Quick Six With Split System
All photos also by Dougal Gorman
Hello, it’s me, Dougal.
I’m back once more for another installation of ‘QUICK SIX’, the laziest yet most efficient style of interviewing I could come up with. This instalment features the red-hottest rockers in the Southern Hemisphere, Split System. Hailing more specifically from Melbourne, Australia, the band has shockingly only been around since 2022. This means either one of two things: (1) they’re either con artists or (2) they’re bloody-hard-working talented artists. I first laid ears and eyes on Split System (aka ‘Splitties’) last year at Nag Nag Nag Festival, where they had the place in absolute shambles. There were bodies slipping and sliding all over beer drenched tiles. Despite some mutual connections I didn’t officially meet the whole band until a backstage encounter at Binic Festival, in godforsaken France! That day was the start of there twenty-frickeneight day tour across Europe, consisting of only TWO DAYS OFF. Fast forward 28 days, I coincidentally saw them again after their final show. Despite looking like they hadn’t slept in weeks and all a little grey in the face, Split System had seriously rocked every European venue to the core and selling out most shows. It’s safe to say these boys are certainly no con artists. If you’re thinking about not reading the interview, screw you, but please do yourself a favour and listen to Split System. Be warned, you may sing, hum or whistle Run On and Alone Again for approximately three weeks straight. Actually, heck, forget about the classics, they have a whole new album out! GO LISTEN NOW DUMMY!
How did Split System come to be?
Jackson and Arron were chatting about getting something together in-between COVID lockdowns in Melbourne. Most of us had played gigs together in other bands but we were all stinging for something to do when things opened back up again. I think we had one jam without drums where we went around in a circle and threw shit at the wall to see what stuck, a few things did and we had one more jam with Mitchy in on drums and that jam became the first 7”.
You took Europe by storm in 2023, did you expect that tour to be as successful as it was?
It was a heap of fun. We met a bunch of awesome bands and people over there, some truly good friendships were made. A few of the members had done tours over there in the past so we had some idea of what to expect…. the Euros are so damn accommodating and keen for a good time. But yeah it’s always super nice when shows are crammed and people are keen. Can’t wait to get back over there!
What’s the first ridiculous story that comes to mind from the Euro tour? Or any for that matter.
Ohh geez there’s definitely a few. Probably the most memorable is a night in Milan, our gig got cancelled and we managed to get a last minute gig at a squat on the outskirts of the city. When we rocked up there were chained up Mastiffs and the vibe was pretty odd. There wasn’t any communication about what was happening or where we were sleeping etc etc (basically no one really spoke to us or made us feel welcome). We ended up sharing a grubby little bunk room with a strange psytrance family and a couple of rogue Italians. Lots of the strange goings on at this joint. It was Ryans's birthday the next day and didn’t get under 33 degrees that night so we were all pretty keen to get the hell out of there and go for a swim.
Tell us about the upcoming album. What can the punters expect?
We recorded it in early 2023 before we went overseas. From Vol.1 to Vol.2 the biggest difference is that we’ve actually had a lot more time to write and have been playing a fair bit more. The first LP was written and recorded over the first month or so of playing together so this one is a natural step forward I guess.
Who has the most annoying habit in the band?
(Laughs) It’s gotta be Mawsons sniffing and grunting surely?
What’s the next big goal for Splitties?
Playing Golden Plains in March will be awesome, that’s always a dream come true. Also pretty keen to get over to the US and back to Europe again. Tentative plans for both but nothing locked yet! In the mean time we have an AUS Tour for Vol.2 from March - April and the intention to hit a few more rural AUS locations over 2024 as well.
Listen to Vol.2 below.