Postblue

Byron Bay's Postblue are a band fast on the rise. Since forming earlier this year, the band has gone on to play with the likes of Basement, The Swellers and Hopeless, as well as releasing their new EP "Lap Year". The EP was liked so much by Rest Assured Records that they decided they wanted to release it on vinyl, after only one listen. In January, the band will be doing a run of East Coast dates with Newcastle's Distance, and we caught up with the band's vocalist and guitarist Riley McEvoy to discuss the new EP and the tour.

Start off by stating your name, your role in Postblue, and what you are hoping to get for Christmas this year?

My name is Riley, I play guitar and sing for Postblue, and I would like a new advent calender for Christmas.

Can you give us a bit of a brief rundown on the history of the band up until this point for those who might be unfamiliar with you?

In about January this year, Jordan (original guitarist/bassist), Joe and I wanted to start a hardcore band in the vein of Blacklisted. We jammed that a bit but it didn't really work, so we recruited Alex and started a more 'post-hardcore' outfit. We did a demo in about May, played a bunch of cool shows, Jordan left and Liam joined, we put out an EP. And here we are.

With 2012 winding down very quickly, what has been some of your highlights for the year, both personally and with the band?

I figured out how to use my reverb pedal as a makeshift loop station.

Earlier this month you released your debut EP “Lap Year”. What was the writing and recording process like for the EP?

We started writing 'Lap Year' in June with Jordan still playing bass. We did a few pre-production recordings, 3 of the songs made it to Lap Year, one of them is going onto a US compilation, I believe. When Liam joined we wrote 2 more songs that we were happy with and then went and recorded with our drummer Joe and his friend Aaron, in Joe's bedroom. It was really laid back and only took us about 2 days to track everything.

How has the reception been to the EP so far?

It has been amazing. I honestly didn't expect half as many people to like it, partially because we released it two months after recording it, so the songs were becoming stale, to me at least.

Do you have a favourite song on the EP? If so, why that song?

Not really. If I could only show somebody one song, it'd probably be 'Sheets', or 'Drown Me'.

You originally released it digitally, with plans for a CD run, and now Rest Assured Records have announced they will be releasing it on vinyl. How did that deal come into place?

We released it on a Tuesday, I got an email from Ryan on Wednesday. He was inquiring as to how we were releasing the EP. I told him we were just going to get CD artwork printed and burn CDs, he suggested doing a 7". It was really unexpected, but a great surprise, that's how we wanted to release it originally, but it is not cheap.

With vinyl having gone through a bit of a resurgence in the last few years, do you feel that is the best method of releasing your music?

This is the way I see it, nobody really buys CDs anymore, if you do, you just import it to iTunes or whatever and that's the end of it. With a record, you have a cooler version of the artwork, a bigger physical version and they usually come with download cards anyway.

In January you will be doing a run of shows on the East Coast with Newcastle’s Distance. What are you looking forward to the most about those shows?

Really looking forward to playing new cities. We've only really played in Brisbane and Byron. I'm excited to complain about the heat to new and interesting people.

Is there any show in particular that you feel will be a standout?

They all sound great, support/venue-wise, but if I had to choose, I'd probably say the Blackwire show with Luca Brasi, Milhouse and Harbourer.

What are some of the fondest memories that you have with the band so far?

A few months ago, we played at X&Y in Brisbane with The Hawaiian Islands, Headaches and The Gun Runners. It was a great show. Joe and I went to get our cars so we could pick up our gear from the venue, only to find they had both just been towed. $880 and a terrifying truck ride later, we had our cars back.

What is the best show you’ve played this year? And the best show you’ve attended this year?

I think my favourite show was when we played with Hopeless in Brisbane, I'm not sure why, but that's the only show that is coming to mind. Best show/s I've attended would probably be Blacklisted at Mt.Gravatt and Basement at X&Y.

Who are some bands that you have been enjoying lately that we should be checking out?

All I have been listening to for the past two weeks is Self Defense Family, Daylight with occasional Alanis Morissette (only that Jagged Little Pill record).

What are your top five releases of 2012?

Joyce Manor - 'Of All Things You Will Soon Grow Tired'

Self Defense Family - 'Iceland'

Title Fight - 'Floral Green'

Blacklisted - 'So, You Are A Magician?'

Basement - 'Colourmeinkindness'

Do you have any certain goals that you would like to achieve with this band?

I just want to play more shows, and record more songs and gain a cult following.

What are the band’s plans for 2013 onwards?

We've got the Distance/Postblue tour early January, hoping to have our next venture already partially booked before we get home from that one.

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

If anyone wants to pre-order the record, head over to www.restassuredrecords.com on the 21st of December. Huge S/O to feelings.