It’s time to Pray for Party Dozen. The devastatingly powerful noise duo of Sydney’s Kirsty Tickle and Jonathan Boulet Kirsty Tickle with their weapons of choice, take aim at the traditional notions of live music and band outfit as their sonic depth charges of saxophone, sampler and percussion wreck an infectious havoc.
Hi Kirsty, and thanks for taking the time out to speak with us at Musicology. Firstly, congratulations on your latest record. In what ways did you want to push the sonic boundaries and, for that matter, yourselves on ‘Pray For Party Dozen’ compared to that of 2017’s ‘The Living Man’?
Thanks so much! We wanted to explore more colour on Pray for Party Dozen and reach into styles and sonic ideas we didn’t approach on our first release. The result is broader, but more listenable. It’s got some really fucked moments, but also offers a bit more groove and just a little bit of tenderness.
The principal instruments of the Party Dozen sound are those of the drums and saxophone. A pairing that is rare but not unusual. In what ways do you each bring your individual strengths to produce the one collective style that blends together so skillfully to produce such a diverse sound?
Jono has an innate ability to succeed at everything he tries musically. He’s responsible for a lot of the loops we use, which play a pivotal part in the sound of Party Dozen. He also triggers these loops while being an animal on the drums, which is pretty cool to watch. And for what I lack in saxophone ability, I make up for in effects pedals… It’s been really fun trying to re-imagine the saxophone as an electric instrument and throwing the rule book well and truly out the proverbial window. But in terms of working those things together, it really can be a “throw shit at a wall and see what sticks” scenario. Lucky for us, we had a lot of shit to throw!
On the topic of duality, where does the interplay and dynamism between you two lie in terms of the writing and subject matter that you explore in your pieces, considering that lyricism isn’t something that features often in your work?
We’re really good friends and have known each other for a long time so we have a lot of the same interests and tastes, which makes writing music together pretty easy. For the new record, we were really visually inspired by film noir, and by the insanity of extreme religion and cultism. But honestly, we’re mostly in it to make sounds and songs that make us both excited. We don’t necessarily lean towards subject or narrative.
Somewhere between control and chaos there is a strong compositional quality underpinning your pieces, and in formulating your works, do you prefer to come from a free-form approach that organically evolves into a structured piece or begin with some very solid foundations before expanding on these core elements?
With the exception of one track on the new record, we always start writing with a loop. It gives a strong foundation and a solid vibe to what we’re creating. And then we improvise and jam over that… that’s the control vs chaos you’re talking about, I guess!
Both your albums have been self-produced and released through your Grupo Records label. What challenges have you experienced in undertaking your music this way, and conversely, what have been some of the greatest liberties you have enjoyed by taking such an autocratic approach?
We think of Grupo as a little co-op community made up solely of all our mates. There are lots of people playing small roles in how it’s run, and, in return, everyone gets to put their music out with full creative control. It’s not easy, and I wouldn’t say we necessarily do a great job of it, but it does allow us to be fairly self-sufficient. As for the production side, we wouldn’t do it any other way – we’re greedy like that.
Musicology first caught Party Dozen performing a blistering set at the FBI Turns 15 Festival some years ago, and you included a cover of Grinderman’s No Pussy Blues, which was a phenomenal rendition, and with your musical style in mind, what influences do you draw from both past and present?
Musically, tonnes of artists. Anything Nick Cave, Warren Ellis & co. have ever done. Jono has recently been getting into more 60’s & 70’s French music. Kim Gordon and PJ Harvey really do it for me on a vibe front. And we both love Alice Coltraine and Betty Davis. But we also both listen to a lot of classical and instrumental music, and quite a bit of heavy music too.
Having performed with so many different artists over the years, during that time, have there been any words of wisdom spoken to you that really resonated with you that, in turn altered the way you approach your craft?
A tech guy from Jono’s uni once said, “the only music worth making is if the music you’re making is getting you laid”… think we might have failed that one.
Can you share with Musicology one of your highlight performances and what made it so remarkable and memorable?
The most memorable has to be Farmer and the Owl Fest in Wollongong last year. One of the stage hands tripped and dropped a mic right on my head as I was setting up my pedal board. It split the top of my head open, and I was covered in blood. When the paramedics came they told me I needed to go get stitches but also that they could pack it with vaseline like they do for boxers and footy players. I chose the vaseline, and it was a very, very fun show. My only regret is we didn’t get a photo before they cleaned my face up.
Your work is often intense, brooding and apocalyptic in the atmospheric soundscapes you conjure, and on a philosophical level, what does music give you that nothing else does?
There really is nothing like playing live to an audience. It can give you the greatest high or the most crushing low of your life. But either way… it’s an adrenaline addiction, and a pretty good time had with your best friends.
