Further Could these punk rock vampires be the next thing set to rip out the hearts of the UK media and eat them for breakfast?
By Semone Maksimovic November 1, 2003

No matter what the feeling or mood is, the memories will always come with a soundtrack, and Further are that perfect soundtrack. Their music has everything that makes you feel like the world is alright and you can achieve anything you want, to that perfect track for when you're down and out and just want to escape the world for a while;  their debut album 'punkrockvampires' is what both dreams and nightmares are made of.

Since they appeared on the Sydney live scene sometime back in 1999 this four-piece consisting of brothers Leo (The Kid) and Matt (Cibot) Coyte on guitar and sharing vocal duties and the masterful backline of Andy W.C on bass and the thunderous Darren (Dang Talent) Skelsey on drums have come along way. Emerging from the debris of bands including Tweezer and Quoit, they were unhappy with the state of post-rock bands (who were really only badly imitating Chicago bands of the same genre) taking over the scene and felt they should put more ROCK back into post-rock with more enthusiasm and passion not unlike the good old days of Sonic Youth, Fugazi, Mogwai et al.

As The Datsuns, The Vines, The Strokes and the rest of that crew were busy studying hard for top marks in the rock school of fashion and locked themselves away in their rooms to practice their windmills in front of the mirror. Further were locked in the rehearsal studios day in and day out rehearsing and writing super tight songs to hook the crowd with in the first minute of every raucous track, rather than spending up big on brand new AC/DC shirts, tight black jeans and mod haircuts with sideburns that would make Elvis jealous.

When asked if they think image and fashion were an important part of the music industry today brothers Cibot and The Kid were keen to comment.

"I think Image/trends/fashion has history in rock music. Sure it sucks, but if you're in a rock band, chances are you've got some level of vanity. I know that none of us would like to admit we're into fashion, but then again, we put thought into our clothes - we don't go on stage in  pink polo shirts and ruggers like another band I could name." Cibot laughs before The Kid elaborates a little "Of course, I think a band needs to have a certain style, their own style. It doesn't have to be fashion though; I think as long as the band has a unified front/is a collective of the same ideals then they have a certain vibe that people pick up on and are drawn towards. I think being an entertainer involves being image conscious (to an extent), cause people are going to be looking at you."

Further's blistering live performances are those where the lights confuse and the sound amazes entertaining from the first second to the very last fuelled with around 10 scorching tracks that rock history is made of. Always leaving the crowd a sweaty, blubbering, worn-out mess, screaming for more of their sizzling punk rock chaos. Their ability to write a damn strong song comes almost too easily, they make the rest of the 'saviour of rock' bands look like scrawny little school kids trying to re-invent what once was rather than try something new and original.

"A lot of planning goes into the shows. The Kid usually takes charge of the visuals and Andy's good with the set list. I just have to make sure all my gear works. I want people to go home with the same feeling that I used to get when I went to see a band that I really liked. I think it's a magical feeling to have seen a really good show. Hopefully a couple of people take that away with them. It'd be bad to think people were bored. A show is usually good when something gets broken, the audience is worked into a frenzy and we all walk off hating each other. I wish it wasn't like that, but hey..." Cibot comments on their live shows before The Kid takes over "There is usually heaps of planning for a headline show. We try to make it an event, we try and give the fans a new song or a new intro to the set or something like that. We also put effort into the visual aspects of the show by designing new backdrops or shirts for the band to wear etc. I hope the audience go home feeling entertained. A good show is judged by having a packed room, drunken punters yelling abuse, unleashing a new dance move successfully on the crowd, playing tight, remembering all the words to songs and not fighting on stage about how a song should be etc." "Personally I want the crowd to be excited and yelling for more by the end of a set and not feeling exhausted. There's nothing worse than looking at your watch, waiting for a band to finish their set just so you can justify paying the entry price." Adds Andy W.C.

Soon after taking the Sydney scene by storm, they started ranking up frequent national and international supports, sharing the stage with the likes of Rollins Band, The Mark of Cain, Rival Schools, Seafood, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Idlewild, Mogwai and the perfectly suited .Trail of Dead. Every show is filled with boundless energy and occasionally known to throw in a surprise for all, like at one of their Annandale Hotel (Sydney) shows in 2002 with The Mark of Cain after breaking John Stanier's drum mics on two previous nights of the tour; whilst ending their set in the feedback frenzy that is Forever Dead Cibot decided to throw in a sample he'd recorded on his MD the night before of John yelling 'Stop breaking my fucking mics!' before looping and fucking with it, leaving the crowd and both bands' members in stitches.

It's no wonder this band were snapped up by trendy UK label Fierce Panda (www.fiercepanda.co.uk) home of Seafood, Death Cab For Cutie, Polyphonic Spree etc. This month sees Further over in the UK for the first time (following up the UK release of their 'Romance!' 7" and 'punkrockvampires' debut) to join Fierce labelmates Winnebago Deal and (X )is Greater Than (Y) for a few dates throughout May, unleashing their live beast on the UK. They'll be wiping the floor with audiences and tearing out the hearts of UK media and eating them for breakfast!

Dang Talent warns of what may be in store "The sets will be based on the punk rock vampire album and we want to hit 'em with some new stuff and get the crowd hot and wet. We will be limited to stage production (like no pyros, or large automated remote control bats swooping over the crowd) but we might have a few tricks. Depends what we can muster when we get there." "I have a heap of silly dance moves I have been too embarrassed to do in front of my friends at home, so I'll try those out for sure." laughs The Kid, "We're just hoping to get through the tour with as little trouble as
 possible. We still haven't gotten used to being without our comforts of home and the longer we're away from them, the more volatile things get." Cibot adds on a more serious note.    

 All this accomplished and Further still remain signed to an independent label or rather two joint independent labels (Comrade Records- www.comraderaderecords.com & Architecture Label- www.architecturelabel.com ) back home in Australia, showing the hearts and minds of young bands around the country, that big things are achievable even though only signed to an indie.

"I think the good thing about being on an indie label for as long as we  have is that we don't owe anyone money, we've had complete control over  everything and we've had nobody else to blame for our mistakes. Plus we  get to deal with our friends instead." comments Cibot, "We're still calling all the shots - music, direction, promo etc and not risking input from people which might be detrimental to the future of the band if they dont understand where your coming from ie. major label a+r teams. The con being we're still calling all the shots but we've got bugger all funds to work so we have to adopt an extreme tight-ass approach to everything " Andy W.C concludes.       

If you get the chance catch Further's rawkus live machine in a town near you, it promises to be a delicate and psychotic blur of beautiful noise, with gallons of dripping sweat and flying guitars; it'll have you saving your last dying breath to beg for more.                                      

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