Interview by Kris Peters
Osaka Punch are one of those once in a generation bands that would be perfect for ANY line up or concert.
Their music is a force unto itself, mixing jazz, rock, metal, piano lounge vibes and an eclectic nature often tried but seldom mastered.
Until now.
If you live in Queensland then you definitely have at least heard of Osaka Punch, but if you live anywhere else in the world and have managed to escape the hype these guys have generated over the last decade then you are about to be baptised with the impending release of Mixed Ape, Osaka Punch's "official" debut album.
Featuring all of the above musical nuances with even more spectacular surprises, Mixed Ape is an absolute gem in every way, harnessing Osaka Punches elusive on stage chemistry and humour with an array of styles and influences that have to be heard to be fully appreciated.
HEAVY sat down for a chat with frontman Jack Muzak earlier this week to take us deeper into the crazy world that is Osaka Punch.
"We did an album with Voodoo Love machine but we recorded it as another band when we were Kidney Thieves," Muzak cleared up. "So ages and ages ago we were a band called Kidney Thieves and another band called Kidney Thieves tried to sue us and threatened to kick us off the face of the planet, so we had to change our name and we changed it just as we were releasing that album. Also, just as we were moving overseas to the U.K, so it was kind of all bad timing. We went overseas, released the album as Osaka Punch and then while we were in the U.K recorded an EP and then that was done in Liverpool. We released that when we got back from the U.K, so we're not very smart at how to release things. It's like, 'here, have this. See ya later, we're going somewhere else'. (laughs). So this is the first one that we're actually doing right. We recorded it in Brisbane, we're releasing it, we're touring it, we're doing it right. We're finally going to have something to tour properly which is cool."
Sound confusing? Welcome to Osaka Punch...
"There's a whole bunch of songs that didn't make it onto this album," he continued, "which will make it onto the next one. The ones that made it onto this one... first of all, we wanted it to show the eclectic nature of the band. We wanted to show all of the different facets that we do. Every song has either been written by one different member and then added to by others, or written entirely by all four members which kind of is what gives it that... makes them all sound so different. For example, Too Old For This Shit, I basically wrote that on the computer with the vocals and everything and then for the big band swing jazz section I got a mate of mine from the Jazz Music Institute to arrange the big band section so that song was almost entirely written by myself and Travis Jenkins, who is an absolute jazz genius, and then the boys put their own flair onto it. But other songs like Hekyll & Jive - which is the last track instrumental - we all put our brains in and wrote it completely together. The good thing about different brains behind it is we all listen to different music. I listen to funk and more on the jazz spectrum, the bass player listens to a lot of heavier and instrumental stuff, Chrispy the guitarist listens to literally everything but a lot more metal guitars so it kind of brings it all together into this weird, eclectic mix which is cool. To be honest, I would say the songs that were ready first, were the ones that made it on the album (laughs). I'd like to say there was a lot of thought went into it..."
In the full interview, Jack talks more about what to expect from Mixed Ape, the styles that went into it, finding the balance between so many influences, the urban myth surrounding the Mixed Ape, the infamous black dildo that seems to make its way into most film clips and where it currently resides, their upcoming tour and more.