The Grates
For The Grates' debut album Gravity Won't Get You High (2006), their signature animal was the giraffe. It was a fitting match: that year, the album towered over all other beasts, made mammoth strides, and won the affection of the people, both here and abroad. Two years later, The Grates present second album, Teeth Lost, Hearts Won: an entirely different animal altogether.
Upon its release, Gravity Won't Get You High immediately shot to the ARIA top-ten, was nominated for awards, and sold over 50,000 copies. The trio slogged it out for two years straight, with sold-out Australian tours, shows in the UK, US and Canada, and garnered gushing press coverage in NME, Rolling Stone, Spin and Filter, amongst others.
Then suddenly: after all the noise, Patience, John and Alana found themselves back in their hometown of Brisbane. In contrast to the concert halls and festival stages they'd grown used to, their bedrooms were dead quiet.
Instead of deciding their new direction on the spot, the trio opted to churn out song after song, until they struck gold. Luckily, they didn't have to wait long. Tracks like Two Kinds Of Right and Milk Eyes soon announced themselves as the new yardsticks, and suggested a major evolution.
With Teeth Lost, Hearts Won, The Grates faced a new challenge in the studios: being their own co-producers for the very first time. While sound engineer/producer Peter Katis (Interpol, Mates of State, The National) joined the ride again, this time, The Grates were also alongside him closely at the producer's desk at Tarquin Studios, a gutted-out attic in Connecticut, USA.
Needless to say, the band's newfound musical smarts have paid off. This batch of songs is more sophisticated and punch-in-the-guts catchy than anything they've done before. Hand-clapping, foot-stomping first single Burn Bridges is a good indicator of The Grates' new musical direction, but also provides a handy manifesto.
New songs warrant new friends. On the infectious, bubble-gum pop of Milkeyes, you'll hear Kori Gardner (Mates Of State) on backing vocals. A mother-of-two, Gardner is currently a poster-child for indie-pop mums. So it's fitting that Milk Eye was written during Patience's baby-obsession phase.
Teeth Lost, Hearts Won retains The Grates' trademark shambolic fun, but injects new layers and grunt into the proceedings. This time, Patience, Alana and John come armed with sharpened technical chops, killer arrangements and newfound songwriting oomph.
Boasting the combined force of John's rough-and-tumble guitars, Patience's signature banshee yelps, and Alana's churning drums, Teeth Lost, Hearts Won might be a griffin; it might be a Where The Wild Things Are monster. But either way, it's the sound of a band unafraid to bite.
Show your teeth at Southbound.