SXSW Watchlist: Red Riders

Aussie band Red Riders are the latest and greatest to get our SXSW Watchlist treatment.  The band is not the first to make the leap from the Australian market, but the country hasn’t had much to talk about as of late.  Influences of the band are cited as mid 80s fellow Aussie acts like The Go-Betweens, The Triffids, and The Church.  Follow the jump to read a brief interview with lead singer Alex Grigg, check some dates and grab a tune.

ATH: Your biography states that Sydney is “trying to get rid of you”.  Can you explain that?

Alex Grigg: It’s not just Sydney, it’s the whole country.  One part of it’s on fire, somewhere else is flooding, half of it’s an uninhabitable desert, and every second animal is poisonous.  Australia is this ancient place that wants to be left alone.  I guess that’s why I find it inspiring, cos it can be so idyllic, but also brutal.  And, well, who doesn’t want to be left alone most of the time?

ATH: Is this your first time to tour the states?  If so, what are some things you’re looking forward to doing or eating/drinking?

AG: Yeah it’s our first time there.  I mainly wanna do all the cliched things like see who dies of a heart attack first from eating as many square burgers as possible, go rollerblading in string bikinis and fake tan down Santa Monica Boulevard, maybe stop for a drink with Sheryl Crow, re-enact all our favorite scenes from Do The Right Thing in  Brooklyn.  Just the usual stuff.  One of my pals was telling me that there’s this amazing beer with some fancy German name that I gotta try in Austin.  That and crawfish.  Also, I work at a second hand joint called Cream in Syndey and apparently there’s a place called Cream Vintage in Austin, so I wanna check that place out too.

ATH: What’s another Aussie act that you guys are really into?

AG: We love a lot of older Australian bands like The Church (their Persia EP is amazing) and The Go-Betweens, but there’s this band Mercy Arms who just put out their debut album and they’re really great.  They write really pretty songs, but then bury them in a kind of hazey, shambolic noise, which is exactly how I like my pop music to be.  The only bummer is apparently they broke up.

ATH: We’re posting your song “My Love is Stronger than Your Love”.  What’s the story behind the song?

AG: I wrote that song at a time when a lot of relationships around me that I thought would last forever started to break up.  It’s not really a life changing sentiment, just me kinda dealing with that junk in a song.  We were trying pretty hard to channel The Stone Roses in the chorus too.

SXSW Dates:

Thursday 19th March – Official Showcase @ Friends 11pm

Friday 20th March – Aussie BBQ SXSW @ Brush Square Park 12:50pm

Saturday 21st March – Day Show @ Bayou Lounge 1:15pm

[audio: https://austintownhall.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/05-my-love-is-stronger-than-your-lov.mp3]

Download: Red Riders – My Love is Stronger Than Your Love [MP3]