From Cruel Summer to Gothic Summer: The Veronicas lead pop punk revival

Goodbye cowboy boots, hello platforms: Australian Y2K icons The Veronicas usher in pop punk revival with new album Gothic Summer.

Pop punk and Y2K fashion are back, and so are The Veronicas.

In good news for Millennials who grew up favouring side fringes, smokey eyes, and business casual at the club, the 20-year trend cycle has done its thing.

Jess and Lisa Origliasso, the Australian poster girls of pop punk, are set to relaunch their global career with Gothic Summer.

It is their sixth studio album, and marks the first the 39-year-old twins release with American record label Big Noise, after parting ways with Sony Music Australia in 2022.

“We went into our friend’s home studio just to just mess around and ended up writing Perfect and Invisible on the first day,” Jess told The Daily Telegraph.

The Veronicas. Photo: Supplied to The Daily Telegraph.

“We love to tell stories from the perspective we’ve grown into,”

That friend was legendary punk producer John Feldmann, who brought on Blink 182’s Travis Barker as a co-writer.

Lisa and Jessica Origliasso at The Rocks in Sydney. Picture: Richard Dobson/The Daily Telegraph.

When The Veronicas moved to Los Angeles and signed to an American label, fans feared the iconic noughties band would sound and feel less Australian. They needn’t have.

Jess, Lisa, and their American spouses have been in Australia since last November.

“We spent Christmas with our Nonna, dad and our dogs, swimming and cooking, every chance we had. Lisa’s an avid bird watcher, and has started her own biodynamic farm on her property,” Jess said.

“Summer and Christmas is also our birthday, so it’s always our favourite time of year to celebrate and take time just to focus on married life,” Lisa said.

The Veronicas arriving at the 2005 ARIA Awards in Sydney.

Lisa with Jess Origliasso, The Veronicas, in 2005.

The music video for their new single — Here To Dance — was shot on an iPhone in one take and features a cameo from a spider falling on Lisa’s head. The next, called Savage, is a collaboration with Aussie rapper Kerser.

“As humans we crave understanding and love, and everyday I think we’re on a lifelong journey of learning to love and trust ourselves more than the day before,” said Lisa.

It comes almost 20 years after The Veronicas shot to fame with chart-topping debut album The Secret Life Of … in 2005.

Jess Origliasso and her fiancee, Alex Smith, at the beachfront apartment they have purchased on the Gold Coast. Photo: Adam Head.

“Jess has been in the process of renovating her place. We love to have dinner parties, hosting each other. People might think we don’t hang out in our holiday time, but we love to spend even more time together when we’re not working,” Lisa continued.

Jess and her fiance, American jewellery designer Alex Smith, purchased the beachfront Gold Coast apartment for $1.73m in September.

The Veronicas at The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade 2023. Photo: The Sunday Telegraph/Monique Harmer.

That holiday has included cheering on the Matildas at their 10-0 Olympic qualifying match, making a cameo on Australian Idol, attending the Eras Tour in Sydney, and celebrating Mardi Gras.

“The queer community has raised us, and from a very young age we were lucky enough to be surrounded by the most compassionate, talented and brilliant souls,” Jess said. “ Many of them LGBTQ. To have mentors like that in the 90s growing up as young girls had a hugely positive impact on us and who we are today.”