On the back of their acclaimed sophomore album Last of Your Kind, The Vanns are preparing for their biggest headlining tour yet.
Starting in November at The Forum in Melbourne, the band, who have been playing live gigs for at least eight years is delivering their biggest tour yet. The Kiama-based indie-rock band released Last of Your Kind in mid-May this year, as a follow-up to their 2019 acclaimed debut, Through the Walls (named triple j’s Feature Album on release).
The sophomore album featured singles Ever and Thinkin’ Bout the Nights, and quickly rose through the ARIA Album Charts. It was also once again named triple j’s Feature Album on release.
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“Making the second record felt entirely different,” says lead vocalist of The Vanns, Jimmy Vann. “To be honest, the first record was more like building blocks, stripping it back, laying each member’s part down and building on it in that way. With the second record, it was mostly recorded live – single takes, all of us in the same room. There was just so much more connection with what we were doing. It just felt right to record this album and the songs on it in one take. We were recording this album up in Byron, super relaxing, and before we knew it the album was recorded. It was a much quicker process, and much more organic.”
In 2022 The Vanns had the chance to tour with staples of the international indie-rock scene, The Kooks and The Wombats, on sold-out tours.
“It was a good opportunity. We’re stoked whenever we get the offers to play with them,” Jimmy says.
“We have to prove ourselves though. You know, not everyone in the room is necessarily our fan. It’s different to our own shows because you have to win them over in a way. You have to read the room a lot when you’re playing and bounce off the crowd, rather than our own gigs where everyone is singing along.”
The Vanns are a live band. It’s just four of them, Jimmy, Cameron, Andrew (Banjo), and Tom, that have been playing together since 2012. They began as a jamming group, winning the 2012 Red Bull Bedroom Jam competition, which gave them recording time in Melbourne and a set at Homebake in 2012. Playing together is the oxygen of The Vanns, and their longevity in the Australian indie-rock scene.
“We still have that sense of, I don’t want to say winging it, but just jamming to songs live,” Jimmy tells me.
“We don’t write to a T. We’ll let the night happen, read the room and kind of play it out. We’re not nervous about it. We’ve worked really hard to get to this point.”
November begins the largest tour yet for The Vanns. Kicking off at The Forum and playing at big venues across Australia like The Tivoli in Brisbane, this tour of their sophomore album brings a new chapter for the increasingly beloved Aussie group.
“We’re experimenting with how we’re gonna put the show together, while also stripping things back,” Jimmy says.
When asked about the rehearsal process for a lineup of big shows, Jimmy tells me they stick to their roots. “We jam in this small shed that we’ve slowly soundproofed over time. It feels nice there. You can do wonders with a tin shed. By the end of it, we’re all deaf. We always say, ‘We’ll be quiet this time’ and by the end, we’re just going for it.”
What to expect from the upcoming tour of a band that has been playing together for so long?
“It’s going to be bigger and better than any show we’ve ever done,” Jimmy says.
“In terms of production, we’re really figuring out the set in a way where we can get the most out of every song. When we headline our own shows compared to supporting other bands, we can play for one and a half, two hours. We’ve kind of grown into playing these long sets. And we think our fans seem to be digging those long sets. Heaps of cool production this tour. Just a ball really.”
The Vanns’ sophomore album, Last of Your Kind, is out now. Tickets to The Vanns 2023 Tour with Shag Rock are set to go on sale to the public at 12pm AEST on July 5, with a presale option available at 10:30am AEST on July 3. To pick up yours, head here.
This article was made in partnership with The Vanns.
