Retro has never been so confounding! (in a good way)
Melbourne band The Basics have thus-far made a living out of revisiting the sounds of yesteryear, but now they're doing a retrospective of their own by re-releasing "Get Back" - their little-known debut album from 2002, remastered and repackaged.
The band played their first gigs under the name "The Big Nothing" and then "The Big Something", officially becoming known as The Basics in early 2002. At the time Wally De Backer (long before his emergence as Gotye) and Kris Schroeder were playing intense 4-hour Wednesday-night residencies at the infamous House of Fools in Footscray to an audience of skinheads and semi-professional wrestlers.
It was a trial-by-fire, recalls Schroeder, the then-duo getting paid a paltry $25 each for flogg
ing out a whole night's worth of ball-breakers which would literally leave their fingers bloody and their voices hoarse.
But it was the positively rip-snorting reaction to old-school numbers like "Gimme Some Lovin'" by the Spencer Davis Group that left the greatest mark on the budding songwriters, steering their collaborations toward penning crowd-pleasers. "There's just something in that balls-out rock and roll and soul stuff that gets people going, and we wanted our original stuff to match that," said Schroeder in reflection.
Michael Hubbard joined The Basics midway through 2002 as their on-and-off guitarist, and the group recorded the cheekily-titled "Get Back", an album of all-original songs with heart and influence worn proudly on the sleeve (Hubbard, now of Downhills Home, left the group in mid-2004 and was replaced by Tim Heath).
The whole record was knocked over from go-to-whoa in six days - four recording, two mixing, and a quick 3-hour mastering session. The original "of the period" cover photo was from one of these sessions - a camera belonging to Hubbard was set to a 15-second timer while the boys quickly huddled together, smiling furiously at the lens. For the re-issue, this has been replaced by a "professional" shot which they took a couple of months later, in the event that the record would be reprinted.
Fast forward six years, and that prospect is now a reality. The original 1000 CDs sold out long ago, and before the release of exciting new material that will see The Basics progress beyond their roots and into uncharted territory, the time seems right to stop and take a look back at their humble beginnings.
As with the original pressing, MGM Distribution will proudly re-release "Get Back" on August 2nd through iTunes and all good record stores.
Melbourne band The Basics have thus-far made a living out of revisiting the sounds of yesteryear, but now they're doing a retrospective of their own by re-releasing "Get Back" - their little-known debut album from 2002, remastered and repackaged.
The band played their first gigs under the name "The Big Nothing" and then "The Big Something", officially becoming known as The Basics in early 2002. At the time Wally De Backer (long before his emergence as Gotye) and Kris Schroeder were playing intense 4-hour Wednesday-night residencies at the infamous House of Fools in Footscray to an audience of skinheads and semi-professional wrestlers.
It was a trial-by-fire, recalls Schroeder, the then-duo getting paid a paltry $25 each for flogg
ing out a whole night's worth of ball-breakers which would literally leave their fingers bloody and their voices hoarse.
But it was the positively rip-snorting reaction to old-school numbers like "Gimme Some Lovin'" by the Spencer Davis Group that left the greatest mark on the budding songwriters, steering their collaborations toward penning crowd-pleasers. "There's just something in that balls-out rock and roll and soul stuff that gets people going, and we wanted our original stuff to match that," said Schroeder in reflection.
Michael Hubbard joined The Basics midway through 2002 as their on-and-off guitarist, and the group recorded the cheekily-titled "Get Back", an album of all-original songs with heart and influence worn proudly on the sleeve (Hubbard, now of Downhills Home, left the group in mid-2004 and was replaced by Tim Heath).
The whole record was knocked over from go-to-whoa in six days - four recording, two mixing, and a quick 3-hour mastering session. The original "of the period" cover photo was from one of these sessions - a camera belonging to Hubbard was set to a 15-second timer while the boys quickly huddled together, smiling furiously at the lens. For the re-issue, this has been replaced by a "professional" shot which they took a couple of months later, in the event that the record would be reprinted.
Fast forward six years, and that prospect is now a reality. The original 1000 CDs sold out long ago, and before the release of exciting new material that will see The Basics progress beyond their roots and into uncharted territory, the time seems right to stop and take a look back at their humble beginnings.
As with the original pressing, MGM Distribution will proudly re-release "Get Back" on August 2nd through iTunes and all good record stores.
