Tim Rogers, Paul Dempsey and Kram riff about war stories, heavy metal and Tibetan throat music
AUSSIE music legends You Am I, Spiderbait and Something for Kate are joining forces for a national tour. Time for them to tell us some war stories.
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PAUL Dempsey, Kram and Tim Rogers are at the peak of their powers and no longer worried about when they’ll need to get a job at Bunnings. Now they’re getting ready for a natoinal tour with You Am I, Something For Kate, Spiderbait set to rock A Day on The Green. Let the war stories commence.
Cast your minds back, how did you all meet?
Tim Rogers: The first time Paul and I met and had a drink was in Perth. And then we started throwing a football around and then he collided quiet heavily with me and I recall having a busted rib. That’s a pretty traditional way of meeting someone.
Kram: I can’t remember meeting either of you blokes (laughter). You’ve just always been there.
Paul Dempsey: I distinctly remember meeting you, Kram, I was 15 years old, a school kid, going out with this girl, and she happened to friends with members of Christbait.
Kram: One of my favourite all-time bands!
Dempsey: (sheepish) I went over to the Christbait house one afternoon and you were playing drums and I was like (whispers, eyes glaze over) ‘Ahhhh. Kram from Spiderbait is playing drums and jamming with Christbait.’ It was..
Kram: (interjects) in Murrumbeena! Holy s---. Wow, that’s amazing, I never knew that. The Christbait record Yeast is one of the best ever. Did you introduce yourself?
Dempsey: I nervously said hello. You guys were jamming.
Rogers: Patton Oswalt said that once you turn 40 you start getting interested in World War II documentaries. So the last time Paul and I caught up we talked about documentaries and World War is always the subject. (three minutes of discussion on World War documentaries ensues).
Any chance you guys will jam together on stage at A Day On The Green?
Rogers: It’s been such a challenge even getting each other in the same room, (dry tone) after years of freezing each other out. (Laughter). There’s no history between anyone in our bands is there? (All three muse for a beat)
Kram: No, we’re Australian bands. We like each other. We don’t fall out.
Rogers: There’s a good chance we’ll break up each other’s bands and become different configurations by the time we hit Kings Park in Perth … there’s no swearing at King’s Park. My earliest memory of you Kram was when we were in a hotel in Brisbane and it was a real record company night (mimics illegal activity) and we grabbed a sixpack and got outta there and watched the last of The Beatles documentaries.
Kram: Yeah, f--- yeah, I remember that.
Rogers: We were getting into it, quietly. (mimics illegal activity)
Kram: I feel like I’ve know these guys forever even though we don’t see each other often, we only text each other occasionally, as soon as we see each other we just carry on. It’s more like family than friends in a weird way, because we’ve shared so many intimate moments. My favourite part is always after the gig in a hotel room. It’s a weird space you live in when you’re an artist and you live by your ego and your emotion, it’s a long time going “Are you into this? Are you into my s--- or not into my s---?” Then you realise you made some awesome friends along the way, maybe that’s the whole point?
Rogers: You get into awkward situations in America and Europe when initially you think (dismissive) “I don’t wanna see anyone from Australia” and then you see each other and you go (desperate) “’F--- yes, how you goin’?” We played at Johnny Depp’s club a bunch of times in L.A., what’s it called?
Dempsey/Kram: Viper Room.
Rogers: We played together (looks at Kram) and it was the best night.
Kram: I understand you (mischievous smile). We could basically all go and get on it right now and have the time of our lives like we always have. It’s all part of the process.
Dempsey: I recall really getting to know you guys when we’ve been at an industry ceremony thing and there’s no gig, you’re not at a festival, there’s no bands around and you just say “Let’s go to the pub.” It’s those rare, non-gig moments you get to hang out.
Rogers: We have a three day rule, when someone’s friends says (chirpy) “I wanna come on tour, give me a job!” And then after three days they go f---ing nuts, (panicky) “Why is everyone so mean to each other? Why does everyone go to bed so early? Do we really have to be on the bus at 6am?” Then you say (calm, authoritative) “It’s time you went home, here’s your boarding pass.” It’s a weird life, it’s not for everybody.
You mentioned ribs before, I’m thinking Adam’s Rib (to Rogers), Jellybean Drifter (to Kram), Captain (to Dempsey), all incredible songs.
Rogers: Sharp! (laughter)
Which songs of each other’s do you wish you’d written?
Kram: Ahhh, f---.
Rogers: The amount of times You Am I have played after Spiderbait — they’re crowd killers — and I just listen and go (regretfully) “Why didn’t I write more songs that are joyous?” (laughter) “Why so much turmoil? These Spiderbait songs are really fun and powerful!”
Dempsey: I’ve covered Berlin Chair (You Am I) and I’ve covered Scenester (Spiderbait). So that’s that.
Rogers: We’re gonna give Calypso a go and we’re gonna cover Monsters as well. (laughter)
A calypso version of Monsters?
Rogers: There you go. And we’ll metallise it up.
Kram: For me it’s not the songs, it’s what they’re saying, I love their words, they’re both really tall as well, that’s cool. In the early days I never spent much time on lyrics, I was just like “That sounds cool.” I find that inspiring. (Scottish voice) “We’ve goot a coopla f---ing poets here, mate.” (laughter) And I feel like I’m a f---ing basketballer.”
Rogers: A basketballer!? (laughter)
Kram: The energy, the music of these guys, when you’re playing drums you get into the physical side, that becomes spiritual. Later in my career I started doing quiet songs and I remember doing this song at the APRA Awards, y’know when you do someone else’s song, I did a Lanie Lane song Oh Well That’s What You Get For Falling In Love With a Cowboy and it finished really quietly and it was as powerful — and I f---ing nailed it which was cool because if I f---ed it up it woulda sucked — it was just as powerful as 50,000 people at Big Day Out. Silence. And it some ways both you guys have that.
Rogers: We should get our bands together to play ... because I’m sick of poetry, I want power.
Kram: It’s funny because you’re known as a poet (to Rogers), yet anybody who has seen a You Am I show knows it’s not sitting around on stools. It’s f---ing energised, crazy s---. We all come from the same university of mad energy, we’re on the road to nowhere and we don’t wanna get there very soon.
Dempsey: Yeah, yeah.
Rogers: That road to nowhere, as long there’s drinks on the rider. We had a drive back from Nambor that was like that (mimics illegal activity), a bottle of Scotch is getting passed around, Andy was in the back, slapping us on all on the back saying “You guys!” Davey was trying to get a sentence out. We had exactly the same conversation we had 22 years ago. (laughter) It all starts with Venom, the metal comes on the stereo half an hour out of Brisbane.
Dempsey: We might go from Venom into Slayer into Christbait. That’s a universal truth. If you’ve got a long drive home and you’ve taken the rider with you then it’s not long before the metal comes out. We get on the metal train.
Kram: I think between us we have 70 years of rock’n’roll. That’s mental. These days I don’t have any fears about journalists like yourself, I know you. Sometimes I run into someone in my home town and it’s weird because there’s no anonymity, that’s why this job isn’t for everybody.
Rogers: That’s why I’ve been trying to make unsuccessful records all these years. (laughter)
Kram: Stop buying these records, ya bastards!!
Rogers: I’ll just dull them down a little bit. Tibetan throat music.
Dempsey: When you get to 40 years old and you’ve been doing this for more than half your life there’s a relative comfort. You’re not feeling insecure about whether someone’s gonna like it or not, you stop thinking about that. There’s a standard we hold ourselves too. There’s less fear of that thought “When will I have to start working at Bunnings?” This tour is so excellent because all of these bands are around for such a long time but I think we’re all at the peak of our powers.
Kram: I think there’s a dearth of great rock’n’roll at the moment.
Rogers: (rebutting politely) It’s out there. I’ve seen more great rock’n’roll bands in the last two years than I have in a long time.
Kram: Maybe it’s not as popular as it should be. We’re about to go to Triple M. (laughter).
Dempsey: It’s definitely around, if you have good word of mouth with your friends, you can get the good stuff.
Rogers: Poison City Records and RIP Society, I check in with them like some idiot fanboy, Old Man Rogers calls up, “What’s good that’s come out this week?”
I didn’t pay that much attention to The Peep Tempel record until I got a recommendation from you, Paul, you said it left a smell on you that you couldn’t get off.
Dempsey: That’s right. It was infectious in the true sense of the word. It’s a beautifully put together record.
Rogers: (makes a note about The Peep Tempel) I just got that Tyrannamen record, that’s a f---ing great record. (all agree)
Any tips for Kram on his first A Day On The Green tour?
Rogers: (shocked) Have you never done it before? Oh Kram, there’s food and there’s drink, I mean I couldn’t be bothered eating at a gig but it’s so civilised. It’s so civilised I can’t help thinking “How can I f--- this up?” (laughter). And Anthea, one of the people who started A Day On The Green, wouldn’t talk to me for a couple of years after I disgraced myself. You just revert to being a 12-year-old.
Dempsey: You get looked after so well.
Kram: I think the tour’s going to be awesome. I’m feeling sentimental and a bit f---ed-up-excited. The line-up is really cool. I don’t think we’ve all played together on the same stage on the same day. Which is weird because we’ve all been so social for so long. Jebediah as well!
Rogers: Are Jebediah playing as well? And The Meanies? It’s gonna be a frat house!
Dempsey: Wally Kempton (The Meanies) should be here right now.
Rogers: (imitating Kempton) “How ya goin’, great man? Oh yessss!!”
SEE: You Am I, Something For Kate, Spiderbait, Mt Duneed Estate, Geelong. Nov 12; Rochford Wines, Yarra Valley, Nov 13. $89 to $350. adayonthegreen.com.au
SYD: You Am I, Something For Kate, Spiderbait, Bimbadgen Winery, Hunter Valley, Nov 5. $89 to $350. adayonthegreen.com.au
BRIS: You Am I, Something For Kate, Spiderbait, Sirromet Wines, Mt Cotton, Nov 6. $89 to $350. adayonthegreen.com.au
ADELAIDE: You Am I, Something For Kate, Spiderbait, Peter Lehmann Wines, Barossa Valley, Nov 19. $89 to $350. adayonthegreen.com.au
PERTH: You Am I, Something For Kate, Spiderbait, Kings Park, Botanic Garden, Nov 20. $89 to $350. adayonthegreen.com.au
Originally published as Tim Rogers, Paul Dempsey and Kram riff about war stories, heavy metal and Tibetan throat music
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