The Belligerents - Interview

Known for their intensely physical live performances, the boisterous boys behind The Belligerents give us a rundown of their upcoming EP, the band’s origins and plans for the future.

Self-described as the “longest eargasm of psych dance you’ve ever encountered”, The Belligerents have fashioned a unique concoction of toe-tapping dance-rock to get even the most reserved jumping around. With their hit singles “These Hands” and “Bye Bye Bye” clocking in at number two and nine respectively on Triple J's Unearthed program, it’s no wonder this fivesome is fast becoming one of Brisbane’s hottest acts. With their released songs achieving such rapid prominence, it comes as a bit of a surprise that the band emerged only recently, from very humble beginnings. Andy Balzat, keyboardist, explains, “Before recording our songs it was kind of hard to market a band properly because we only had really bad tracks on our MySpace, and it was always embarrassing because it looks like shit and sounds like shit.”

The members were brought together and united by their love for, well, other band member’s sisters, friends from Germany and a variety of other school based relationships. Emerging from the Sunshine Coast and picking up members along the way, the band exploded into the Brisbane music scene last November, setting the Hangar ablaze with dancefloor dynamite. But their rapid popularity hasn’t been an accident, according to the band. Since their inception, the boys have laboured rigorously in rehearsals and concerts, at one point performing a show every weekend, minimum.

“That period really helped us to determine what we wanted in the band, and in the music,” Andy continued, “and eventually we finished our EP, which we are set to release in about six weeks.”
In addition to the impending EP, the band hopes to be touring the East Coast in the next two months.
“Hopefully we can go as far as we can. We are also looking to travel internationally next year, maybe to Berlin. We’ll take it like it comes, we don’t have any plans. We’ll still like to be together and make music we love, that’s why we’re together in the first place.”

But what motivates the Belligerents? What gets them out of bed in the late afternoon? Well, the band’s mission statement is fairly straightforward. They simply aim to get people on their feet and wildly flailing their limbs.
“We want our audience to be dancing, smiling, and partying. Frantic and sweaty. I like nakedness as well. I imagine most people listening to our music naked. It makes me happy.”

THE BELLIGERENTS SUPPORT TIN CAN RADIO AT THE HI-FI FRIDAY JULY 23.