“There’s heaps of bands I haven’t heard that everyone’s heard and loves. My family only listened to musicals,” she says. Her family may have had a preference for musicals but Rose recalls an enlightening discovery which was made when she was a little bit older. “One day I was looking through my Dad’s cupboard and I found all these awesome records, like Bob Dylan and obvious stuff like that, but I’d never listened to it when I was growing up.”
These days Rose certainly exists in a rock’n’roll dominated universe; in addition to The UV Race she’s centrally involved with School of Radiant Living and The Lost Volvos. Elsewhere, The UV Race share members with a number of Australia’s most exciting bands, including Dick Diver, Total Control and Straightjacket Nation (guitarist Al Montfort actually plays in a total of six bands). So, while they may appear to be a haphazard bunch, some planning is required to get all members of The UV Race into the same room. “There’s been a few times where there’s been clashes, I think I’ve played two shows in one night with different bands,” says Rose.
“We went to Sydney on the weekend and other Sydney friends wanted to catch up with me but I sort of just wanted to hang out with the band. Apart from when we play together and jam together we don’t necessarily all see each other, so it’s like our opportunity to hang out with each other.”
The UV Race make a distinctly-Australian cacophony of sound, which might startle any overseas audience members expecting a by-numbers indie-pop demonstration. Rose admits that “sometimes people are a bit confused,” however she suggests the band’s unique physicality could help to lure in fans.
“I think we’re an interesting looking mob of people and therefore people are looking at us first and then they [either] like or don’t like what they hear. We don’t look like a normal band because there’s so much of us and there’s big guys and little guys and tall skinny guys and funny haircuts and weird outfits. So at least if people see us setting up – if we’re not headlining – and they’re like, ‘Oh, these guys look weird,’ then they might stick around to hear us.”
Although The UV Race obviously aren’t focused upon attaining commercial viability there’s definitely an audience for their energy-fuelled clamouring honesty. Rose indicates that support from garage rock label In The Red has enhanced their fortunes in the US.
“Since our first tour I think people [had] heard our music more, so more people were at our shows. When there’s a few people there that get the energy then everyone else gets the energy and then… everyone’s having a good time.”
BY AUGUSTUS WELBY
