A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to have a chat down the blower with Julian Hamilton (pictured, right, with his fellow band-mate, the delicious/spunky/very-yum-indeed Kim Moyes, left) from Aussie duo The Presets. The band have an unbelievable new album out (Apocalypso,) a new and very-much sold out Australian tour, and single (This Boy’s In Love) to promote. Whilst I managed to touch on said promotional topics, the conversation eventually lead into Julian declaring something as being “big watery shit.”
You’re just going to have to read on to find out what that shitful watery thing actually is.
Well hello there Julian.
Hello Adem, how are you?
Well, very well. Let’s talk!
Yes, let’s!
Congratulations on the new album Apocalypso, it’s very good Julian…
Thank you! We hoped it would be a good progression from Beams. You sort of hope you get better at this stuff over the years (laughs.)
I guess it’s the norm for an artist to say their most recent work is their best – so is Apocalypso better than Beams?
Um yeah, in all the musical and nerdy ways definitely, we’ve gotten better at production, mixing and all that other boring stuff, and also the song writing’s gotten better, the lyrics, that kind of crap.
How long did it take you to make the new record?
We spent so much time on the road touring for Beams, so once we were into it all it actually happened quite quickly. We did a bunch of scrappy ideas at the beginning of last year when we had a couple of weeks off, so when we finally got home at the end of last year, we pretty much finished the whole record in 3 months. We finished “My People” first and that was the hardest to get finished, but when we did everything just got a little bit easier from there.
Fairly quick process then.
“Talk Like That” and “Eucalyptus” were written and recorded, ready to go in a week. So yeah, definitely so.
A couple of weeks back you were lodged in between Mariah Carey and Vanessa Amorosi on the ARIA singles chart. Weird, or brilliant?
(Chuckles) It’s brilliant! That’s where we’ve always wanted to be! Imagine being lodged between those two… Seriously though, we’re definitely happy to be in the pop charts. We’ve not really changed what we do though, we just worked really hard for years and years, and I think eventually people kind of realised what we were doing was fun and that they wanted to enjoy it too.
Was there really ever any commercial radio support for any of the singles off Beams?
No, not at all.
What do you think has changed their minds?
I dunno what’s happened this time around. Everyone seems to like it though and we’re thrilled.
That diva-lodged single, “My People,” it’s quite the political number…
It’s one of those funny things where, you’re writing a song and have an idea of what it’s about in your head, but once it hits the ears of music fans, these kids can interpret it however they like, and I’m really happy that song has been adopted as a bit of a Presets party anthem for these kids that really just want to have a good time. And while it may have been written about the governments dealings with the refugee situation in Australia, it’s certainly taken on a separate meaning with the people who’ve made a connection with it.
On the new album there’s a track called “If I Know You” which is either a little bit gay, or a little bit White Town “Your Woman…”
It can be taken however you like really, and that’s the beauty of this stuff, we do really like to twist genders and twist ideas around, this way people really can interpret that however they want.
What was the meaning as you wrote it, though?
To have a girl break up song, just sung with balls.
Speaking of such things, that new clip of yours is a bit gay too Julian.
Well that’s the thing, we got all these pictures and treatments [from potential directors] for the video, pitching ideas like ‘boy and girl, running into the forest,’ ‘boy and girl, holding hands on a busy street,’ when FINALLY we got this idea that came along which said ‘two male models wrestling in milk.’ Got it, that’s our video! We weren’t really worried about being perceived as gay, we were more worried that people would think we were a little bit too into milk…
I can see the headlines now; The Presets – Fetish Pioneers.
Nice & milky!
Is it safe to say the clip was a little bit inspired by Pet Shop Boys’ DOMINO DANCING video?
We really love the Pet Shop Boys, pop music that’s really heavily inspired by dance music. Ultimately that’s what we’re doing as well. But I actually haven’t seen the clip!
Shock!
You’d have to ask the director as the whole idea came from him. I’m actually going to have to see this clip now.
Good to see you’ve been getting your shirt off of late too Jules…
I don’t like to but they make me do it because I’ve got such a good body.
I’m guessing that Kim’s not entirely sold on the idea though anymore?
Kim likes the idea of me getting my shirt off. (Laughs) Nah, there was indeed a time when we both used to do it, but he has really nice clothes now, so he’d just prefer to show those off instead.
Well, maybe he can wear some nice pants and unbutton his shirt all the way for us in the future?
I will pass on your advice Adem.
I would like that Jules, thank you. Now, have you guys got the next single sorted?
Yeah I think it’s gonna be “Talk Like That.” We’re getting new treatments for the video coming through, we got a really good idea which came through yesterday. Kim and I would be partying inside what would essentially be this big mouth. So we’re looking forward to that. It’s a good fun song.
So when Are You The One (a single from first album Beams) was splashed over virtually every television program in America, what were your thoughts?
Cash! (Rapturous laughter.) I immediately thought of all the cash we were going to make!
Were your expectations met?
Oh look, stuff like The OC and C.S.I. paid very well, definitely.
That’s right, one of the 368 television programs it was featured on was The OC…
It’s just one of those funny things. We were touring in America and found out that The OC were going play our song on the show. We were in Miami at the time and were really excited, so we raced back to the hotel after sound check to watch it, sat through the whole damn episode and there it was, all chopped up in the background with some blonde bimbo flailing her hair about.
An anti-climax?
Well, it was the last time I really made an effort just to hear my song on the television (laughs.)
You paid tribute to Madonna’s “Hung Up” with a remix called “Hung Down” a few years ago; do you know if she’s heard it?
No, I don’t actually.
I vaguely recall reading somewhere that she was a fan.
Oh really? Apparently will.I.am saw us play and really dug us, told someone he wanted to work with us even. Our rep also told us that Kanye West thinks we’re ‘ill.’
Ill!!!
Ill! I know that, in the world of pop, ‘ill’ means something is quite good, which is a stark contrast to its meaning in the world of medicine really.
Well Kanye’s just worked on the new Madonna album…
There you go! Maybe they all sat around together listening to The Presets before writing, being really ill (laughs.)
Speaking of pop, you’ve been arranging fruit and vegetables and ironing shirts for Popjustice of late; tell me Jules, what do you have against cherry tomatoes?
Cheery tomatoes, (very deep sigh.) I was worried that this would become an issue.
What, your vehemently passionate hatred towards them?
Very worried Adem.
There are probably dozens of cherry tomato fans out there who’ve since returned their copies of Apocalypso because of your animosity.
I dunno, they’re just… so small. I really like the big tomatoes. I guess I’ve just eaten too many cherry tomatoes which taste like shit; they just piss me off man.
Was there maybe a fruit or vegetable you preferred more than asparagus that wasn’t made available in your dressing room that particular night?
Big tomatoes. Real tomatoes with real flavour! Actually, that’s the best thing about touring Europe, because the tomatoes actually taste like tomatoes over there, and not like the watery, pasty white chemical shit we have here.
Our tomatoes aren’t as they used to be, are they?
They really aren’t. Our big tomatoes taste like over sized cherry tomatoes. Big watery shit.
All your cherry tomato bashing happened whilst on tour in the UK yes?
Yeah it did.
How did that tour work out for you then?
It was good, we’ve been to the UK about five times now, and this time around shows were selling out and things just sort of went a lot better for us, it was really good heaps of fun.
Has it been harder kicking things off over there?
Yeah, it’s quite interesting, we actually thought the UK would be a lot easier for us to crack, but it was initially harder for us over there than it was in the US.
It’s usually the other way around really.
Yeah exactly. It was pretty cool, they sort of took to us quite quickly in States.
What about V Festival; all went swimmingly yes?
It was fun, really cool. Gold Coast was the craziest. I dunno what it is about the Gold Coast but their crowd just knows how to go a bit crazy.
Let’s talk about Billy Corgan and his on-stage rant of abuse which was hurled at you. [Let me paint the picture for you. The Presets are playing to a mammoth crowd at V Festival in Perth. Billy Corgan from The Smashing Pumpkins (ask you parents,) annoyed that the music coming from the stage next door did not resemble self-indulgent, wanky guitar solos, launched into a tirade against The Presets, DJs and dance music in general, ranting about how the genre and its pioneers were all has-beens, that they and their sound were past it.]
Okay…
Did you bump into him at all behind the scenes?
No we didn’t. He had his own separate little area, away from the plebs I guess.
So no face to face confrontation?
No, no. But yeah we heard he’d done that at a couple of shows because we were playing at the same time, apparently we were too loud or some shit. To be honest, he was probably jealous because the crowd we had was evidently bigger than the crowd he had.
Interesting to hear him calling you has-beens… surely the irony is not lost in that statement?
Oh god no, definitely not lost! (Laughs.) Oh look, fuck, I don’t want to start some kind of war…
No, go on…
They had their thing and they were really good, I’m just a little bit sorry he felt he had to diss what we were doing in order to get some attention. We were having fun, the crowd was too, so whatever hey?
What about Roisin Murphy? Were you allowed to try on any of her hats?
I wanted to try on that white see-through top she was wearing! She had some cool outfits.
Maybe you should have asked to arrange them in order of your least favourite to most?
(More rapturous laughter.) She probably wouldn’t have a least favourite though really, and she’d be incredibly offended if anyone suggested they had one. You couldn’t really find the equivalent of a cherry tomato in her outfits even if you tried (laughter once more.)
Let’s talk about other peoples pop music. The most important thing I could ever ask you Jules is what your thoughts on Girls Aloud are?
I saw them everywhere on television while we were touring in the UK. But yeah man, they’re really cool.
What else?
Whenever I hear Maroon 5, I get really happy. Like, almost as if I’ve consumed too much cough medicine.
I can relate.
Exactly. Feeling really dreamy and, I guess, a bit gooish? You just feel kind of slow and happy, very intense.
Julian Hamilton from The Presets, good luck with touring and the album campaign, it’s been a pleasure.
Pleasure is all mine mate, thanks for the chat!
Fin.
