Mario Kart and Banter with Eliza & The Delusionals
☆ interview by Abby Strangward ☆
Though forming somewhere close to five years ago, Eliza & The Delusionals feel like they’re only just getting started.
The Gold-Coast born project, led by front-woman Eliza Klatt (with Ashley (Tex) Martin, Kurt Skuse and Ruby Lee) recently exploded in the United States with their 2019 breakout hit, Just Exist. The track racked up over a million streams in just a week - shocking the band, who insist it’s still “so weird, and hard to wrap (their) heads around”. One listen and it’s easy to see why the song achieved such monumental success so quickly - their vulnerable song-writing, paired with their anthemic brand of indie-rock, has cemented their place as one of Australia’s most promising rising bands. And they’re not wasting any of that momentum, either - jumping headfirst into their first US tour, supporting Silversun Pickups on their west-coast leg.
Hinting (potentially) at a debut album in the works, and clearly brimming with excitement and gratitude for her fans, we chat to Eliza below about everything from the band’s shifting song-writing process to distractions on tour (hint - it’s a lot of Mario Kart and Nintendo Switch).
★ Hi Eliza! Lovely to (sort of) meet you. Tell me a little about your band, Eliza & The Delusionals. You formed about five years ago now - how did you come together? Thank you! And likewise :-)
It's crazy - five years goes so fast. It really feels like we're only getting started. As for how we all came together - Kurt and I have known each other since we were kids, and we've always lived down the road from each other. I met Tex through a mutual friend at University when we needed a guitarist for a few shows on the East Coast of Australia and he ended up becoming a permanent member. Ruby was actually playing in a band that opened for us at a single launch show - we thought she was so cool we had to ask her to join.
★ You’re a Gold-Coast born project - how would you describe the local scene there? Especially compared to other Australian (and now American!) cities you’ve travelled to? I think the interesting thing about Australia is that every major city has it's own vibe for shows. As for the Gold Coast, I think there's really a fresh and growing scene there. We don't have a lot of venues and we sadly saw a few of our favourites close down last year (RIP Shark Bar), but the venues that are still going are really doing their best to put upcoming bands on bigger stages, which is so cool to see. You'd be surprised how many good up and coming artists there are coming out of the Gold Coast area!
★ Tell me a bit about your song-writing process - I’ve noticed your lyrics tend to have a lot of meaning and emotion behind them. In the past the lyrics have predominately come from myself — and we've moved onto a more collaborative process now. But for songs like 'Just Exist', it really just comes from a feeling. Not just the lyrics but the guitar parts and the melodies all relate to the original feeling that the song was written about. Most of the older songs and some new ones have come from myself writing them on an acoustic guitar and then filled out together as a band in rehearsals and studio, but a lot of the stuff we're working on at the moment has been much more collaborative. It's an exciting new direction for us.
“I never feel anxious or scared sharing my lyrics... I think it's more difficult to talk about the meaning of a song.”
★ Do you find it easy to be vulnerable in song-writing? Is it a challenge for you, or more of a cathartic process? Songwriting is such an interesting thing for me. It really is a vulnerable thing, because you're putting your purest thoughts down into something that you happily share with the world. I never feel anxious or scared sharing my lyrics though. I think it's more difficult to talk about the meaning of a song then it is to actually sing or write down the lyrics. I definitely feel lucky to be able to write songs though. I don't know how I would handle my emotions or life events if I couldn't do it.
★ Your breakout hit, Just Exist, has skyrocketed in the American charts & racked up over a million streams on Spotify alone. Were you expecting this kind of response? Did you finish writing that song and think, this is it? We really weren't. It was such a shock to us, especially being from a small town on the other side of the world. Up until Kurt and I visited New York in December we were sort of living the experience through comments and messages on social media. It was so weird and hard to wrap our heads around - but we couldn't be more grateful. So thank you to everyone who comments and messages us, it makes us feel more apart of it all. I think when the song was finished and in the studio I definitely felt a different energy and excitement from it. It's our favourite release to date.
★ Describe the ideal scene for someone listening to that song. Where are they, who are they with, what are they doing? The cool thing about writing and releasing music - and I've noticed it especially for Just Exist - is that everyone can make their own context of it. I've read so many reviews and comments of everyone listening to it in their own way, and I think that's really special.
★ You’ve just been picked up to open for Silversun Pickups on the West Coast leg of their American tour - insane! How are you feeling right about now? It really is insane! I've been listening to the band since high school. I bought their album 'Swoon' when I was 14. It really is a dream come true, and we couldn't be more excited.
★ What do you tend to get up to on tours, that doesn’t involve music? A lot of banter. We can pretty easily entertain ourselves with banter! I also never leave without my Nintendo Switch. There's a lot of Fifa and Mario Kart on the long drives and plane trips.
★ You’ve released a stack of singles and an EP since 2016 - are there any plans floating around for an album? We can't say much - we have a project in the works, and we can't wait to share it with you very very soon!
“I don’t think we are in a popularity race with anyone but ourselves - we just want to release music that is honest and comes naturally.”
★ It feels like in the industry the focus has turned to singles over the last few years, possibly reflecting an online craving for quantity and speed. How do you feel about this? Do you think albums still have a place in the music world, or is that place fading? Definitely! We love albums and full pieces of work that you can listen to from top to bottom and get lost in! I think the whole rush for quantity is definitely a thing based around relevance which can either be really good or bad for some artist, but to be honest we are just really set on releasing music that is honest and comes naturally. I don’t think we are in a popularity race with anyone but ourselves, and we just enjoy keeping each other on our toes and making music that we love - and hopefully our fans do too!
★ Lastly - what do you hope to leave fans feeling after a live performance? Hopefully people can come to our shows regardless if they know who we are or not and by the end of it they can leave feeling like they were apart of something and can hold on to it as a positive memory!