Magic Dirt have ridden the wave that is the music industry, and emerged unscathed. From their earliest days, the then Geelong-based four-piece were tipped for big things. Their early shows in Melbourne may have been sparsely attended, but they impressed the folks who mattered most. Before too long, and after two brilliant EPs, the band were signed by an American label who hadn’t even heard the already completed debut, Friends in Danger. It wasn’t what the suits, who’d paid a small fortune in a bidding war to sign the band, expected to hear.
After getting paid out by Warner Bros., Magic Dirt made a second record, Young and Full of the Devil, that was nothing short of brilliant. With new guitarist Raul Sanchez part of the band, they were on fire…and came to the attention of Australian-based major labels.
In a deal laced with irony, the band signed to the local subsidiary of Warners, releasing three albums – What Are the Rock Stars Doing Today, Tough Love and Snow White – to diminishing interest from their label. The band’s 2007 co-release EPs – the noisy Roky’s Room and the relatively normal Beast – were the first on the band’s independent label, Emergency Music, and marked the beginning of a new chapter in the band’s career.
But their new album, Girl, is different again – where their 2007 releases were focussed on singular ideas being explored, the band’s sixth album is an amalgam of all the ideas that the band have explored throughout the history of their career. As such, there’s noisy squalls, experimental passages, hard and fast rock, and gloriously direct pop music. “From Beast onwards it’s been like being in a rehearsal room,” singer and guitarist Adalita explains of the band’s new-found recording technique, eschewing the technical trickery of both Snow White and Tough Love. “We work better that way, and it’s second-nature – we can get takes pretty quickly.”
Girl is a very different sound to any of the band’s previous releases though, with ambient microphones picking up a lot of sonic ephemera that might have been ignored previously. “Nothing was put under the microscope too much – we just wanted to get the best take and the best feel. We’d been playing a lot of the songs live for a while, so it was pretty good doing it that. For the first time we knew exactly what we were doing.
“It’s the follow-up to Beast and Roky’s Room,” continues Adalita of the band’s new album. “We were very influenced by those albums when we were writing – and there is a noise piece on Girl called Tremor that is very much in the Roky’s style. There were all these different pieces, but they all seemed to belong on the same record.”
Nothing about Girl was planned, other than making sure that the best material was recorded then pieced together so that it made sense. “We’ve got the songs, but what is it all about? Once you’ve got the songs in the right order then you can start to put meaning on it, and layer up the story around it. It was cool the way it turned out – quite eclectic, and almost like a soundtrack.”
For Girl, Magic Dirt involved themselves in the production as well, working on it alongside regular producer Lindsay Gravina. At the end of the day they’ve always had final say over the finished product, but the increased workload has made them feel more responsible for the album as a whole, rather than just working on the songs in isolation. “We have to do a lot more behind the scenes,” Adalita agrees.
Given that Magic Dirt are now, effectively, a band who self-release their material, there was always the possibility that they would go outside the normal channels, and ‘do a Radiohead’, releasing Girl online in a pay-what-you-think-the-music-is-worth model via the internet. “Well, they can afford to do it, can’t they?” Adalita says bluntly. “They’re big enough to do that. I think, down the track, we’ll see what happens.”
Already there’s plenty of extra material from the Girl sessions that may see light of day in the not-too-distant future. “We wanted to release it,” she says, “and I think we might have a companion release to Girl for the tour. There’s a bunch of tracks that we really liked, so they might actually see the light of day on this tour.”
“Girl is FasterLouder’s Album Of The Week. Check out the review here.”:http://www.fasterlouder.com.au/reviews/music/13866/Magic-Dirt-â-Girl.htm
Girl is out this Saturday 5 July. Magic Dirt’s No Sleep Til Christmas tour – where they’ll quite literally be touring until mid-December – is underway soon. Check them out at the following venues:
July
30 Wed – O’Dowds Irish Pub – Rockhampton
August
1 Fri – Bon Amici – Toowoomba
2 Sat – Sands Tavern – Maroochydore
9 Sat – Swindlers Bar – Hotham
13 Wed – UTS Broadway (lunchtime) – Sydney
13 Wed – Wollongong UNI bar (night) – Wollongong
14 Thurs – Uni of Newcastle – Newcastle
15 Fri – The Annandale – Sydney
16 Sat – Mona Vale Hotel – Mona Vale
17 Sun – Oasis Youth Centre – Central Coast (all ages) Wyong
21 Thur – Great Northern – Byron Bay
22 Fri – Cooly Hotel – Coolangatta
23 Sat – The ZOO – Brisbane
29 Fri – The Corner Hotel – Melbourne
30 Sat – Karova Lounge – Ballarat
September
5 Fri – The Opal Inn – Coober Pedy
6 Sat – The Gov – Adelaide
12 Fri – The G – Mt Gambier Hotel
13 Sat – The Loft – Warrnambool
27 Sat – Wave Rock Weekender – Hyden
28 Sun – Esperance Hotel – Esperance
October
1 Wed – Bourbon Bar – Albany
2 Thurs – Prince of Wales – Bunbury
3 Fri – Amplifier Bar – Perth
4 Sat – Mojo’s Bar – Fremantle
10 Sat – Sandbar – Mildura
15 Wed – Monash Uni – Gippsland
17 Fri – National Hotel – Geelong
18 Sat – Golden Vine Hotel – Bendigo
24 Fri – Rubys Lounge – Belgrave
November
22 Sat – Wilcannia Community Hall – Wilcannia
23 Sun – Broken Hill Entertainment Centre – Broken Hill (afternoon show)
28 Fri – Republic Bar & Café – Hobart
29 Sat – Republic Bar & Café – Hobart
December
13 Sat – Westernport Hotel – San Remo
