Alternative dance trio Crooked Colours are the Perth band blurring the lines between dance and indie. Band members Philip Slabber, Leon Debaughn and Liam Merrett-Park have been drawing comparisons with The xx and alt-J for their sophisticated and brooding take on anthemic electronica.
Signed to Aussie dance label Sweat It Out, the boys made an immediate impact with impressive EP In Your Bones in 2014 before capturing attention of critics with debut album Vera. Containing Platinum certified single "Flow" and huge hit "I Hope You Get It", Vera saw them team up with Melbourne rapper Ivan Ooze and was subsequently nominated for Best Independent Dance/Electronic Album at the AIR Awards.
This early success set the stage for the release of sophomore record Langata which peaked at number 1 on the Australian Dance Album ARIA Charts and featured killer tracks "Do It Like You", "I'll Be There" and "Hold On".
Last year saw the release of their latest album Tomorrows – thirteen tracks of post-COVID optimism, resilience and hope put to chilled house beats. Brimming with confidence, the sun kissed sound is packed full with summer vibes and instant euphoria is guaranteed with every listen.
Crooked Colours return to the U.K. in May, playing headline dates in Manchester, Nottingham and London – CLICK HERE to book your tickets with Gigantic right now! We caught up with the boys to talk about how the band started, their latest LP Tomorrows and the contrast between the party scene here and Down Under.
How did you all meet and start Crooked Colours?
Leon and Phil met surfing around the Southwest of Australia and realised they both liked the same bands and started making some party music for our mates. They wanted a drummer for live shows and met this guy on Mushroom Mountain who said he had a mate who could drum. We all linked up after that and that’s how we started!
Indie dance / electropop exploded in the mid 00’s and so many great Australian acts have been making a massive impact here in the U.K over the past twenty years. Which have been your favourites, and who do you take your influences from?
The bands we took inspiration in are Van She, Cut Copy, Miami Horror, The Presets, Daft Punk, Digitalism. Literally, just writing those names, I had to put them on to finish the rest of this interview.
What’s been the response of U.K. fans when you play shows here? And which countries audiences party hardest when you play?
You guys go hard during the week! That’s the sickest thing, it doesn’t matter if it’s a weekend show or midweek show, it’s all party in the U.K. Kids get munted in Australia and are just there for the party, but you guys are there for the music and the party.
Last year saw the release of your third record Tomorrows and it’s such a euphoric burst of optimism. Was this a positive reaction following the lockdown days?
It was more of trying to capture that mindset while in lockdown. Forcing ourselves to be positive when it didn’t feel like there was any end. We didn’t know what the landscape of the industry was going to look like, so we just hoped it was positive.
Did COVID have a negative impact on the band? That must have been such a tough time.
Yeah absolutely! We’re calling this the rebuild season.
Your blissed out beats and chilled sound are perfect for summer vibes. Have you got any plans for festival appearances?
Festivals are so damn fun to play, really hoping to make it onto the U.K festival scene soon! So far, we haven’t been blessed with the chance.
And what else can we expect from Crooked Colours in 2023? Hitting the studio again any time soon?
Always in the studio! We don’t even know ourselves what the rest of the year will look like, but we never stop working on music so a few releases is a possibility!
📆 May
05/05 Crooked Colours – Gorilla, Manchester
06/05 Crooked Colours – The Bodega, Nottingham
13/05 Crooked Colours – Village Underground, London
Crooked Colours tickets are currently available with Gigantic.