Gersey

"Well, I don't actually think of it as a quiet time, we've been so busy," counters Gersey's Matt Davis, when I suggest the last few years have been rather quiet for his traveling troupe of indie-rock goodness. "We've been quiet from a public sense, no-one really hears about us or talks about us, but our lives have still been chock full of music. Now we've got a bit of a story and something coming out, so people start to notice you, remember you, start talking about things."

Well, I'll tell you right now that Gersey's newly-released third album 'No Satellites' is most certainly something to talk about. But how does Davis feel about making the transition from random pleb to traveling man of rock? And how anti-climatic is it to return to the real world?

"It's a challenge that better bands than us have had to deal with for years before we came along. How do you relate your two different lives to one another, how do they co-exist? And as you get older the question arises, 'when is enough enough'? I've struggled with that question over the years, but as I'm getting older I'm understanding it a bit more and I'm appreciating the time of making music, the ability to make records, do shows and how much of a privilege that is. Especially when you deal with general society on a day-to-day level in your work - in cafˇs or washing dishes, or whatever it is that you do - you come in contact with just normal people and I guess being able to go off to Adelaide and do an album launch and having people come and watch, that's just a privilege."

Recorded by Dean Turner (also responsible for theredsunband's 'Peapod'), 'No Satellites' marks a slight change in focus for the band, inserting a sense of clarity and urgency into their layered, subtle guitar wash.

"That was the aesthetic from the word 'go'. It didn't seem like a time to do a layered and subtle Gersey record, I don't think the world needed another Gersey record like that."

I interrupt, proclaiming that the intelligence and subtlety of yore has not yet been completely forsaken.

"Of course, that's the nature of the five of us when we get in a room and start playing. We're all fairly understated at our parts and the whole is obviously our main priority. But we wanted to be more dominant, up front, less subtle, robust and more dynamic. Dean had an influence on that, as anyone who works on a record does...We knew he'd be able to grab that part of us and run with it. Not only run with it but push us further."

The record was mixed by Australian legend Tim Whitten who had worked extensively with Gersey in the past, "There's elements of us that Tim really understands, the layers, the subtlety, the wash. And Tim really responds to that part of our sound, so we didn't want to lose the artistry of it. We're obviously quite mindful that's what we do best."

And finally, I suggest that it will be more interesting to perform in this more abrupt Gersey incarnation.

Davis, who knows better, disagrees, "It's different, I don't know if it's more interesting. It's just a different feeling. I think back to shows for 'Hope Springs' and 'Storms [Dressed As Stars]', and we had some profound moments on stage, some shows that I think were quite affecting, not only for the players but for the people who were there. Because of the subtlety and the layers, the dynamics, being able to build a song for seven minutes kind of thing. Not everyone's cup of tea, of course, but those who do like that had some wonderful experiences at those shows and so did we. We learned a lot about our songs and fans and the band. I maintain that all those elements are in the new record, but we're trying to capture some of that intensity in three minutes. I feel more urgent on stage, more direct, you have the opportunity to say, 'Right, this is the song,' not to degrade it, but you belt it out a bit more. We're a bit impatient with things and we want to make more of a statement. We're a little bit tired of these bullshit rock and roll bands and this is our take on it."

Ben Revi

'No Satellites' is out now through Inertia. Gersey play at the Jade Monkey on Sat 16 September with Meanwell College.