Sure we’ve heard about you before, but we think it’s time for Tone Deaf to get to know you a little better. Slip in to something comfortable while we put on some music, pour us a couple of drinks and turn the lights down low. So, tell us about yourselves…Who are you – who who? We really wanna know….
Who are you and what do you do in your act?
I’m Josh and I do 99.9% of the singing in the band.
‘Fess up. What records have you stolen from your parent’s record collection and why?
I stole the entire Beatles catalogue when I was a kid and that’s pretty much how I taught myself how to play chords and construct a song on piano. I have also stolen some pretty lame stuff too—think early Genesis and that sort of thing.
What’s on heavy rotation on your iPod right now?
Kanye’s latest album. The XX. Arcade Fire gets played quite a bit too…
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‘Home taping is killing the music business’ was the catch-cry of the record industry in the 1970s, but it managed to survive until now. What do you think is the difference between mates taping copies of friend’s records back in the 80s and 90s and file sharing now?
I think file sharing helps young bands get discovered quickly but prevents them from earning enough money on their first LP to make a second one. So it’s tricky situation and no one’s come up with THE answer yet. Although it’s interesting to see publishing companies are stronger now than perhaps ever before. I’m getting all a bit technical now!
You must answer this question honestly or we steal your rider. What was the first gig you went to? Where was it and what was the venue?
I saw Youth Group support Coldplay at Rod Laver Arena in 2005. See how I worded that? Honest but real!
What’s your favourite site to download music from and do you ever pay for it? Can we find any of your releases there?
Definitely iTunes. Our music is on there and our new EP is available for pre order at the moment.
What artist made you want to pick up an instrument and/or sing?
To be honest when I was first getting into music it was bands like Ace of Base and Blink 182 that were getting all the rotation. My parents tried to force Billy Joel and Elton John down my throat. And I was listening to Mike Oldfield and War of the Worlds. So I think what really attracted me to the whole thing was the idea of performing, putting on a show and having a (hopefully) positive impact on someone’s day.
Have you ever been arrested?
I was actually arrested for drinking in public along with our bass player and our manager. It was many years ago and is really quite a tame story. Mum, if you’re reading this, the only reason you never found out is because no charges were pressed. Cheers.
Do you have any particular ritual before you go on stage, or even a lucky charm you take with you?
I have to take my watch off. Any time I leave it on we’ve played a shit show. So it’s a bit of a ‘thing’ now.
What’s been your most outrageous rider request?
When we played Laneway we were asked what we wanted and I thought, ‘excellent, let’s see what we can get’ and then our drummer asked for Pepsi. Goddamn Pepsi. I think that’s pretty outrageous when he could have had anything he wanted, don’t you?!
Because it’s more fun to do things together, which living Australian artist would you most like to collaborate with? Tell us why?
It would have to be Empire of the Sun for sure. The music is great and Luke Steele is a genius performer.
Right, let’s get really intimate. Tell us what releases you have that we can listen to with the lights down low, or even better, where we can see you play in person next?
We’re headlining Northcote Social Club in Melbourne on ANZAC day to launch our brand new ‘No Photo – EP’. In the meantime our single ‘Teachers’ can be heard on our Facebook or iTunes. Check it out at facebook.com/OfficialBuchanan.
