Issue 516

Sparkadia You'd think that having all three of your fellow bandmates leave to pursue parenthood and/or other interests means the end of your band. Alex Burnett, however, had a different approach and rather than "dis-band", he has instead decided to continue Sparkadia as a solo project. "When the guys wanted to do other things in 2009, I thought that my option A was to keep my boring Anglo-Saxon name and do an acoustic solo record which I thought no one would be interested in and would be a waste. So the other option was to change the name but do a record that was a continuation of Sparkadia and I suppose as the songs came out, it seemed to be like 'Postcards' but a development in the songwriting," explains Burnett. "So I talked to the guys and they gave me their blessing to continue. It didn't seem like I was betraying the legacy of the first record because I was the singer and the songwriter originally and I produced most of the demos anyway. It wasn't suddenly like I was creating a mutiny, it was always kind of my baby. But I did spend a bit of time thinking about it to make sure that it wasn't going to seem rude or arrogant." What has resulted is Sparkadia's second album, and the first for Burnett left to his own devices, titled 'The Great Impression'- something of a diary of what he describes as "those ridiculous highs and lows that you experience being an artist in your field and trying to make it." "All the songs are about people that I know or experiences that I've had so it's very autobiographical. When we recorded the (first) album in London, we were pretty young and inexperienced, then spent 18 months touring around the world and playing festivals of our dreams like Glastonbury, and touring around Europe three times in a year. Obviously because of that, there are a lot of things you miss out on. You let people down, and friends that you have or had give up on you a bit. There was a lot to write about, it was a really amazing time. "It's a strange existence because you're continually meeting really exciting, inspiring people but at the same time, you're on your own a lot of the time. People at home are incredible but it's hard to describe to someone what it's like to play a 5000 people mega club in Barcelona at 3am. I suppose that was my first experience of that life and then I came back and had to reintegrate myself into the real world. This record is about that period of time, the people that you're so in and out of love with, memories and delusions and a sense of hope about it all. It all came into it. "The life that you lead being a recognised musician, you have so many odd crazy experiences. Going to really expensive parties or being flown out to play a gig in Iceland. Even the mundane things like getting snowed in, and playing a gig in Blackpool which is essentially the most boring town in the world." Rather than wanting the album to just be a chronicle of his life since Sparkadia found success both in Australia and overseas though, Burnett prefers that audiences make up their own mind about the songs' meanings. "I think it's very difficult to pre-plan exactly what you're going to talk about with the songs or even the sonics, but I've always written from the heart. I don't think I'm a band with a real sense of commentary or anything. The songs are quite upfront and pretty honest but at the same time, it leaves a lot up to the listeners and I like that." Having relocated to London a year ago, Burnett has been taking advantage of the UK's competitive music scene to challenge him to keep making better music, whilst also pursuing other interests. "I've been writing a TV show with my flat mate based upon the place I live, with a comedian and a model. Over the last year we've had some pretty ridiculous experiences, living in London, and it's been a pretty wild time. "There's a lot of fantastic music happening here all the time, and there is always the aim to try to make something exceptional and fresh and new, or else you don't cut through. It's essentially like going to the warzone to see what happens." Sparkadia will return to Adelaide to play HQ on Fri 15 Apr. 'The Great Impression' is out now through Ivy League. By Dunja Nedic