Photo: Dara Munnis. @daramunnis
Interview & review by Bec Harbour – 5 March 2021
The Pierce Brothers have been sitting on Brother, their latest single for some time, it becoming a live staple. Fans will be very pleased that it has been included on the upcoming Into the Great Unknown, the latest album from the brothers.
We caught up with Jack Pierce this week and he shared some of the inspiration for Into the Great Unknown, how they rode out 2020, the importance of family and being excited about touring and sharing something new that he can’t tell us about.
Congrats on your latest single Brother and your upcoming album Into the Great Unknown (out March 5) – the video for Brother seems to deal with sibling interaction – tell us more about the themes behind the song and the video?
This is a track about being away from family. We wrote it for our older brother Justin, and used him as a stand in for missing family in general when you’re away. With the COVID-19 crisis and so many families stuck apart at the moment it seemed like an important time for this song to be released.
We had wanted to record this particular track for such a long time now, but we could never get it right in the studio. What it needed was the great Australian producer Jan Skubiszewski to help make it come to life. Brother has been such an important staple in our live shows, but being a big singalong it was tough to bring that energy to life. The new bridge and solo is probably my favourite part on the record!
The music video was based entirely on the idea of sibling rivalry that we thought was really funny. Our older brother came into the studio with us and just tried to screw things up. We had heaps of fun with it!
Into the Great Unknown was recorded last year during lockdown – how did you go about recording during this time and how did the events of 2020 impact your writing and song topics?
The events of 2020 massively impacted on the writing of the album! We had planned on doing a massive Australian regional tour to help fund it (this is the first independent record we’ve produced since 2014!) and that was all gone when we started creating it. With everything cancelled, Into The Great Unknown was a theme that kept rearing its head throughout the writing process.
Was Into the Great Unknown the “difficult second album” or was Atlas Shoulders harder?
I think every time we get into the studio we learn more. This time around I think it got easier. There was much more time to sit with the music and lyrics, and a lot of time not spent on the road touring. This helped create a much more thought out experience. We really looked inward to find something special with each song, and rushed absolutely nothing.
This was by far the most of ourselves we’ve put into our music! Staying on site at the studio gave us an edge of rehearsal and discussion that we’d previously not had the time for. It’s definitely how we’d like to make music from now on!!
Tell us about some of the influences and themes for Into the Great Unknown.
Go Father In Lightness by Gang Of Youths was a big influence in the scope of this record. What they did on that record was beautiful both lyrically and musically, and it inspired us greatly to explore some larger sounds, with strings arrangements and large crescendos.
The themes that we kept coming back to was that of stepping into the unknown, something that everyone on earth was feeling at the same time. Although there was another element for me personally, as I was preparing to have my first child with my wife in August. There was fear, trepidation, and anxiety; all of which are perfectly normal for that time, and something from which I could pull inspiration.
You guys started out busking along that “hallowed” stretch of Bourke Street. How was busking, and how much did having to be “travelling light” impact your current sound?
Busking really defined our sound as a band. We first started on Bourke st without much of a direction in where we wanted to go. What we found was that the act of busking was forming the way in which we perform. We wanted people to stop, to look.
So we’d start hitting the street with sticks, each other’s guitar, start trying somersaults and jumping around like mad. All of this translated directly into our stage performance and remains to this day. Busking is the reason we are who we are.
You are heading off on a regional tour of Victoria, and you are hitting quite a few smaller places (yeah I know how big Wonthaggi is – I even know where it is) – talk us through how you chose some of the towns you chose?
With the changes to the touring scene in 2020 due to COVID-19, we had to choose to tour differently. To be honest, we’d have done anything to be able to play to people again! It’s something that we’re incredibly lucky to be able to do. As we can’t travel overseas we wanted to start exploring more of regional Australia.
We actually have a MASSIVE amount of shows ALL around Australia, but due to the current climate, we want to reduce risk of having to postpone or cancel as much as possible. SO, this means that we’re announcing shows in sections! Victoria now, NSW comes next! Soon we’ll have all our Australian dates on sale! We’re SO excited to get around again!
Are you looking at a national tour next?
2021 babyyyyyyyyyyyyy! It’s happening! Look up there! I just said it! IT’S HAPPENING THIS YEAR! WEEEEEEEEEEE!@#$!
I’m sorry I’m incredibly excited about this!
What was one thing that you wanted to do last year that you really got annoyed that you couldn’t do?
Ha. I cancelled my wedding one week before it was to happen in New Zealand. So THAT sucked!
Tell us what’s next for the Pierce Brothers?
OH! We have something VERY cool on the horizon but we can’t tell you. So. Um. More regional shows?? Maybe some different merch?! THE VINYL LOOKS UNREAL! But I can’t tell you what I want to tell you! SHHHHHHHH!
Into the Great Unknown – album review
Into the Great Unknown starts off with White Caps, a slow starter that builds to the rollicking, foot stomping melody and beat that The Pierce Brothers are known for. It is from this song that the the title of the album appears to be taken and is a great launch into this album.
From White Caps, we glide through with barely a break to Dentist, then to Brother the latest single (catch their good fun video above having a lark with older brother Justin). Brother also has that slow burn feel where you think it might be pure ballad, but it jumps to a faster pace and you can see why this has been a live favourite for some time.
It’s Alright has a very gospel feel to it, an almost Southern (of the US of A) feel to it with the chugging sound reflecting a train music feel that Johnny Cash and other bluegrass/country music artists strove to include in their music. We move on to La Montagne with it’s beautiful banjo and wistful lyrics… “in the morning I will wake up with you…” setting the scene for a lovers tryst.
Lights of London has a beautiful low cello running through the brothers ode to London and those that move there and those that miss it.
We then hit what I consider the centrepiece of Into the Great Unknown, Reflecteur and Trouble, after listening to these tracks several times they are inseparable (for me at least) with Reflecteur that gorgeous instrumental that sweeps you away for a while and Trouble bringing you back again not with a bump but a gentle setting down.
Waves of Winter showcases what The Pierce Brothers are known for and Petty is a return to a more folk-rock format with a sting in the lyrics tail… “Why’d you have to be so damn petty…”
Kanko and One wind up the end of the album. The real showpiece of this album are Reflecteur and Trouble (which I would love to hear live) with the rest of the album surrounding this with solid and very anthemic songs. The Pierce Brothers do not drop the ball on Into the Great Unknown and have returned with a fantastic second long player.
