INTERVIEW: THE IVORY LIES – March 2018

Shane | 29 March 2018 | Reply

INTERVIEW: THE IVORY LIES – March 2018
By Shane Pinnegar

Citing influences from Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix, through Guns n’ Roses, Soundgarden and Alice In Chains, The Ivory Lies burst onto Perth’s rock landscape with their debut EP, The Road To Seduction, earlier this year.

It all started when Oscar Keaney, who had been “brought up on dad’s love of the classic ‘60s bands” developed “an obsession with Nirvana” aged 11, and picked up a guitar. Not to be outdone, cousin Liam soon followed suit.

“Maybe a slight competitive rivalry got sparked there?” Liam laughs now. “Growing up in a family of music lovers who listened to Zeppelin, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Hendrix, I was searching for a way to express myself that incorporated my shared love of music.”

Drummer, Scott Bingemann, explains how the band eventually formed…

Read the interview at AROUND THE SOUND

Extra 100% ROCK MAGAZINE exclusive content:

Do you remember the moment when you heard a song and thought, that’s it – that’s what I wanna do?

Scott: I can’t really pin point a particular moment but when I was probably 19 or 20ish, I remember watching an old video of Skid Row playing Wembley Stadium, and my mate said, “far out, imagine being there”, then I replied, “bugger that, imagine being on stage!”

Liam: I think the moment when I first knew I wanted to play is hearing Led Zeppelin’s Black Dog when I was ten years old. Robert Plant’s wailing scream followed by the bombastic riff Jimmy Page lets down, I knew – ‘wow, this is what I wanna do.’ That riff still sends shivers down my spine. Then obviously Appetite for Destruction by Guns n’ Roses – an absolute balls to the wall record with nothing held back, it made me realise yeah, this is how I want to play music. Also my family had a massive influence on my guitar and vocal style over the years, constantly listening to blues.

Are you planning on touring the EP?

Liam: I’d love to tour the EP, I think a West Oz tour down south is on the cards for the future, all the rest depends on our budget. It would be awesome to go to the East coast and share our love of hard rock & roll and the lifestyle that comes with it!

There’s a great classic rock sound to the EP – who would be your main five musical influences?

Oscar: Soundgarden, Led Zeppelin, Hendrix, Alice in Chains, The Deftones

Liam: A massive Guns n’ Roses influence, along with Soundgarden, Led Zeppelin, Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains. If I could add a bonus answer, as of recently – The Cult

Scott: Guns n’ Roses, Soungarden, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Motörhead

If you could call in any one collaborator to do a song with, who would it be?

Oscar: Jack White.

Scott: Lemmy

Liam: Slash! That dude’s The Man. I think it would be awesome to have the opportunity to sing and jam with him.

How would you describe your music to someone who’d never listened to you before?

Liam: Balls to the wall rock & roll.

Scott: We’ve got a big sound loaded with catchy, heavy riffs, infectious melodies and lyrics and thunderous rhythms.

What does being up on stage playing your own songs give you that nothing else in the world gives you?

Liam: Woah, that’s a good one. Well I do like being the centre of attention [laughs]. But in all honesty it’s just nice to be able to write something that someone might be able to relate to and enjoy. It’s nice to try to keep hard rock & roll alive in Perth… man, that sounded lame! [laughs again]

Scott: Playing your own music on stage to a crowd is the best feeling ever, and it’s pretty hard to describe. You get this adrenaline rush that just makes you want to get straight back on stage when you’re done. And when you can see that the crowd is enjoying it, even singing along, you feel on top of the world.

When the band are all hanging out together, who cooks; who gets the drinks in; and who is first to crack out the acoustic guitars for a singalong?

Oscar: Liam already has the drinks, he’s probably already drunk half of them and will drink the rest if you’re too slow! It’s only a short time after that he pulls out the guitar and belts out Wonderwall.

Scott: Abe and I cook – Abe’s on the barbie, I’m on the salad (didn’t win any friends), Liam is slinging beers around left, right and centre, and Ozzy whips out the guitar for a shred and we all join in.

Liam: Well for one none of us cook…but beer is like liquid bread, so it’s good for you, right? Scott’s generally the one to pull out the acoustic in the early hours when everyone has gone to sleep. Singalong wise, we don’t really singalong, but any one of us has been known to pick up a six string and have a strum.

What do you do for day jobs – and what would your dream non-music job be?

Oscar: I work an office job in the city. I always think driving a Mr Whippy van would be pretty chill. Let’s go with that.

Liam: Mate, I make signs for a living. I do long hours in large-format print media. I work for the man. I would have loved to be able to pursue skateboarding further than I did, but had to stop because of injuries and work…but I wouldn’t mind going to clown college and doing something weird.

If you could magically go back in time and be a part of the recording sessions for any one record in history, which would you choose – and what does that record mean to you?

Oscar: Led Zeppelin’s Physical Graffiti album – this was the band in their absolute prime, height of their powers and encompasses that is everything great about them.

Scott: Appetite for Destruction because it’s awesome – I love every song. They were the coolest band at that time in that scene and still it’s an album I won’t get sick of.

Liam: Man, you’re dropping the big questions hey…. there’s so many! If I had to choose I could say Harvest Moon by Neil Young or Appetite for Destruction. But the album I would have loved to be a part of was Alice In Chains’ debut album, Facelift. When everyone was listening to Nirvana a lot growing up I could really relate more with the heavy riffs Jerry Cantrell was playing and the emotional and heavy worded vocals that Layne Staley would belt out.

What, for you, is the meaning of life??

Liam: I think it is what you put into your own life. If someone is prepared to put in the hard yards and do their best at what they want to do, whether you play in a rock and roll band or want to succeed as an executive in a big corporation, be dedicated to your family or be a famous sports start, you might not end up getting to that level but you will achieve something from that as long as you give it your all. As long as you are happy with what you have done.

When you look back on the memories, at least you can say you gave it your best shot and gave it your all – heart, soul, blood, sweat and tears to something. There is no one answer; it is all what someone makes of their own life.

I will sleep happily at night knowing that I have given my best fucking shot. For me, the meaning of life is that life is what you make of it. There is no meaning unless you make it, you choose your own meaning. Everyone is an individual. You create your own destiny, your own voyage. Hell, I could look back on this when I’m 70 and think, ‘what a load of shit!’ But as long as you wake up and feel good, you know what you’re doing is right.

[Laughs] Fuck, I just got so deep!

Scott: Woah, that is deep… [laughs]. Still searching, man.