Words by Cozzie Wood
Getting down and dirty to punk rock on a Wednesday night sounds like a hell of a way to party mid-week, and by god (Goodgod to be exact) spicy punk trio Sloppy Kiss Soiree made sure it was. With four shows already under their belt for 2015, including supporting USA’s The Coathangers at the infamous Frankie’s Pizza, this freshly formed band is storming its way through the Sydney music scene to slap a big, fat french kiss on your musical radar.
Originally a duo: frontman Jonny on vocals and guitar and his slick sidekick David on drums, they took just under a year to hone their infectiously unconventional sound. They released an EP Schnitzelphrenia, recorded a catchy garage-pysch summer track A Silly Girl for a Real Dumb Boy and bagged themselves a talented, brazilian bassist, Glauber. Just watching them bounce around on stage with cheshire cat grins and oodles of enthusiasm, not only do you know that these crazy kids gel well, but they thoroughly enjoy making their unique Sloppy sound. But don’t get me wrong, their sound is anything but ‘sloppy’.
Studying audio engineering and sound production at university, Jonny knows a thing or two about sounding succinct whilst still retaining that caustic edge we all love about garage and punk. “I’m also taking night classes twice a week on how to eat an orange”. Yep you read that right, don’t let their sophisticated use of french fool you, its Johnny’s oddball eccentricity that makes these guys so compelling and unique. One listen of Apple I Scream, a song about screaming at things with your best bud, an apple, and you know Jonny is a genuinely quirky character who makes fresh and exciting music and doesn’t take himself too seriously in the process. Jonny describes his performance as “singing like a clown who has just quit his job with lyrics that make no sense (or do they..)” and there’s no doubt that his performance is as much comedic entertainment as it is musical.
The band were preceded by polar opposites: the totally whacky Brain Zaps performing inside garbage cans and chucking trash at the audience, followed by the upbeat poppy sounds of skater kids Birds with Thumbs politely thanking the audience between songs. It seems as though Jonny’s self proclaimed clown character fits nicely into this raucously entertaining circus of a show. These acts aren’t anything to laugh at though, and Sloppy Kiss Soiree definitely have some big show-stoppers to pull out this year, having already generated such roaring success in such a short space of time. With an eagerly anticipated new EP on the sunny summer horizon, the band is ready to invite Australia to join them in their extraordinary soiree.
So Jonny, what’s the secret recipe for this success? “I have such fantastic band members and with our 3 minds combined we can create a molotov cocktail of incredibly spicy vibrations.” Well if that’s the case Jonny, we’d like to order another round.