Break Even

One of the most popular hardcore bands in Australia right now, Perth's Break Even, are currently on tour in Europe (well, half of them anyway) with Your Demise, Stick To Your Guns and Letlive, and are in the writing stages for their next album. The band will be playing the annual Push Over festival in March, and we caught up with the band's guitarist Steffen to discuss the festival, the band's new album and nude stage dives.

Start off by stating your name, what you play in Break Even and your favourite sporting code?

Steffen Sciuto, Guitar/Vox. I like skateboarding kinda.

Who are the band’s that have had the most influence on the band’s overall sound?

As a band we all have such different yet similar tastes in music. Overall, I think our music is a combination of 100's of different bands mashed together.

You are leaving in a few days for your second European tour, this time with Your Demise, Stick To Your Guns and Letlive. What do you think this will be like compared to the first time you toured there?

Firstly, Perri and I have both stayed behind for work commitments and to get busy writing our next record. Two close friends of ours have kindly filled in for us. I think the response has been good so far, Mawds says it has been going great! Hopefully more people get a chance to see the band as they are playing higher on the bill to last time.

Did you ever imagine when you started the band that you would be touring Europe and that people over there would be interested in the band?

No, not at all! We started this band to have fun and blow off steam!

The band’s debut album “The Bright Side” has been out for fair while now, and I have seen nothing but positive reviews for it. Did you expect this to happen when you recorded the album?

No, not really. Our heads were “In The Clouds" when writing and recording "The Bright Side". I think we had more important things to think of at the time.

Anchors Aweigh Records released the album on vinyl. Why did the band decide that the album should be released on vinyl?

We all collect vinyl pretty much. The idea of having your own record on vinyl seemed pretty cool.

I have heard that you guys will be heading overseas to record a new album in a few months time; can you tell us a bit about that?

Yeah the plan is to head over to New York to work with producer/engineer Mike Sapone. He has worked with Brand New, Taking Back Sunday, Crime in Stereo, and Public Enemy just to name a few. Hopefully it all happens, it will be a great learning experience for all of us.

What are the new songs sounding like? How would you compare them to the previous album?

I think the newer songs are sounding more mature. It's just an overall step up from the previous record. But still a good balance of hard and soft songs.

Will you be playing any new songs live in the coming months?

Hopefully! When the boys get back from Europe we will be practicing 7 days a week! So fingers crossed!

When do you think we can expect to see the album being released?

I think it’s looking like November 2011.

Coming up in March you will be playing the annual all ages Push Over Festival, what are you looking forward to the most about this?

I’m too sure about the set-up but hopefully playing outdoors.

What do you think the benefits are of the festival having such a diverse line up?

It gives punters a chance to see a good number of different bands in one day and the have a diverse musical experience.

The band has toured fairly frequently since the release of The Bright Side. What does the band try to do with the set lists to avoid playing the same set over and over?

We try to write different intros and interludes for every tour. We just like to make a lot of noise between songs really.

Back in December you were a part of the massive No Sleep Til Festival, what were those shows like for the band?

They were awesome, another great learning curve for us all. It was great to see how it all works on bigger stages. The response was so good considering we were opening most shows.

Do you think being from Perth has had much of an influence on the band?

Yeah I think being from W.A. alone has influenced the band a lot. Perth has always exported pretty weird bands.

Who are your favourite bands to play shows with and why?

We have way too many friends in bands that we play with to name them all. Any show at The Arthouse is generally a good time.

What is your favourite and least favourite thing about being in a band?

Drama.

Are there any bands that you haven’t played a show with yet but you would like to do so?

Personally I would love to support The Bronx and/or Fucked Up.

Who is the best band you’ve seen live so far this year?

I wish I got to see Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. We had tickets, that was the thing - Missed out due to being way too indecisive.

Who are some new bands you have been impressed by lately that we should be checking out?

I really like The Soft Pack. Good music.

Is Mawds planning on doing any more nude stage dives anytime soon?

I hope not, haha.

Thanks for doing the interview, any last words or shout outs?

Thankyou. Hopefully see you all at Push Over!

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