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NATIONS BY THE RIVER |
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 On this page:
*Nations By The River Interview (with Edo Kahn)
*Nations By The River Discography (titles available from Whammo)
*Nations By The River Tour dates
NATIONS BY THE RIVER - THE WHAMMO INTERVIEW - JUNE 8, 2004
The story is now part of Australian music folklore: two bands are trapped in a Newcastle parking lot while members and crew frantically search for the keys to the tour van. Amid the confusion, members from The Sleepy Jackson and Gelbison decide to kill time by jamming a few tunes. From those humble beginnings a new act is born: Nations By The River; an act that explores the latent desire for these acts to write full-blown rustic country tunes. It doesn't take long for the idea to develop into solid line-up: Luke Steele (Sleepy Jackson), Edo Kahn (Gelbison), Nadav Kahn (Gelbison) and Ohad Rein (Old Man River). As it happens, both Gelbison and The Sleepy Jackson are on the same label, so common sense prevails and the record company gives the new act the freedom to record a debut album; Holes In The Valley. Rather than creating the type of intricate studio tracks that both bands are famous for, the fresh combo seek to tap into those initial raw jams and the result is one of the most human efforts ever released by a major label. When I use the term 'human' I refer to a raw approach that celebrates imperfection instead of smoothing over every slightly off-key moment. There's something very refreshing about Holes In The Valley and Nations By The River's resistance to the temptation of over-dubs and studio trickery. But as I prepared to interview Edo Kahn, my eyes were set on the greatest goal a music writer can ever hope to achieve: an exclusive...
Whammo: So, you know how you lost the keys to the van?
Edo: And found them.
Whammo: You lost and found the keys. And it was also you who sat down and started having the first few jams with Luke?
Edo: Yes.
Whammo: So, what i propose is this: that the whole thing was a vicious plot of yours the whole time.
Edo: Na.
Whammo: No? Oh, that would have been a great story if I was correct. I was looking for an exclusive there.
Edo: Do you think I'd admit it if I planned it?
Whammo: Ahhh.
Edo: No, I didn't, but I did opt out very quickly. I said "no, I'm not looking for the keys, I'm just going to go and jam."
Whammo: Not that you're going to admit it, but if it was a vicious plot, well done.
Edo: (laughs) Thanks.
Whammo: It seems to be a great avenue for Gelbison and Sleepy Jackson members to explore some of the more rusty country tendencies.
Edo: Yeah, that was the aim: no pressure, three days, just wack it out and keep it stripped back as much as we could. It was meant to be even more stripped back, but once we were in the studio we got a bit carried away. I guess for us, it's still pretty minimalist.
Whammo: Both acts are well versed in recording so it's not surprising that, once you got in there, you wanted to add a few more garnishes.
Edo: We did the whole thing in three days but the label said 'this doesn't sound complete", so we went back and tried to fix up all the dud harmonies. We listened back to the new mixes and we just thought it sounded crap. It was more in-tune but the vibe of the first three days; we just couldn't really replicate it again. We went a full circle, trying to fix things we thought were imperfect but went back and realised that. that was what we liked about it. It's honest.
Whammo: I liked the fact that it was a bit raw or rusty around the edges.
Edo: That was how it was supposed to be: a heartfelt thing. Sometimes in the studio, it's hard to get that living room vibe. The studio can sterilize things sometimes, but I think the intimacy of it still translates.
Whammo: At one stage, a few years ago, I used to tell people "I like all music except country and western".
Edo: (laughs)
Whammo: But lately, with Aussie bands like The Rectifiers and Disaster plan, I've started to love it. It's my new passion.
Edo: Then you get into the Johnny Cash country or Dylan country and there's a whole world there. It's not Tamworth country music kind of stuff.
Whammo: i think my mind changed when I discovered that Johnny Cash was basically punk. Then I started to think 'hang on, this can be cool'.
Edo: And it's so dark and deep. have you heard the Jillian Welsh record? You should check that out.
Whammo: It's a bit hard when I have to listen to everything, but the good thing about getting into it so late is the depth there; stuff I don't have a clue about. I've got all that to look forward to.
Edo: There's stuff that I used to love that I just find unlistenable now and other music I've just started to love.
Whammo: Are we maturing?
Edo: (laughs) I think we're just aging; not necessarily maturing. You're just constantly in flux. You can't help it. Every time you take a breath in, you change somehow.
Whammo: I know, for you, you've finally put the Iron Maiden collection aside now.
Edo: Actually, the weird thing is, I never used to be into heavy music and as I've gotten older, I'm much more into Slayer and stuff now. I never used to be into Nirvana and now I get Nirvana.
Whammo: So, you're a late metal bloomer.
Edo: I never used to listen to Sabbath.
Whammo: Oh dude! Sabbath are one of the building blocks of civilization.
Edo: (laughs)
Whammo: When you've got a bass-player called Geezer, everything just falls into place.
Edo: Mm, that makes sense.
Whammo: So, maybe the next Nations By The River album could be a Black Sabbath country covers album.
Edo: I'm thinking that it's time to do a protest record that's like Dylan meets Aphex Twin.
Whammo: (laughs) Come To conscientious Daddy? It could work. This album is exactly what I expected because I know Luke's more country moments. And when Gelbison are in a more bluesy mode...
Edo: We've got more of that on the new stuff. It's polarised. Half of it is mellow and a bit more country-ish and the half is much harder (laughs). It's looking like we're going to put out two EPs simultaneously. One is like full-on electro punk and the other is kind of mellow.
Whammo: I'm looking forward to that because my philosophy in life is: fuck shit up.
Edo: I like that.
Whammo: Well, I reckon you've gotta keep kicking against the pricks and scratch away at the foundations of society so that it'll fall over get re-built properly. I think a sense of invention is there in the music of The Sleepy Jackson and Gelbison. So, I'm not surprised that you're planning to change your direction.
Edo: We just couldn't go soft without going hard, you know? We tried to commit to one thing and it just wasn't us. What we love doing is integrating everything.
Whammo: Did you just say 'we couldn't go soft without going hard'? Fuck, we're quotable today! So, are you thinking of this band as a quick side-project or a long-term thang?
Edo: We definitely have more songs for the next record. I think they're just going to get better. Everyone's got a strong songwriting ability. It's quite effortless at this point. That's probably because a side-project is like casual sex. I think, as long as we're friends and we've got time to see each other, whenever we're in a room together we'll end up making music anyway. I can see it progressing. I definitely feel like there's good potential. |
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 NATIONS BY THE RIVER
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cd
In a deserted Newcastle parking lot, after the mysterious disappearance of a set of car keys, members of Gelbison and The Sleepy Jackson gave birth to a new project, Nations By The River. Faithful to humble beginnings (Edo and Luke jamming with a couple of acoustic guitars), the album's finest moments are minimal acoustic wanderings that benefit from raw vocal performances. The combination of Rein, Steele and the Kahn brothers results in strong ditties communicating heartbreak and longing, in true country tradition. Of course, that's where tradition ends and the term 'alt country' begins. After a wonky start to the tracklisting, the strengths of Steele and the Kahns begin to emerge. You'll find the Sleepy-style choral-edged falsetto (Cracking Up, Kids World) combined with dramatic electric atmos (Heroin) that reminded me of Gelbison's early EP Metal Detector. It's the quiet moments that most impressed me, but the camaraderie in the studio can be infectious, as with the final track We Dance Every Day. This is an album for urban country fans that love the most human elements of music, and for the duration of this LP the listener rarely feels separated from the musicians, who seem to be playing only a few feet away; a rare achievement in a world obsessed by digital technology and robotic musicianship. Initially, I found the off-key moments of this album to be a little too abrasive but the more I listen to Holes In The Valley, the more I suspect that it may actually be a work of flawed beauty; and aren't they the most interesting kind?
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NATIONS BY THE RIVER; TOUR DATES
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*dates TBA |
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