“Almost impossible,” O’Sullivan exclaims. “I wish we could all play together every weekend, but we’re all full time musicians so it becomes very difficult to gather everyone for a gig on a frequent basis, as everyone has multiple projects on the go.” If that’s true, each gig must feel like a blessing, and the band seem to treat every show as such, playing with joyous fervor that’s got them their fair share of notice in Melbourne’s live scene, their debut album Can’t Wait for the Weekend also indicative of their fun loving attitude and upbeat vibes.
“I definitely wanted the artwork, photos and music to represent something pure and fun,” says O’Sullivan. “I believe music’s supposed to be enjoyed by those performing as well as those listening, and hopefully The Marionettes have captured that feel.”
He seems humble dropping the word ‘hopefully’ as the general consensus has certainly been that that live verve the band carries transcribes pretty damn well onto record. Getting an album down and out into the wider world isn’t the only big thing that’s happened for them, as they’re returning to play Melbourne Fringe Festival for a second year running, head-producer of MFF Felix Preval saying last year the band, “Brought a fresh, new and exciting sound to the Fringe Festival,” labeling them “unbelievable musicians.”
Though they’ve played their fair share of gigs, the Fringe experience was a little different. “It definitely gave us the opportunity to expand our network and encouraged us to accelerate our music and promotion. We’re extremely excited to be performing again.” Last year’s Fringe helped spark further impetus for a band that seems to have formed almost entirely through a gravitational pull of personalities, with all members having either played, studied or partied together at some stage before forming in 2012.
The secret to soldiering on has much to do with having respect for one another and each other’s musical abilities says O’Sullivan, and they’ve also had great support in Rob Simone who is famous in his own right as a saxophonist, bandleader and composer.
“Rob’s a great man to have around. Our guitarist Luke Joseph and I went to high school with him so we’ve been friends for years. He’s definitely a great mentor and teacher to myself with his arranging ability and has been a part of the Marionettes from the word go.” Simone’s presence has been instrumental but it’s O’Sullivan who pulls the strings of The Marionettes (pun intended), although he doesn’t consider himself the ‘puppet master’ as we suggest. “Everyone offers his or her ideas and musical contributions,” though he concedes, “I simply have the final say, so to speak.”
As the group continue to gather momentum and a following, O’Sullivan is certainly aware of how important Melbourne’s music scene has been in helping them get to the point of all being so busy musically, that it’s hard to squeeze in a Marionettes rehearsal, let alone a gig. But he is, like many, concerned about recent issues surrounding new residential properties being built in proximity to places like The Tote and Cherry Bar.
“They should be looked at by the powers that be, from the wider perspective of community and engagement, rather than ‘annoyance’ or ‘public nuisance’ issues. We hope Melbournians continue to support The Marionettes and the Melbourne music scene, because we’ll continue to be inspired by it. Melbourne’s the best city in the world.” Amen.
BY GARRY WESTMORE
