It’s been a rollercoaster couple of years for Sydney trio Middle Kids. Since their debut single “Edge Of Town” captured the nation’s attention in 2016, the alt-rock architects — comprising lead woman Hannah Joy, her husband/bassist Tim Fitz, and their good pal, drummer Harry Day — haven’t looked back.
Middle Kids have since won over international audiences and slayed support slots for the likes of Ryan Adams, The War On Drugs, and Cold War Kids. Released earlier this month, their debut LP ‘Lost Friends’ is a riveting collection of raw and intimate vignettes of everyday life, cocooned in rich riffs and anthemic choruses.
We caught up with bassist Tim during the band’s national tour, and ahead of their massive North American headline dates, to chat about world domination, and their new release.
Best Before: The response to your performance on Jimmy Kimmel has been phenomenal — how was that experience for you?
Tim Fitz: That’s nice to hear, we never really know how to judge that kind of thing. We had a really fun time of it, but obviously, it’s a pretty abstract experience playing on a big TV show in LA. It ends up being as good as you make it, like, if you can take some friends and find time to joke around together and make it a fun show. In some ways, it is so banal, and in others, it’s a wild experience. Maybe it’ll make sense in the future.
Middle Kids, along with a handful of other alternative Aussie rock artists, are starting to break through overseas. What do you think it is about the current sound coming out of this country that’s being received so well by international audiences?
I think maybe the Australian music industry is just getting better at marketing or something? There’s always been cool stuff happening in Australia, so maybe it’s just an internet thing. We are super stoked that it is happening though; we love that we get to travel all around playing our tunes to actual fans, it’s madness.
Your new single “Bought It” is out now. What’s the story behind that track?
That track started with Hannah experimenting with this Mellotron guitar pedal that made her guitar sound like an orchestra, that’s that opening drone line. Then she wrote pretty much the whole song over that, adding all the guitar parts and bass. Tim had some lyrics for a song he was writing that we threw in the bridge. It’s a bit of a ‘night out gone wrong’ song.
The video for “On My Knees” is amazing — how much input do you generally have in the visual aspect of your artistry?
Thankyou! That’s a fun one. We probably struggle with videos, to be honest. Tim directed our first video for “Edge of Town”, and then we’ve sometimes filmed our own concepts, sometimes gone with a director’s idea. Sometimes a video comes and we’re like, “Awesome!”. Sometimes we get the final product and we think it doesn’t really match the song, or add to it. An LA filmmaker got in touch with us for the “On My Knees” clip and she pretty much just did the whole thing, though we made a few suggestions here and there.
The production on the album is also incredible. What elements do you think Peter Katis most helped spotlight?
Thanks! Well, we had recorded it really raw, mostly at home. Peter Katis— wow, so much respect for that guy— definitely brought a lot of clarity to the songs, and he is a genius at creating moments of pulsing energy and beauty.
Your tracks are sewn together with visceral, emotionally-charged choruses, that still feel raw and intimate when listening through the recordings. How did you work on capturing that in the studio?
It’s raw and intimate in the studio because our studio is our house and it’s just a big mess of cables and instruments and microphones. We just recorded what felt warm and true. A lot of that comes from Hannah’s energy, her songs, the way she writes parts and chooses her guitar tones.
You have quite diverse musical backgrounds. What elements of your individual songwriting do you think tie them all together so smoothly?
It’s just sensitivity probably, and submission. We all submit to Hannah’s song and try to find what the best thing for the song is — what will make it feel beautiful, cool, energetic.
“In some ways it is so banal, and in others it’s a wild experience.”
Did your songwriting process change much from your EP?
Hardly at all! Hannah writes the bulk of the stuff, Tim produces it and runs the recording sessions (with some help from our friend Phan Sjarif), Harry tears up the drums.
What artists were you listening to while writing the record?
That was like nine months ago now, so it’s pretty hard to remember! Probably The Band.
You’ve got a big tour around the corner — how are you gearing up for that?
We feel like we’ve always got a big tour around the corner! It’s important for our band that we get coffee together and strengthen our friendship before and during a tour; it really is important and makes the work more fun. We also have a bunch of rehearsals to make sure the songs are feeling powerful and raw.
MIDDLE KIDS | AUSTRALIAN TOUR DATES
Wed 23 May – Corner Hotel – Melbourne, VIC
Fri 25 May – Karova Lounge – Ballarat, VIC
Sat 26 May – Corner Hotel – Melbourne, VIC
Sun 27 May – Sydney Opera House (VIVID LIVE) – Sydney, NSW
Sun 27 May – Splendour In The Grass – Byron Bay, NSW
And check out ‘Lost Friends’ in full here: