The Guilts have recorded 13 songs thematically grouped under the suite of hearts, which they’ll bring to the stage for their Fringe show of the same name. The band, which has always made a habit of having guests stray in and out, is doubling in size for Fringe and will perform against a lavish, vaudevillian backdrop of burlesque superstars, circus performers and puppeteers, with a smack of sideshow.
It’s not the first time Hearts has been brought to the stage – The Guilts gave it a much-lauded whirl during Sydney’s Fringe Festival last year and once before in Melbourne, where they were raising money to help an Aussie circus performer locked up in a Turkish clink.
If you’re a Tom Waits or Leonard Cohen fan, you’ll dig on Hearts. “I’ll happily take that,” Piras chuckles. “I listened to that music as a teenager and it’s imprinted on my psyche.” The comparison runs deeper though. “Both [Cohen and Waites] were influenced by European folk music,” Piras notes. “If you think about Leonard Cohen’s recent live performances – the band he’s assembled and the sounds he’s created are very reminiscent of Mediterranean folk music and that’s a big connection for me as well – that’s the culture I come from.”
Despite the fact that Hearts is being released this month, coinciding with the Fringe season, Piras had been kicking around the idea for the song cycle since his teens. In fact, he had some of the Hearts songs under his belt already and is having fun revisiting those earlier tunes. “It’s a bit like looking at a photo album,” he muses.
The rest of the pack will follow. “It was kind of the obvious place to start with hearts,” Piras reflects. “When you’re a songwriter you talk about love a lot. Although, the album’s not just about love – it’s also about other matters of the heart.”
BY MEG CRAWFORD
Venue: Fringe Hub: Lithuanian Club – The Ballroom
Dates: September 24 – October 1 (except Monday)
Times: 9.15pm (Sunday 8.15pm)
Tickets: $10 – $20
