A Load Off Their Minds

Newcastle Herald

Thursday July 3, 2008

writes Anita Beaumont

IT HAS been a long time between albums for Australian rockers Front End Loader, but with side projects including other bands, day jobs and wives and children, finding the time to write and record has proven to be yet another ball to juggle for the four-piece.

But the release of their live double album Laughing With Knives earlier this year freed up some head space for one of the most entertaining live acts on the Australian rock circuit.

It also gave them another good excuse to do some shows.

They are sneaking in a couple more before the birth of drummer Peter Kostic's second child later this month, including a free gig at Maitland's Grand Junction Hotel on Saturday, July 12.

But it shouldn't be too long before we see Front End Loader back on the road again.

Vocalist and guitarist Davis Claymore told LIVE the band hoped to release a new studio album early next year.

It was going under the working title Retardando a musical term for "becoming slower".

"We thought that was quite apt for us," Claymore laughed.

"That will be our first studio album for a really long time."

In fact, it will be six years since the band released Ape Got Fire their fifth long-player.

"We've gone through periods of never really doing a lot for various different reasons.

"And I think collectively we have more children than we do albums.

"There were a lot of reasons why it took us so long to get the live album out, but it made it hard to move on and do other things because we had all of the material ready to go, we just needed to do something with it.

"It became hard to justify to ourselves and our families that we should go on the road again when we didn't have a release, and there's only so many east coast tours you can do, for both us and for our fans."

One factor holding up proceedings was Kostic possibly the hardest-working drummer in Australia who also plays percussion for Aussie pop-rockers Regurgitator and The Hard-Ons.

That, combined with family and work commitments, meant that finding time to get the whole band together was often difficult.

"It's very easy as a young person in their 20s to live for the band.

"But as you get a little bit older it's why so many bands drop off you get to a point where to survive you need to get a job as well."

While their lyrics have always offered plenty of cynicism, Claymore reckons that over time the individual band members have become less overtly cynical.

"But that's because our cynicism is more like reality now.

"There has always been a fairly high level of it in the band, and a lot of spite has come out in the words, at ourselves and other people in general.

"It's a cliche, I know, but we've probably proven, after this long, that we really don't give a f--k what anybody thinks."

While the band have toured Europe and performed at the Big Day Out in front of thousands of people, Front End Loader have stayed true to their pub roots.

Although, Claymore is quick to point out, that wasn't exactly planned.

"It's kind of cool we never sold out, but let's also not pretend we had the opportunity to," he laughed.

"Ten years ago we didn't start out with the plan to not sell a lot of records, and it's interesting to wonder had we have had a bit more mainstream success whether we would be around, whether we'd still have the supportive following we do.

"We never really went away from pubs, apart from an occasional gig in front of 1000 people at the Metro in Sydney.

"But then, it's not really stadium rock that we play either."

Front End Loader play at the Grand Junction Hotel on Saturday, July 12, supported by Errol JM and the Trade Secrets from about 8pm. Entry is free.

© 2008 Newcastle Herald

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