Interview: Zac and Ben Crawford
Zac and Ben Crawford were 50% of the group Powerage; a top 5 finalist in Season 1. Our host Nathan Sapsford caught up with the boys to see how the music has been treating them.
Nathan: So Zac and Ben, formerly of Powerage, a top 5 finishing band from the 2009 comp, how's the rock treating you?
Ben: It’s going great. We’ve been really busy lately between shows, writing, rehearsing and recording but it’s all been a lot of fun! We’re currently working on an album as well as promoting our current E.P, we’re bringing out a live DVD early next year, touring late this year/early next year and filming a couple of music videos to support the singles.
Nathan: In your sensational video last time, more than a casual reference to AC/DC, including Zac's blood red Gibson SG Zac. Tell me of your love of Acca Dacca?
Zac: Ha-ha yeah we were very much into ACDC then. We still love their music and have a lot of respect for what they do but these days our musical influences have broadened and we listen to a lot more bands. You can hear the change in our sound from our video entry ‘Let’s Jam’ and our performance video’s ‘Can’t Stand Alone’ and ‘Runaway’ from when we were in the competition. ACDC’s sound though is truly unique and recognisable. If you hear them on the radio you instantly know that’s them and the songs they have created throughout their career have been so timeless and that’s why we respect them so much.
Nathan: You even got the Thunder struck effect with the guitar POV (impressive finger work there too mate), how the hell did you do that?
Zac: I’ve been playing guitar since I was six years old, so a bit over 10 years now! And have always practised a lot so I guess that’s how ha-ha.
Nathan: Being brothers starting rock n roll bands, Zac the lead singer / guitarist and Ben on the drums, sounds an awful lot like another proud Aussie rockin band JET, how far do you think you two can go?
Ben: Yeah there are brothers in bands like 30 Seconds to Mars, Oasis, INXS, Van Halen, The Beach Boys, Kings of Leon plus so many more, and it always seems to work in a lot of cases. I’ll have to admit it is difficult sometimes but you have to learn to put that aside and carry on with the music and stay focused. Zac and I have always said that this is what we want to do and I strongly believe that if we keep motivated we can achieve success at some level.
Nathan: What do you love about Aussie rock n roll?
Ben: I love how simple it is and that there are still a few bands creating music of that genre but not as many as there should be! Due to commercial radio a lot of younger people are almost brainwashed into liking a certain style of music which is kind of sad as there are so many amazing bands that go unheard of. A few of my favourite up and coming Aussie rock bands are Stolen Memories, Howler and October Rage. You can check them out of Facebook, Myspace and YouTube.
Nathan: There's some Aussie rock in this year's comp too, and quite a few more entrants this time than last, probably almost double by the time this gets up, who do you like in there?
Zac: Yeah I noticed that there were many more entrants than last year! We haven’t checked out that many of the acts but ‘The Maze’ are pretty cool. We did a guest spot at the 2011 Youth Rock competition and they came 3rd I think. I tried to have a look at a few artists but they didn’t have video’s uploaded, so they should probably do that to give them a better shot at getting through.
Nathan: The prizes have upped the ante a little bit this time round too, what would you do to get in there and have a shot this time round?
Ben: Well these days our performances are even more high energy and our songs are getting better and better, well we think so anyway ha-ha. We like to swap around instruments on stage and I sing a few songs in the band these days also and Zac gets on the drums or our bassist. We also like to bring it down a bit and play some acoustic stuff with four part harmonies. So our live show would help I think and we would probably go hand out flyers at our gigs to get people to vote for us. You really need to put some effort in to get your band into the next round.
Nathan: What do you reckon is so good about the My School Act competition, especially this year?
Zac: There were so many great things about My School Act. Meeting people like Paul Dempsey, Amy Meredeth and Damien Leith were highlights and the different seminars we had with stylists, lawyers, A & R people were great also. You also meet a lot of bands and make friends along the way which is wonderful. I love the fact that this year there is an opportunity to play at Big Day Out 2012! That’s really cool!
Nathan: What advice do you have for this year's Acts?
Ben: Get your stuff together! Have your image sorted out, your songs, rehearse a lot, take lots of notes as there will be a lot of information to take in and most of all just have fun! My School Act was a great experience and all the bands are going love it. Keep in mind that this is for a contract with Sony music, so maybe check out the bands that are signed with them and see what they are looking for.
Nathan: Now Powerage, I hear the band broke up, say it ain't so, are the members all still intact?
Zac: Yeah everything is all good between us, but the Minett brothers decided they wanted to pursue some other interests which we understood, and we welcomed Mitch Seigers and Ben Grimas to the band who have been performing with us since June 2010.
Nathan: The good news is you've got a new one, tell us about that. Similar vibe?
Ben: Yes we do! We’re called Jupiter Menace now. We still play Runaway and Can’t Alone from our performance at My School Act but our songs have constantly been evolving since the competition. We feel we have found our sound now and are the happiest we have ever been with the music we are playing. I’ve never really been able to describe our genre…It’s still rock but takes influence from bands like Muse, 30 Seconds to Mars, Rise Against and a lot of others. We have been trying a lot thing with our song writing and our performances are much more high energy now, a Jupiter Menace show is pretty full on!
Nathan: Zac you've got some mighty impressive screaming lungs on you, are they in force with the new project?
Zac: Ha-ha thank you! Yes they are! I’ve been trying a lot things with my vocals, even singing some acoustic stuff. If you check out our self titled E.P you will hear me belting out a few high notes ha-ha. Myself and Ben do a lot of harmonised singing in our songs now and he also sings lead on several tracks so that gives me a break sometimes which is good.
Nathan: Where can people catch your stuff - in person and online?
Ben: If you visit www.jupitermenace.com it has links to our youtube, myspace, facebook etc and has links to sites where you can purchase our E.P and view our video clips. We have a lot of shows coming up throughout the rest of 2011 which you can keep up to date with through out our website. We will also be touring late this year/early next year.
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