Interview with The Furrs from Brisbane, Australia

One of the most exciting new acts to come out of Brisbane, Australia, is the 60s-inspired, dirty rock’n’roll blues of The Furrs. Fronted by Gabriella Cohen and Jim Griffin, both in their early 20s, the Furrs came together in 2012 as a duo and eventually exploded onto the local live scene as a five-piece that harkens back to a better decadewhile avoiding to fall into the Australian psych revival scene. Their debut single Get On Your Horse sets the tone right from the start, with Gabriella’s chilling vocals, and bluesy guitar rhythms. This year has been very productive for the Furrs, with a double-sided EP that geared for release at the end of this year. And, according to Cohen, theres a lot more to come, Id like to go to America and record an album. Read the interview with Cohen, and if this is your vibe, you can buy The Furrs EP here.

Lola Who: How did you guys meet and how did you start making music together?
Gabriella: We met about two years ago and the music thing just happened naturally

Lola Who: Has the band evolved since you started? You started as a duo, now youve evolved into a five-piece act.
Gabriella: We like to keep it an ever-changing thing. Weve been lucky enough to play with a couple of different rhythm sections. Sometimes, there are more members.

Lola Who: Hows the music scene in Brisbane? Where do you fit in?
Gabriella: Its really great here at the moment, everyone is thriving off each other, and I read somewhere that Brisbane is the city with the most bands in Australia. I reckon thats pretty cool. I think we complement the music scene in Brisbane.

Lola Who: What music were you listening to when you were recording your EP?
Gabriella: We were listening to a lot of The Velvet Underground and Dylan at the time. I guess all the influences blend into one as we record and shape the music ourselves.

Lola Who: Whats your recording approach? How do you get that old-fashioned, authentic sound?
Gabriella: Ha ha! You think its old-fashioned? Thats nice. We just went down to the place where we usually rehearse. Our good friend Louie brought his laptop and his mixing desk, and we just banged it out in a couple of hours, live.

Lola Who: I read that you guys recently won the Triple J Unearthed competition. Whats the competition format and what did you guys do to win the Triple J competition?
Gabriella: Well its a competition all right but there is no format, Triple J just picks you. And we were lucky enough to be picked!

Lola Who: Whats in store for the upcoming months? An international tour, maybe?
Gabriella: YES. YES. An international tour! And a double sided EP! Some might call it an album, but that comes later. And say hello America, because we are coming for you!!!

Buy the EP on iTunes!

Recent video to celebrate Gabriella’s birthday