Sienna Skies have just released their impressive new album A Darker Shade of Truth. This albums solidifies their place within the Australian heavy music scene displaying a band at the top of their game after years of slogging it out and crafting their sound. We caught up with guitarist and songwriter Nick Musgrave to talk about the new album and what’s on the horizon for Sienna Skies.
SCENEzine
Congrats on your new album A Darker Shade of Truth it sounds awesome. You must be stoked to finally have it out?
Nick Musgrave
Cheers! We’re incredibly stoked to have it out but we’re also stoked that it was a pretty quick process from recording to release. We’ve had some painful periods in the past trying to get albums released, but this time round the writing/production took the most time and I believe it’s turned out much better as a result.
SCENEzine
Is there a story behind the album covert art? Is it a bit of a nod to your first albums cover?
Nick Musgrave
It certainly is. In a way we feel like we’ve come full circle as a band as it’s a new chapter with Tom, and we’ve returned to two of our favourite producers Dave Petrovic and Stevie Knight from Electric Sun where we recorded Truest of Colours in 2009. Lyrically, the album takes on a much broader scope of topics which are perhaps not as light as previous albums, but that also reflects our view of the world changing as we’ve got older.
SCENEzine
You recently released a rad video for “Divided” was that fun to make?
Nick Musgrave
The creative processes behind Divided was great fun and it really was one of those awesome situations where an artistic concept just seems to come together naturally on it’s own. The reality with the majority of performance-based music videos for bands like us though is that they’re often a gruelling and relentless process. We did the math and for us physically; this shoot was pretty much the equivalent of playing an Australian tour in one afternoon… But the bangover is always worth the end result!
SCENEzine
What kind of lyrical themes are explored on the album?
Nick Musgrave
On this album we’ve branched out a bit from our past albums lyrically. While we’ve continued to sing about life experience there’s several themes that stem from being away from home, to abuses of power, to our volatile music scene.
SCENEzine
Did you approach song writing any differently for this new album compared to previous recordings?
Nick Musgrave
In all our years as a band we’ve never worked this long and hard on an album, and part of that was critically reflecting on our old songs to refine our writing process. It’s important to recognise your strengths as a band and we didn’t want any fillers on A Darker Shade of Truth. With Tom being overseas when we began writing, some songs began with lyrics/vocal melody and a concept which we’d then expand on back here in my studio. We didn’t stick to a song writing format by any means but we pushed each song to it’s full potential by tracking demos, listening back over weeks, fixing the weak points, playing through the songs in a live situation, and repeat. The idea was to just be constantly producing the tracks all the way up until we started tracking at Electric Sun, and then push them further with Dave and Stevie while we were there.
SCENEzine
Were there many songs that didn’t end up making it onto the album?
Nick Musgrave
There were one or two… Sometimes you have to recognise when a song isn’t as strong or just doesn’t work with the rest of the album, and you have to cut it in order for it to not drag down the better songs. There were many half songs and ideas which we’d been working on for a while throughout the writing process, and when it’s crunch time someone’s baby always ends up getting ye olde sack but it’s something that becomes easier each time you write.
When you first start writing music it’s easy to get ahead of yourself, and you can start believing that the world just won’t be the same if you don’t release what you think is the best four-chord emo song since 2006, but you mature and with that comes experience and realism.
SCENEzine
There’s a beautiful moment on the album with the track “Separated Hearts” that features JT from Hawthorne Heights. Can you tell us a bit about that song and how it came about getting JT on board?
Nick Musgrave
We knew from the get go that we wanted to have a few talented mates lending their skills to enrich the album, and it wasn’t that far into writing Separated Hearts when we thought of approaching JT to be on it. The song itself speaks to the loneliness that often sets in when missing a loved one while touring/travelling, and it’s something that most touring musicians have dealt with at one stage or another.
While the theme of the song is something JT would be even more familiar with than us, we’ve cultivated such a great friendship across the Pacific with Hawthorne Heights over the last four years that he was more than happy to be a part of it, even if he does still consider us a bunch of “Fuckin Aussie Posers…”
SCENEzine
Being a founding member is it surreal to step back and see the evolution of Sienna Skies through album releases, lineup changes and tours?
Nick Musgrave
If you were to tell me when we started the band in 2006 that we’d be touring the U.S supporting Story of the Year & Hawthorne Heights in seven years time I would’ve punched you in the dick. It is crazy to think back to where we started and how we got here but there’s also an evolution in perspective and mindset which comes into play…
When you’re starting out you dream of being the biggest band in your circle, and you lose your shit at the sound of your recorded music being played back to you for the first time despite the drums being out of time… Fast forward a few years and you realise that things rarely happen overnight for an Australian band, but you’re absolutely stoked to get the opportunity to support some of the best names in your genre. Fast forward another few years and you’re in an Ethiopian restaurant (cause the Pirate themed bar was closed) over the other side of the world toasting the commonwealth with the band who’s posters were on your wall as a teenager.
So it’s definitely surreal thinking about it.
SCENEzine
With Sienna Skies coming from Sydney what’s your opinion on the lockout laws and it’s impact on the live music scene in Sydney?
Nick Musgrave
We recognise that part of living in a functioning democracy means that sometimes the whole class gets punished for the actions of one ratbag kid, but the approach taken with the lockout laws seemed like taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
While the alternative scene in Sydney has adapted a little after the closure of many mainstay venues (Q-Bar affecting us the most), keeping these music communities strong has been a struggle while the ground shifts beneath everyones feet. Of all the artists regularly playing Sydney though we’re among the least affected because typically the venues we play wouldn’t be raging with live bands until sunrise, but other music scenes which have relied on wider operating hours for the last few decades have taken a big hit.
There’s many prominent DJ’s and artists who are now recognised as Australia’s finest who never would’ve got where they are if it wasn’t for Sydney’s once thriving nightlife. I just hope that the changes the city has suffered don’t prevent more talented artists getting to the level they deserve.
SCENEzine
Lastly can you give us some insight into what Sienna Skies has planned for 2017?
Nick Musgrave
Our plans for 2017 are to get back out on the road and start playing these new songs to as many ears as possible. We’ll be touring new places but we also can’t wait to get around Australia again as this new album has given us the momentum we’ve needed for quite some time.
(Interview by Christian Ross)