Biography

“The music is identifiably Aussie, is created by and comes from all of us”, shares bedreadlocked bandleader Quinn McHugh, clearly not long out of bed on a sunny Thursday afternoon. “There’s three songwriters in the band and we write all together and separately. Sometimes our music is totally improvised, sometimes crafted. We vary the grooves quite a bit too, vintage reggae, dub of course, some of the NZ sound – cause our kiwi brethren do rocketh – but we also love the homegrown sounds and styles that were born here in Oz, and we feel proud to be playing a part in the music and the scene.”

I can hear coffee paraphernalia whirring and brewing away in the background and comment that it’s also caffeine o’clock for me. “Nectar of the Gods!” Quinn exclaims with gusto, understandable for man in a working band. As the black liquid brews, I ask about drawing inspiration from heavyweight local bands. “There’s too many to mention. But I personally love the Rooftops, Kooii, and Paua. Tobes (the band's lead guitarist) is a fan of Kingfisha and Darky Roots. Brisbane and southeast QLD reggae is particularly happening right now. There’s so much to inspire and so much to draw from, one great melange of fused styles. I can feel an awesome conscious and positive scene growing nationwide at a grassroots level.”

Being an independent band today has it’s challenges, but the crew aren’t worried. “We make the effort because it’s worth it. There’s a business side to the game, but the great thing about music in general is the way it transcends the daily grind. All the banking bullshit, all the politics, the lies, the disgrace, can't defeat us. Marley showed us how music was education as well as salvation. No amount of money can defeat it."

That wonderful sentiment lingers as my mind turns from all-oneness to the question of where the nearest Gloria Jeans is. Yes, that would be grand, a coffee, some Aussie reggae on the ipod on the way, and back to going about business of my own.