Human Nature reveal line-up change after 30 years

Vocal group Human Nature reveal they’re about to have a line-up change after more than 30 years together.

Exclusive: When Australian group Human Nature return to Las Vegas they will be one man down – permanently.

Band member Phil Burton has moved back to Sydney, with a three-piece Human Nature aiming to restart their career in Vegas next year.

“I made a family decision,” Burton told News Corp.

“Vegas was a fantastic experience but it was time to come home. It was a hard decision.

“I hope the other guys do really well with a new show in Vegas. As far as Australia goes, nothing changes. When there are opportunities to play in Australia they’ll fly back here and I’ll jump back on board and it’ll be the four of us as always.”

Burton had told his bandmates he wanted to move back to Australia before Covid; the pandemic only confirmed his decision.

“Covid really put things in a stark reality – where do you want to be? Where do you feel at home? And Australia is where we felt the most safe as a family. I’m definitely not leaving the band, but I haven’t had time to think about what I do next.”

Bandmate Toby Allen said he and fellow bandmates Andrew and Michael Tierney are keen to return to their homes in Vegas and find a new casino residency – they have played regularly in the town for 11 years.

“There’ll have to be some reshuffling,” Allen says of playing Vegas as a three-piece.

“We can’t take out every song Phil sang, there’s some key songs there. We’ve started throwing around some ideas. I’d assume we’ll tour Australia with Phil; Australia has grown up with us as a four-piece. But we won’t get a feeling of what it’s like to work as a three-piece until we’ve lived through it.”

The group began as the 4 Trax in high school in 1989, with their launch as Human Nature starting in 1995.

Human Nature are Andrew Tierney, Toby Allen, Mike Tierney and Phil Burton. Picture: Sony

Human Nature have just released their first fully original release in 17 years – the Good Good Life EP includes a collaboration with Guy Sebastian.

They’re currently on an extensive regional tour, before touring the EP in capital cities in August and September.

“We’ve been lucky to perform at 100 per cent capacity venues regionally,” Burton said. “We’re very grateful for that, we know it could change in an instant.”

The group have had several Covid-related concert incidents – as well as brothers Mike and Andrew Tierney actually getting the virus.

In January, a gig at Rooty Hill RSL blew up online after audience members weren’t wearing masks, despite the gig taking place the night before masks became mandatory at indoor events in New South Wales.

Comedian Jimmy Rees referenced regulations of audience members not being allowed to sing along at gigs, and Human Nature themselves, in a video that was viewed over 10 million times.

“We went viral because of Jimmy Rees!,” Burton says.

“That was great.”

However Burton said the band were confused by an unmasked audience that greeted them.

“We did everything we were told to do, stay back five metres from the crowd, we didn’t cross that line. We socially distanced from the musicians on stage and the crew, we did all that. We’d been told the crowd were told to wear masks, we thought we’d see a sea of masks. But that wasn’t mandatory, they told people as they came in ‘We’d appreciate it if you wore a mask’.

“Being in Australia, people were like, we don’t care, there’s not much Covid here. So there were about 10 per cent of the crowd in a mask, for us that was a shock. We fully understand why people were blowing up about it, but it wasn’t up to us to force people to wear a mask.”

And in December Human Nature accidentally got an early taste of the future performing as a trio when Toby Allen was on a Virgin flight that sparked a Covid scare – he had to quarantine in Brisbane while the band played Christmas shows without him.

Human Nature have just released their first original effort since 2014. Picture: Sony

“That was the first time since we were The 4 Trax that we played as a trio,” Burton said. “Andrew and Mike’s sister stood in for Mike at a couple of gigs while Mike’s voice was breaking, that was a long time ago. We managed to get through it without Toby, the crowds were understand, but it’s not something we’d choose to do again, but it was an emergency situation three hours from going on stage. I can’t say we enjoyed it that much, we threw something together, we Facetimed Toby from on stage.”

Allen, who has now quarantined three times (“it gets easier”) and received the one-shot Johnson and Johnson Covid vaccine in the US said missing the Christmas shows was tough.

“The fans were very understanding,” Allen said.

“I do keep trying to get the other guys to say ‘It was terrible without me, right?!’”

Tour dates at humannaturelive.com