation. But then, there’s no doubt the band know what they’re doing – with each gig, with each songwriting attempt, and now with every day spent in the recording studio, there’s a confidence there that will stand them in good stead for the world past graduation (more on that later). Usually at that age – if you show any hint of interest in music – before you know it a parent or teacher has smooshed you into a school orchestra or choir. For the most part, The Darjeelings have managed to avoid that, and have instead settled on guitars and indie cardigans over woodwinds and cummerbunds. Band, if I knew three other kids at school that would have taken the effort to learn an instrument (and not be content to murder Incubus songs), maybe I could have been in a band too.
“Well, Greer and I actually did meet in high school for the musical, we were both orphans in Oliver,” Mairead says with a giggle. “She was learning guitar at the same time I was learning classical piano, so we sort of started busking together. Bella, our drummer, had seen us around and messaged us on Facebook asking if we needed a drummer. It seemed right! Then we figured we needed a bassist to fill out the sound, so we asked Izzy. I guess that’s it, and we’ve been playing for about a year now.”
It’s an origin story as old as time (with a splash of 21st century social media thrown in), and this may have been what caught the attention of producer Ben McCarthy. Having already worked with the likes of Megan Washington and Kate Miller-Heidke, McCarthy clearly knows a thing or two about bright and sunburst female-driven indie pop, and The Darjeelings are beaming about the recording experience and the finished product.
“I think the greatest lesson I took away from the recording process was the importance of trusting the opinions of others, especially after you’ve heard something a thousand times live, it just sounds different to someone with fresh ears,” says Mairead wisely. “Also, I definitely think all of our preparation paid off.
“We went into the studio confident that we had the songs ready, and we actually finished up in the studio with a few days to spare. That’s like how we started too – we wanted to be sure we had a full set of songs, we worked really hard on our vocal harmonies before looking for gigs.”
So let’s go down the list. Full set of gig-ready songs? Check. First EP ready for sale? Check. National tour? Um, maybe, if you replace ‘national tour’ with ‘end of year exams’. The Darjeelings will still have to juggle two lives for a little while longer, and hit the ground running when they’re free of the high school shackles.
“Yeah, it’s a bit hard, obviously we’d like to do more shows – our producer Ben was trying to line up some regional shows and other states – but you can’t really do that and study for the VCE at the same time,” offers Mairead. “We’ll try do as many shows as we can during the summer holidays, and I guess after grade 12 we’ll give it a real good go. But it’s not like we can be Stonefield or something, and get dragged out of school so we can play at Glastonbury!”
Maybe not, but let me make a pitch for you: four musicians on a tour bus with a camera crew – parental units can follow in tow, but it’s not mandatory. Gigs by night, home-school by day (or I guess bus school), part Partridge Family, part a family friendly Big Brother. I’d certainly be more inclined to watch that over another season of Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.
BY MITCH ALEXANDER
