[Listen to "The Rain" by The Hounds Homebound - Lyrics at the bottom of this article]

 

 

Hounds Homebound, winners of the 2013 FReeZA Push Start Battle of the Bands as chosen by judges at the 2013 Push Over festival, are a band originating from the thriving metropolis of Yackandandah. This six-piece fuse baroque pop with some blues elements to craft an infectious sound. I had a chat with frontman Vinny earlier this month.

Thanks for chatting with us, guys. Can you give us a rundown on what The Hounds Homebound sound like?

No worries, always a pleasure! Our sound is a difficult one to put into words. We're like a cake made of bluesy/poppy/rock and the icing is gypsy folk. We don't ever try to write in a specific genre or with a sound in mind, we just write songs that we all dig and all chip in to, so the end result is a culmination of our six different musical styles.

What or who has influenced your sound?

So many different things! We're a six-piece, with every member having grown up listening or learning in different genres and styles. Between the band we've played classical, blues, pop, folk, Celtic, rock, you name it. So that open-mindedness and previous experience certainly gives us a lot of freedom in the writing process.

When I saw you perform I picked up a kind of baroque or cabaret sound. What would you say influenced that?

The variety of playing styles between us six could lend itself to a few different overtones. Lucy and Brianna (and Vinny to an extent) have been classically trained, so that could possibly explain any baroque influence. The range of our instrumentation certainly is conducive to any unique element to our sound as well.

How did you guys come together originally?

The good old story: six people who were interested in playing music that we all dig.

How does being from such a small town affect the process of writing music?

It's such a beautiful thing, and that environment has really shaped us as people and players today. Physically, we have so much room and space to make the music that we want to.

Our practice spaces are sometimes kilometres away from the neighbours, so we are certainly are not restricted as far as time or noise constraints goes, and we don't feel as if we're stepping on anyone's toes. Also, there is constantly inspiration and beauty all around us in the land and the tight-knit communities that exist here.

Does living in a small town make it tougher to get gigs, or is your community more supportive of your craft, or something else entirely?

In the early process of really getting our music out there, we certainly had to be creative and take as many opportunities as we could. Although there is no regular live music scene for original music where we live, we were so thankful to have met some amazing like-minded bands, venue owners, youth workers and so many awesome friends who really did so much for live music and us.

It's certainly a tight-knit community in the way that if we ever had a show, we'd get our fellow bands in on it and vice versa. This type of environment may not exist only in regional areas, but certainly it's amazing to see what the love of music and art can create when everyone works together for it.

How was the process of participating in the Push Start Battle of the Bands?

It was an absolutely amazing experience from start to finish. We met so many awesome musicians and acts that we didn't know existed previously, and have made some friends that will no doubt last years and who we'll constantly be crossing tracks and working with in the future.

All the audiences at the heats and the finals were amazing – quite similar to festivals in the way that everyone was just there to watch music and have a good time.

I saw you guys take the grand final out - deservedly I say. How was that set for you?

Awesome fun! The crowd was so responsive and the stage was nice and snuggly to get all of us to fit, which made for all the more fun. It was pretty hectic setting up all our gear and getting everything to make noise and hopefully sound good in such a short time, but from the first chord it was all good times from there.

How did it feel being the one of few poppier bands amongst a lineup of metal giants?

Everyone was there to share their music and art. Although the final product is different, we're all essentially on a very similar page, so it was fine. The diversity in the lineup reflected the open-mindedness of the audience as well, so we certainly didn't feel out of place or unwanted.

All of the Push Start bands were crammed into the same dressing room, so everyone got to know each other and spend time together by the end of the day, regardless of their genre or what band they were from.

You guys are a really young band. What's next for you?

We're a band that absolutely lives and breathes for live music, so for 2013 and beyond our main focus is to share our music, art and a whole lot of good times with friends and audiences old and new, and to discover some new places to play.

We've just released our debut LP, so we're playing shows in support of that and showing people that first chapter of our music. We're constantly in a state of writing as well, so we'll certainly be excited when the time is right to head to the studio and work on our second long player.

And finally what's your favourite album at the moment?

• Ben – Abbey Road, The Beatles
• Jeffrey – Lonerism, Tame Impala
• Lucy – The Sound of Music soundtrack
  
• Holty – Mirage Rock, Band of Horses
• Brianna – One Hot Minute, Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Vinny – Good News for People Who Love Bad News, Modest Mouse

For more about The Hounds Homebound, check out their Facebook (new window).

For more Arts & Music articles, check out our Articles Archive. For more about FReeZA, check out www.freeza.vic.gov.au (new window).

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Lyrics: "The Rain" by The Hounds Homebound

I ain't got time for splashing about in the rain
With all this talk all we ever do is complain about it (lie about it)
I ain't got time for splashing about in the rain
When this drops all it ever does is it leaves a mark

All we ever do is hide
Where no thoughts collide
Deep inside our minds

I ain't got time for splashing about in the rain
With all this talk all we ever do is complain about it (lie about it)
I ain't got time for splashing about in the rain
When the rain pours all it ever does is it pushes right down and

All we ever do is hide
Where no thoughts collide
Deep inside our minds

With all this talk and all this fuss
Man she don't like me
I'm not good enough
And all this talk well
Man it's so cheap

To lie in wait for just one hour
Talk to kings of hits and power
They are the same
There is no difference

So mind your head she's a bachelorette
And she'll make quite sure, sure you don't forget
Your mistakes, regrets
There is no difference