Powderfinger

Album: Golden Rule
Label: Universal
Website: powderfinger.com

Powderfinger embrace ‘golden rules’ for success

A five year hiatus from performing at sell-out festivals could make some bands nervous, unless of course you’re phenomenally successful Australian band Powderfinger. Jon Coghill (long-serving drummer to the five -piece) is excited about the prospect of the band being back on the road where they will join the stellar line-up for next year’s Big Day Out national tour. Even if, the excitement is fuelled by their desire to create better memories this year. The last time Jon and his band mates joined the Big Day Out bandwagon they found themselves as Jon recalls a little out of their element.

“We were playing with all these heavy metal bands and it was a horrible atmosphere, back stage with all these unfriendly people. So when this line-up was announced we were like ‘ooh yeh’ we’ll be able to get along with them.”

2010’s Big Day Out tour happens to time perfectly for Powderfinger (who comprise, Bernard Fanning, Ian Haug, Darren Middleton and John Collins and Coghill) because they’ll be touring with brand new fodder for their fans.

A seventh studio album – Golden Rule has been released to national acclaim and whilst it’s written everywhere about the ‘Finger’s’ many achievements over their illustrious twenty year journey, numerous Aria Awards now collect dust at the band’s studio space (located somewhere in industrial Albion, Brisbane) and it’s here again the magic for this latest album mesmerised.

According to Jon the stand out differences between this album and that of 2007’s Dream Days at the Hotel Existence are that this time around he and the lad’s were less focused on achieving perfection and more on just getting along and having fun. He also attributes a positive difference to their decision in welcoming back a trusted friend in Nick DiDia who truly grasps what the band is about.

“We let Nick take control of what was happening, and it took away the whole negotiating between each other how we should be doing stuff and usually five sort of opinions turns into something that is not very productive.

“We wrote the songs but the whole idea of the way the album sort of flowed and the sentiment, feeling underneath it was very much Nick’s doing.”

Not shy in admitting Hotel Existence’s producer didn’t quite gel with the band’s own vision for making music, ‘he was all about creating the perfect pop song’ he credits instead, Nick with the foresight and ability to shape a fantastic album.

“He’s got a really similar philosophy with music as we do it’s not as much about as selling as albums as trying to write the perfect pop song, it’s about making something aurally stimulating.

“It’s sort of like I don’t know you try not to get into that sell-out territory and you just sort of let the music speak for itself. “ Jon says.

And speak it shall, released in mid November the album has already enjoyed unprecedented sales (debuting at number one in the Aria Charts for a fifth consecutive time) possibly this is because the band decided to harness the online momentum generated by social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook. A forward thinking move, from them, which has been exceedingly well embraced by their management.

“The internet is evolving and the way that you market on the internet is evolving so quickly and I think people are always looking for the next thing so it’s probably a lot of opportunity out there and there is a lot of scope provided by the internet but you have to be wary of it…” Jon warns.

A specific element to the social media strategy employed was for the band to perform and trial their new material on the sometimes unsuspecting public (busking outside the Beach Hotel in Byron Bay) and again under their band moniker – Adult Baby. The anonymity attached to performing this way, gives, Jon believes, the band a chance to perform without expectation.

“It’s pretty good actually, it frees you up, it’s good in different aspects when we did adult baby we just played the album from start to finish and we hear about four or five old songs that we don’t usually do  so with playing under Adult baby there is no expectations of what you’re going to play so you can play whatever you want.

Where as with Powderfinger, sometimes there are a few songs that people like you to play where as you also like to get the crowd into it, it changes your set pretty much.”

Powderfinger play the Sold out Big Day Out Festival tour nationally in January. For more information visit bigdayout.com. Their album Golden Rule is available via getmusic.com.au and powderfinger.com.

Ruth Bailey