“I’m Doing Better” feels like a raw, emotionally honest leap for the band—what inspired you to open up more on this EP compared to previous releases?
There was a period where we were kind of growing apart a little bit. We’ve been basically attached to one another for as long as I can remember, way before the band started, and I think we’d kind of forgotten what it was like to be friends. We took a trip together and we had it out with each other, got into some heavy stuff, were really honest with each other in a really healthy way. These conversations laid the foundation to be able to get back to a place where we could speak about our lives and our past honestly in our music and it also strengthened our friendship a lot.
The track ‘Hopeless Dreams’ hits on the fear of giving up on your goals—was there a specific turning point that pushed you to write this song?
For sure. I think with the way music is currently, and with all the different hats you have to wear to be a performing artist it can sometimes be so overwhelming. You have your good days but sometimes it can make you feel a bit hopeless. That on top of stuff I was going through at the time amounted in me questioning what I’m doing with my life, where I’m going, whether or not I have the strength to keep trying and it scared the shit out of me. It’s hard because this band has become literally my entire life and the thought of giving up on it is terrifying. But writing the song, processing those feelings, digging through my past, while the four of us we’re getting our spark back personally made me realise that this band is worth so much more to me than streams or follows, and I think that got lost a little bit.
Ciarann, you mentioned embracing your early emo/pop punk influences—what bands or albums were on repeat while writing this record?
Honestly a lot of the time I was re-discovering the records that made me fall in love with emo/pop punk music. I’m a nostalgia addict too, I drink that shit in. I went through my Green Day phase again, in a big way, Fall Out Boy, Sum 41. But I think what triggered this was touring with Stand Atlantic in 22, and seeing the connection between their audience and themselves, and I remember feeling like I belonged out there in the audience. It was like I’d ignored the freaky emo kid in me for so long, so I wanted to tap into that for our new music.
From SXSW to regional Australia, you’ve played everywhere this year—how did the overseas tour shape the energy or confidence behind this EP?
I think we’d had a few questions going into playing some of the new songs live, so grinding in America was really helpful in seeing how they are received in front of people who probably have never heard of us before. Which is a cool feeling when the new stuff you make gets a bigger reaction than the old stuff, as an artist at least I think that’s the cream. It’s the best payoff.
‘Manners Street’ is such a heartfelt nod to Wellington—how has your hometown shaped who Bakers Eddy is today, both musically and personally?
I don’t know, I guess cause we’ve been away for so long now we kind of lost our roots a little bit. I think we’ve been so focused on what’s ahead that we forgot to look back at where we came from. So when we were trying to re-connect with each other a lot of stories from our childhood were being thrown around and it helped us find those roots again. I don’t know how it’s affected us as a band but our little slice of Wellington is deeply ingrained in our personal relationship, where we used to hangout, where our first show was, the hippie commune Jamie’s Dad ran that we used to steal Codys from, all that stuff is always nice to come back to when we’re on the road or in the weeds of band life over here. That’s why we wrote Manners Street.
There’s a strong feeling of brotherhood in this EP. What’s it like creating music with people you’ve grown up with? How does that long-term bond influence the writing room?
Because we’ve known each other forever and we’ve gone through everything together there’s definitely this environment that we’ve created where we can be brutally honest with each other in what’s being created, and we can argue about things but bounce back almost immediately, especially after we spent more time re-connecting. We also know how to push each other’s buttons so there’s always that game at play but honestly all of this is such an important part in not just making music but like everything we do. And I think that bond is so much bigger than this band.
This record was self-produced with Vincent McIntyre and mixed by Justin Gerrish—how did that combination help bring out the sound you were chasing?
Vince is the best, he’s been a friend of mine for a long time and I’m so musically envious of his band Fan Girl, so I’ve wanted to make something with him for a very long time. He’s got this ability to make beautiful music sound like a car crash and then make it sound beautiful again, which matches my “keep all the ugly bits in” style of production very well. But he’s still got an ear for ‘big’ which is what we wanted to capture. When we found out Justin was down to mix we all lost our shit, he’s done so many of the records we grew up obsessing over, Strokes, Weezer, Bic Runga. We’re sometimes a little maximalist when it comes to tracks so we often tread that line of ‘too much sound’ but he did an amazing job at finding space for everything while still having that ‘wall of sound’ feeling.
You’ve said this EP is high energy but more vulnerable—was it a challenge to balance emotional depth with the fast-paced sonic punch you’re known for?
I think it was more that we’ve, for a long time, kind of hid the emotional depth behind metaphors and contradicting music. It’s something I’ve always loved but it also feels like a safety net sometimes. The challenging part for me was putting my feelings into words that didn’t beat around the bush as much, and be musically honest with the way the chords feel. I still love making melancholy music but it felt fresh to match feelings with sound. But they’re still fast, that will never change.
You’ve built a reputation for explosive live shows—how do the new tracks translate on stage? Any particular songs from the EP that already feel like fan favourites?
Yeah people are singing ‘Dust’ and ‘Manners’ already. We’ve always wanted big sing along moments so it does feel pretty great hearing your words back thrown back at you, especially when they’re so fresh. We played Dust at our first show back in Melbourne and I don’t think we’ve ever felt a reaction like that for a song before. We haven’t really played the unreleased stuff yet so I’m excited to see how they go live.
Looking ahead to the August/September tour, what can fans expect from the live experience this time around? Any surprises in store?
It’s a fact that right now we are the best we’ve ever been and one of the best live bands in this country so I think, if the last show is anything to go by, these will be the funnest shows we’ve played so far. I love making music and recording but we only make these silly songs so we can play them in rooms in front of people we love and have a connection to the songs, so I genuinely cant wait.
BAKERS EDDY
I’M DOING BETTER EP TOUR
Friday 8th August – The Austral – Adelaide, SA
Friday 15th August – Buddys Bar – Sydney, NSW
Saturday 16th August – 7th Day Brewery – Brookvale, NSW
Thursday 21st August – Mo’s Desert Clubhouse – Gold Coast, QLD
Friday 22nd August – Black Bear Lodge – Brisbane, QLD
Friday 12th September – Shotkickers – Melbourne, VIC
For tickets and more information visit www.bakerseddy.com
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