Rat verses Rabbit
Where did the name RAT VERSES RABBIT come from?
The name is based on our Chinese horoscope signs, the Rat is wooing the Rabbit with poetry, songand verse. It is a cool name because our band is a duo and the name includes both of us. The Rat iscourting the Rabbit. Who knows where that will go?
What of Who was your biggest influence growing up?
Debbie – I really liked Blondie, Siouxie and the Banchees, The Divinyls, and of course The Beatles. Debra Harry still really rocks I love hearing women in rock, and John Lennon was a huge influence in my childhood. He was incredible
Phil – The Beatles, Adam and the Ants, Iron Maiden and Indianna Jones.
Do you have a creative input when it comes to album artwork?
Debbie- Yes we both input ideas and I do some of the artwork, we also work with photographerswho give us ideas. I did art as a subject at school then kept working at it. I like mixing charcoleswith other things like pastles and inks.
Phil – of course we influence our artwork, we direct our own spaceship.
What is it like being a band in Victoria Australia?
We love being a band in Regional Victoria. There is a huge regional music scene with festivals,pubs, parties as well as this Melbourne is not far and has some of the best live music venues in theworld at all levels of the music scene. We are lucky to be enrolled at MWT Institute in Diplomas ofMusic which is an awesome school, we are learning heaps and maturing in sound. We also haveradio station opportunities, Triple J unearthed on a nation wide radio station is cool to try for and wehave been offered a radio show at our local radio station so that will be heaps of fun.
How did your musical career start?
Phil – with a band called the Peasants, that was a covers band and soon broke up after about sixmonths, then Resin, which didn’t go far then a string of bands like Sox and What, Rastanaught,Smoking Ladyfingers and Blacksmith Hopkins. Blacksmith Hopkins was cool, I did somerecording and we put out an album with that band and they got into a top ten albums of the year listin 2008 with the Herald Sun.
Debbie – one of my first experience was church and school choirs, then I went to some performingarts schools full time including Bartuccio’s, Dance factory, Karen Stephens Academy. I wastrained for musicals too. My first band was Jemima, a reggae dub band which had originals and covers.
How was 2010 for you?
We moved to Regional Victoria from inner city Melbourne which has been a huge adventure. Wehave started a self sufficiency lifestyle, with our own water, veggie gardens and chickens. Its a veryhealthy lifestyle.In music we have written a lot of original songs and are experimenting with synthesisers. We lookforward to getting some recording done soon and putting out some music that sort of sounds like acombination of The Knife and Garbage and Massive Attack.
What are you currently working on and what can we expect from Rat Verses Rabbit in 2011?
We have been writing a lot and have haps of new material and ideas. We like music that isexperimental, ambient, sounds like its from “outer space”. We are experimenting with electronic,ska, dub, influences such as The Mars Volta, Garbage, Massive Attack, even the incredible PinkFloyd are influential. Stay tuned for some amazing experimental music.Can you tell us what the track “Break Up” is about?Its about a woman going out with a womaniser, she’s in a bad relationship and can’t understand whyit means nothing to the guy. She tells him she loves him, he doesn’t listen. She gets fed up staringinto space and him thinking only about himself and she walks out on him. Then she realises hedidn’t care and she did the best thing.
Can you tell us what the track “Break Up” is about?
Its about a woman going out with a womaniser, she’s in a bad relationship and can’t understand whyit means nothing to the guy. She tells him she loves him, he doesn’t listen. She gets fed up staringinto space and him thinking only about himself and she walks out on him. Then she realises hedidn’t care and she did the best thing.
Do you write from personal experiences?
Debbie – sort of, nearly everyone has had a bad relationship, you can use experiences in otherstories that you write to get some interesting lyrics happening. Like Destination Mars – obviouslyits a fantasy about running away to Mars because of being in a bad relationship, got some ideasfrom being dumped with no explanation once.
Phil – Yeah personal experiences are influential but I also have a vivid imagination and things get. warped. Names are changed to protect the innocent…
What is your FAULT?
Debbie – A lot of lyrics started with me. Phil starts playing and experimenting and sometimes lyricsjust fit in.
Phil – for Rat Verses Rabbit – Everything