Mar
22
11.33am

CHASE ATLANTIC // Counting Blessings


In 2014 Chase Atlantic burst onto the home scene to serve an intensely addictive plate of R ‘n’ B and alt-rock, peppered with a primal attitude.

Ahead of their homecoming when the band perform at Download Festival this weekend, vocalist Mitchel Cave speaks from the band’s tour bus in Kansas City, a chilled out Aussie bloke in America whose story of success is the epitome of the rock ‘n’ roll dream.

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Perseverance is absolutely key for Chase Atlantic, determination the fire beneath them. “All the way through the final years of high school, we had a strong idea we wanted to follow music” says Cave. “We wanted to finish our studies, we’d invested so much time in school we had to finish it.” In 2011 the boys played multiple headline shows across the country and wrote and produced two independent EPs, Dalliance [2014] and Nostalgia [2015]—but their sights were set on breaking into America. “It’s pretty bizarre,” ponders Cave, “You have to understand, you can’t just go across and run around and try and be successful, try to make good music, make good art.”

Indeed, Chase Atlantic, if you haven’t already realised, have a commitment to their craft unlike most. This work ethic caught the attention of Good Charlotte’s Benji and Joel Madden, who reached out to the group. “When we were still in Australia,” says Cave, “We had Joel and Benji hit us up on Twitter actually—about 2015 I think—and they said ‘We really like your band’, because by then we had produced our first EP.

“They discussed how they started a management label and how they’d like to get us involved, and how they really liked that we were able to produce and create our own music instead of having to rely on other people. It kinda kicked off and we’ve done really well, we’ve gotten better. We are very fortunate.”

All I can say is, our songs and what we portray as a band is very much real life.
[ Mitchel Cave ]

It’s common knowledge that Good Charlotte like to dabble in sounds distant from the punk-rock tendencies they had in the early noughties but Chase Atlantic, these guys have got something no one else has, and it’s something the brother Madden really liked. Take last year’s self-titled debut albm—it’s not R ‘n’ B, not metalcore, not hip-hop, it’s a little bit of everything, a culmination almost without forethought. “It’s a lot of gut instinct, but it wasn’t always like this. We worked hard and now we are in the spotlight, we’re able to perfect the craft—well, not perfect it, we came close before people could see what we were doing.”

“I think the whole idea when you’re making a song, we’ll never release music we’re never 100% satisfied. We have full control, we’re never going to release something that’s half-arsed or doesn’t realise its full potential. So in that sense, people thinking we have no bad songs, that’s just us being perfectionists in a way.

“I’ve listened to a lot of albums that have a lot of filler songs that just sound like nothing—that really pisses me off. Like, there’s no need for those songs, you’ve gotta have every single song has to have its own wave to pop off.

Chase Atlantic’s music certainly does have its own kind of “pop”. In their music videos the trio appear to have swagger, a certain charisma, with many themes in their songs centred on sex, partying and living the good life. To watch them, the boys don’t seem like they’re acting, seeming instead like they’re fully immersed themselves into that rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle. “I mean, I’m not gonna try and get myself in trouble here,” Cave laughs, “All I can say is, our songs and what we portray as a band is very much real life. Obviously because it’s art it’s slightly exaggerated to become more interesting, you know what I mean? It’s like telling a story but not exaggerating every moment or it becomes boring, but it’s still very, very real to us, we wanna put on a show. A lot of the things we’re writing about we’ve been through and we’ve faced head on.

“Of course, it’s just a little pizzazz on top—a little bit of exaggeration never hurt anyone.”

Chase Atlantic play Download Melbourne this Saturday, tickets available here.

Chase Atlantic will also be opening for Good Charlotte with Neck Deep, Falling In Reverse and ISSUES:

Monday March 26, Hordern Pavilion, Sydney NSW
Wednesday March 28, Riverstage, Brisbane QLD

Tickets available here.





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