London-based Australian psychedelic rockers Tempesst recently released ‘A Little Bit Of Trouble’, a track which reflects this band’s penchant for presenting ‘60s and ‘70s influences in a current mood. Their music is all about real-life experiences, often in a pessimistic context, but then shaken up with a smirk, a bass groove, a playful lyric. That’s certainly the impression left by the band’s 2017 EP, Adult Wonderland, featuring previous List Picks ‘Waiheke’ and ‘Feel Better’, which was surrounded by a series of UK shows and a landmark appearance at this year’s The Great Escape Festival, as well as at the NME Awards and Live At Leeds. With an ever-growing fan base, it’s all too easy for bands to try to change or please their audiences, but Tempesst have gone in the other direction in the writing and recording of their upcoming Doomsday EP. As you’ll go on to read, the band have side-stepped perfectionism, instead enjoying the natural process of creativity and releasing the freeform magic that has come out of that, as we’ve already heard with ‘A Little Bit Of Trouble’.

Here, vocalist, songwriter and guitarist Toma Banjanin answers a few questions about being a sarcastic pessimist, the various ways in which the band came together, their next EP and what they’d do in the event of an apocalypse.

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TMR: Hey Tempesst, you’ve just released new track ‘A Little Bit Of Trouble’, which we hear was inspired by a particular trip down to an East London pub, can you tell us a bit about this?

It was a sunny afternoon at the Kenton Arms in Hackney. We were having a few drinks and minding our own business when some wanker decided to make some comments about Andy’s jacket and hat. We were all pretty drunk, so it was only natural to overreact with our best primal-bravado tactics... shouting, smashing glasses etc. Nobody was hurt.

TMR: Your music is largely optimistic and uplifting, but given the subject matter of ‘A Little Bit Of Trouble’, can we also expect your sound to venture into darker territory on the upcoming Doomsday EP?

In our first EP, Adult Wonderland, we started exploring denser themes. Even though the music might feel uplifting, the lyrics are usually inspired by an incident or realisation and I’d say it's easier to write from the pessimist then it is to write from the optimist. You might then loosen up a heavy topic with a joke or some sarcasm, probably as some sort of coping mechanism so that you don’t trap yourself in the depths of your own despair!

TMR: I hear that internet search engine algorithms have something to do with the title of your next EP, but what sparked the initial fascination with an end-of-days scenario?

It starts really slow, a book here, a documentary there and before you know it you're eating Coco Pops at four in the morning watching YouTube videos on freemasonry. I have found some answers recently though, in the form of the National Geographic series Year Million. I can now sleep at night!



TMR: How does this next EP differ from Adult Wonderland?

The biggest difference is that Doomsday was written and recorded in a few weeks at the start of this year. Working with pace is something that I’ve always enjoyed, it’s so easy to be overly meticulous and overthink the entire process. It felt good to just write a few songs, record them and release them.

TMR: Your drummer Andy Banjanin was the artist behind the artwork on Adult Wonderland, are you going DIY for Doomsday or bringing in an outside talent?

Andy has already done the artwork for the Doomsday EP. He’s also filmed and directed two music videos. One of which is for ‘A Little Bit Of Trouble’.

TMR: Speaking of collaboration, how did you all come together as a band in the first place?

Andy and I met in our mother's womb. Kane and I met at thirteen-years-old, I was dancing with his girlfriend at a Blue Light Disco (discos for teenagers that are hosted by the Police in Australia, I know it sounds weird.) Eric and I met at a party in London, he slid down a staircase on his belly and I thought… “I gotta get to know this guy.” Blake was my neighbour in Australia, he lived a few houses away, he water-bombed my mother as she was hanging out the washing.



TMR: Like fellow Australia psych-rockers Parcels, you’ve left your home country for elsewhere to pursue music, is that because you feel more at home in London creatively?

I’m in London because I like it here. There are a lot of Australian artists and English artists who inspire us and are in similar vein stylistically. These days the world is so much more connected and travel is more accessible than ever. You tend to find people from all over the world who share your influences and tastes creatively.

TMR: Your style (both musically and aesthetically) leans towards a musical past of the ‘60s and ‘70s, so who have been the most influential bands and artists on your sound?

There are too many to list and everyone one of the boys would have a different answer to the question. I guess all of the clichés would apply to us and a go-to would be Crosby, Stills & Nash.

TMR: With multiple UK gigs under your belt, have you also taken inspiration from these earlier acts who had to play live in order to connect with fans rather than relying on the Internet?

We love to play live and tour, you get to hang out with your mates every day. They sort of work together, a girl came to our gig in Manchester because she saw a note on Spotify.

TMR: To finish on a high… say the apocalypse arrived tomorrow, what would you do with your last day on earth?

Disneyland and Ecstasy.



Tempesst’s Doomsday EP is out 27^th July via Pony Recordings.

-Hannah Thacker