Lo!

Compared to Converge, Breach and Old Man Gloom, Sydney's Lo! have just put out their punishing debut "Look & Behold" through Pelagic Records. With a headlining tour just kicking off now, we caught up with the band's bassist Adrian Shapiro to talk potatoes, Blackwire Records and the band's quest for metallic world domination.

Hey man, for the record please let us know your name, what you play in Lo! and the best show you’ve been to this year?

Hey man, my name is Adrian and I play bass and sing backups in Lo!.

For those you mightn’t have heard you guys before, how would you describe the band?

We’re a sludgey, metally, hardcorey, doomy, punky band with a hint of potato.

Can you tell us a bit about how the band came about?

The band’s beginnings really took place in our guitarist Carl’s bedroom. After his last band Omerata broke up he started writing some new pieces and demoed a bunch of tracks. There were a couple of different members before it locked in as the band it is today.

Your debut “Look & Behold” has just come out. What was the writing and recording process like for the record?

It was a really interesting process and not one that I’d done in any of my past bands. We pretty much recorded everything ourselves. Guitars and bass were done at home, drums were in a studio and all the vocals were done at home or in our rehearsal space. It was all really lo-fi and Carl engineered and mixed the whole album so it sounded exactly as we had it in our heads.

The band recently supported Doomriders at the Annandale. What was that show like?

Yeah we were pretty excited about the support for Doomriders. I think it was the first time a lot of people had seen us play so we went all out. Doomriders were incredible to watch and really good dudes. Nate can really do no wrong.

You also had the pleasure of supporting Russian Circles at Hermann’s Bar in September. Loudest show of the year?

Ha yeah, they were incredible. I’ve never seen so many pedals used in my life. Both guitarist and bass players pedal boards looked like the controls of a commercial airliners. Amazing to watch.

Lo! are doing a run of tour dates on the back of “Look & Behold”. What are you hoping for from those dates?

We’re hoping to play some killer shows and play in front of a lot of fresh heads. We’re all really happy with the album so stoked to get it out there and share.

What can people expect from a Lo! live show?

A lot of yelling, often a waist coat or special hat and some nice intensity.

Having all been involved in local music for many years now, what are your thoughts on the current state of the Sydney music scene?

I think the Sydney scene is a little flat at the moment. Venue-wise it’s getting tougher to find venues for up and comers to play. Luckily places like Blackwire exist who are putting on 3-4 shows a week and are creating a great spot for bands to play without having to go to the larger venues and try pull together shows.

After your October tour, what does the rest of the year and 2012 hold for Lo!? 

We’ve got a couple of shows booked through November in Syd and Melbourne so we’ll be playing around a fair bit. Next year we’re looking at heading over to Europe for a tour around late May and we’re talking about a couple of other tours around Australia too. I really want to get to New Zealand as well. I like those guys.

Okay cheers for your time dude!

No worries man. Hopefully see you at one of the shows!