Rising from the fevered hotbed of Sydney, Australia’s underground hardcore scene, boy meets girl. Or rather, two boys meet girl to make kick-ass rock music.
Guitarist Whakaio Taahi and his compadre bass player, Cameron Adler, needed a frontman for a rock project. Scrap that. Frontwoman. Enter ingénue-with-attitude, Jenna McDougall – as soon as the sixteen-year-old songstress’ soaring contralto and sweet strains took the mic to their songs, something clicked. Already onboard, rhythm axeman Jake Hardy and new recruit, drummer Matt Best – a childhood buddy of Whakaio’s. One jam later, the writing was on the wall. Tonight Alive were up and running, pedal to the metal... and the rest is history...
Check out Tonight Alive's carrier single...
If you want to know more, read on.....
The band stepped up, and fast. Songs honed, stagecraft already a dead cert, they entered Sydney’s subterranean circuit of metalcore and heavy bands, playing their own brand of catchy-as-all-hell pop-punk… and promptly took the scene by storm, developing a rabid young fanbase in thrall to the band’s ebullient, fist-pumping anthemery, arena-sized hooks and high-voltage live performances.
Right from word-go, it was clear Tonight Alive were going somewhere.
A year on, courted by labels and management secured, with two stellar EPs (‘All Shapes & Disguises’ and ‘Consider This’) under their belts, a demo of Tonight Alive’s new material landed on producer-extraordinaire Mark Trombino’s (Blink 182, Jimmy Eat World, The Starting Line) desk. He rang the band immediately, wanting in.
“For him to contact us, and say he was interested, was a big deal,” says Jenna, now 19. “We couldn’t believe he’d put himself out like that. He’s amazing. Mark created the albums we all grew up listening to – the albums that launched the careers of all these great bands.
Whakaio weighs in. “Yeah, it felt right that he do our first album, that he be the one to kick-start us off. As soon as we got over there, we found Mark felt the same.”
“It was great because it made us really step up as musicians,” says Jenna. “I know I definitely came back from the experience a better singer.”
As the charging powerchords, chiming verseline and rattlesnake high-hats of Breaking & Entering kick off proceedings, Tonight Alive make their intent known with this instant torch song. Like serving up straight red cordial shots to a bunch of Ritalin-deprived delinquents. Like scooping up a surging circle-pit and slamdunking into a kids’ jumping castle. Like a surly prom queen setting her school afire as the So-Cal styled band plays on, What Are You So Scared Of? is a veritable barnstormer of a debut album. Bouncey, infectious and thrilling.
Cue the mosh-happy shout-a-long of Starlight, the sheer infectious fun of Sure as Hell and the sugar-rush of songs like To Die For and the title track. Lending both cred and sporting their influences on their sleeve.
But there’s also gravitas to match Tonight Alive’s gusto and good times – the balls-out heaviness of Listening, the acoustic-shaded power ballad Safe and Sound, and one of the album’s best tracks, Let It Land, all showcase a band with serious songwriting chutzpah. Meanwhile, the moving closer, Amelia, is Jenna’s paean to a girlhood friend who passed away aged 16, and packs one powerful emotional punch.
What really lifts Tonight Alive above another female-fronted pop-rock band is their muscular musicality, a deft sense of dynamic, a way of shifting seamlessly from the big riffs and breakdowns, to allow space and the sensibility of Jenna’s sweetly sung melodies to shine through.
The hardcore heritage has set them in good stead – these kids have some bad-ass chops. Underpinned by Best’s impassioned, athletic drumming, the mercurial undertow of Adler’s tasteful basswork and Hardy’s meat ’n’ potato riffery, Whakaio lays down the sort of colour, texture and zinging, adrenalizing leadlines that sing like a wire fenceline being drawn taut.
The band’s grounded approach has added to their groundswell appeal. “We started off playing youth centre’s,” says Whakaio. “And so we all feel like we have a personal connection to so many people who come to our shows. I know that sounds clichéd, but it’s true – it’s almost like we’re friends with all of them. We make a point of going out after a gig, making contact with the fans, thanking them, keeping them informed.”
What Are You So Scared Of? is distributed by Ivory Music & Video, the exclusive licensee of Sony Music in the Philippines.
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