Brisbane outfit, The Gin Club, are celebrating their 10th anniversary with a national tour that brings them to Mojos this Saturday, December 21, with help from Medicine Hat Trio, Timothy Nelson & The Infidels and The Reductors.
Ten years is a long time to do anything.
In musical terms, playing in the same band for a decade is equivalent to a lifetime. Brisbane natives The Gin Club have just reached this milestone and to celebrate they’re doing what they do best – performing around the country. Multi-instrumentalist, Brad Pickersgill, was kind enough to take the time to answer a couple of questions and reflect on his band’s journey over the past decade…
By JAMES NICOLI
So, 10 years! Did you ever think you would be celebrating your 10th anniversary?
Speaking personally, my original goal for being in a band was to have fun, play some shows around town, and be respected, if not liked. After six months of that, I had to seriously re-evaluate said goals. I think that we’re all a little surprised by how fast it’s flown by, but not surprised that we’re still together. In the end, we are a bunch of best friends all having a lot of fun.
What have been some of the major highlights over the past decade?
I’m sure everyone has their own, but one of the most memorable for us early on was landing a support for Tim Rogers at The Troubadour. The funny thing about that show was that it was a showcase for Tim’s upcoming solo album so he was on first, to let the record industry boffins get to bed early… we were to go on afterwards and keep things chugging. I remember we were all nervous as hell, particularly Ben (Salter) and Scott (Regan) as they grew up idolising Tim. It was one of those nights where everything went right. We knew if we played some Stones covers we might have a chance of getting him to join in, and sure enough the night culminated in Tim joining us on stage for Sweet Virginia and Shine A Light. There have been many other highlights over the years, but to me that night was a turning point for the band.
Do you guys have anything special planned for the tour?
We’ve just this week discussed trying to get some special guests to join us. Ben is currently at the selection table and running the ruler over all the candidates to assess match fitness and availability. I don’t want to give anything away but we’re really looking forward to re-connecting with all our friends interstate. With Ben, Adrian (Stoyles) and Gus (Agars) in Melbourne these days, it really is a second home to us now. There will be an obvious emphasis on playing stuff from the first album, plus the usual diatribe.
I understand you’ll also be re-releasing your debut album on vinyl?
I’m a bit of vinyl heathen, but we’ve done it with the last couple of releases, and we’ve been really surprised at how it’s been received. There’s a lot of retrospection in The Gin Club, so re-releasing the first album on vinyl to celebrate seemed to be a natural thing, and a shameless attempt at profiteering, a bit like when Marvel released five variant covers of X-Men No.1 back in 1992. Can’t believe I fell for that one.
With seven permanent members and two part-timers, I’m guessing there’s been some memorable moments over the years?
Touring is great. Basically you get to travel around and do what it is you love. We’re all a little older and more… stable these days, but in the early days, it was full on. Each night would be somebody’s turn to have a meltdown of some description. We have a saying in The Gin Club though, ‘never two in a row’.
And perhaps some trying ones as well?
Dale Peachey playing classical guitar in a six-bunk hostel room at 6.30am the morning after a gig comes to mind. The good thing is, we all know each well enough to know when to let each person have their ‘alone time’. Even if that means forced solitary confinement.
So, I have to ask, do you guys still drink as much gin as you did when you first started out?
No we don’t. It was never a deliberate thing, but at that time we were all going through our own funks, and it just so happened we ended up consuming a lot of the stuff. These days, we’re a much more… diverse and discerning group.
And finally, where do you see the band in another 10 years?
Hopefully still together, still making music and having fun. The best days are ahead!
