"We still think we kind of suck." This comes from the mouth of 16-year-old lead vocalist and guitarist Daniel Johns, the eldest member of Australia's overnight sensation, silverchair. Judging from the success of Frogstomp, silverchair's Epic Records debut, no one else seems to think so.
Bass player Chris Joannor and drummer Ben Gillies, both 15, hate that they are constantly being reminded of their age. "People should focus on our music, not on how old we are," adds Johns. But it is nearly impossible not to make reference to the fact that these boys from Down Under are making music way beyond their years. Frogstomp is a collection of heavy, power-chord driven jams reminiscent of bands such as Black Sabbath and Deep Purple, modernized with the angry cries of their youth.
And just how did this trio of adolescent Aussies get so lucky? After winning a national demo contest in June '94, their song "Tomorrow" was added to the playlist of Australia's alternative radio station, 2JJJ-FM. Listener response was so overwhelming that soon silverchair was the most popular band in Australia. So popular, that Sony-affiliated indie label Murmur caught on and signed them. They were very quickly picked up by Epic in the States and recorded Frogstomp in only nine days, with most of the songs co-written by Johns and Gillies.
"Tomorrow" hit American airwaves with the same impact as in their native land. "Pure Massacre,"
the most recent released single, is slightly more aggressive with angst-ridden lyrics that demand
attention. The live version is even more intense as devoted moshers "frogstomp" to every beat.
[note from me: Now, that was too cheesy. "frogstomp" to the beat??? Oh yeah =)] A
song only survives the set list if it goes over well in the pit. "Like in Atlanta," says Joannou
"People were slamming into each other...drawing blood. We don't see much of that in Australia."
More news, pretty please!
No more news, pretty please!