Back in the summer we featured Can’t Stop Moving by Brisbane, Australia’s Sans Parents as our Record of the Day. The single, a superb blend of power pop and new wave was just a tease while we waited for the release of their new EP – The Dead End.
This is pretty simple really. If you dig rock and roll with sugary-sweet hooks and flawless harmonies then checking out Sans Parents is a must. These guys are pop hook masters, I’m talking along the likes of The Posies, Teenage Fanclub, Redd Kross and Jellyfish but with a little bit of 70s New Wave and indie pop a la The Shins added to the mix.
The five song EP is outstanding. The 70s inspired pop of Dead End leads off, overflowing with those impeccable 10cc-esque harmonies. Loose People is a gorgeous melancholic, yet upbeat and catchy-as-hell pop song. Things get kicked up a notch with the energetic Maybe The World’s Trying To Tell Me Something, which wouldn’t sound out of place on The Posies’ Frosting On The Beater. After the aforementioned Can’t Stop Moving, the EP closes with Shouting Between the Lines, a song that straddles the line between XTC and Jellyfish.
All in all, the Dead End EP is an infectious release of expertly crafted pop and lands Sans Parents is all over my radar.
Let’s find out a little bit about these pop chameleons.
We are….
Alex – Vox/guitar, Kane – Vox/keys, Charles – Bass & Ry- drums
Tell us about your hometown scene…
Brisbane has a pretty supportive little scene. It’s tough with venues coming and going but there’s some nice band commradery around and that sense of community which is enjoyable to be part of.
What influences Sans Parents lyrically?
Without sounding too vague, anything and everything. Day jobs, popular culture, travel etc.
Describe your sound as a cocktail – what would it be called and what would be in it?
Haha ummm maybe ‘The Power Poptail’. It’s an Old Fashioned with Mother energy drink in it.
What songs do you remember most from your childhood?
My parents took me to see Paul Simon on his Gracelands tour in the 80s which stands out to me as an early memory. Otherwise there was a lot Cat Stevens and Beatles on car trips.
If you could pick any time and place to travel back to for music, where would you go and what year would it be….?
The mid-60s hanging out in the UK or perhaps California would’ve been a special time with the likes of records like Pet Sounds, Odyssey and Oracle and Revolver coming out. Can imagine how inspiring it would’ve been to be around then with so many musicians carving out new sounds.
What tunes are currently on heavy rotation for you…?
We’ve been listening to Margaret Glaspy’s album which is sick. There’s a few other artists like Whitney which we’ve been digging.. Oh and the new Teenage Fanclub tunes are great!
If you could tour with any band/artist right now who would that be and why?
Major long shot but Paul McCartney or Crowded House would be rather amazing haha. But would be just as stoked to score a ticket to watch them perform. C’mon Macca!
What would Sans Parents do with $100,000?
Maybe head over to the Al Jardine’s studio in Big Sur and see if Blake Mills (if he’d have us) might be free to record an album over a month or so there. A mixture of recording, surfing and drinking beer in the Californian sun. Hey we can dream!
Give us your 10 song playlist for the tour van/bus/plane?
Crowded House – Mean to me
Teenage Fanclub – Sparky’s dream
The Beatles – If I fell
The Beach Boys – Don’t talk
Phantom Planet – On my mind
Local Natives – Colombia
Ben Fold Five – Missing the war
The Zombies – Beechwood Park
The Shins – Kissing the lipless
The Get Up Kids – Out of Reach
When you’re not playing and have some time off, where could we find you…
Hanging out at the beach or maybe drinking some beers with friends at our local, Death Valley in Morningside. But most probably I’d be at work reluctantly haha
What’s up for the rest of 2016 and 2017?
We’re finishing off our EP tour this wk then starting to do some new demos in prep for a full length record in 2017.
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