Inspired by the likes of their childhood heroes Bon Jovi, Kiss and Van Halen, Dangerous Curves formed in 2015 with one only one goal in mind, to bring back the music of the infamous LA scene of the late 80’s…with a modern twist. The latest album Summertime Highs is larger than life and ready to blow you away! Eleven perfectly executed slabs of rock n roll that capture the wild spirit of rock’s glory days while very much looking towards the future. Equal parts grit and polish, Dangerous Curves know how to party. We talk to frontman Kym Britten about the new album, dealing with social media, covid and much more.
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Rossco – I am joined by a bit of “Rock Royalty” at the moment here in Australia, Kym from Dangerous Curves, sir how are you?
Kym – I am good man, very good.
Rossco – You would be very pleased with yourself just quietly, number four on the “Australian Independent Rock Charts if I do say so myself.
Kym – (laughs) Yeah it’s a pretty good little mark to have on the resume.
Rossco – There wouldn’t be too many people that have that on their resume just quietly, it’s a huge reward for the massive album that you have just dropped “Summertime High”. I must say I have listen to it quite a few times, it is a catchy album – it has a lot of fun to it, it is playful, its almost like a reflection of 80’s rock. Which you can really see the influences that Dangerous Curves have. It is eleven tracks, was there any idea to make it anymore than eleven or was that the golden number?
Kym – You can put seventeen tracks on an album, you can do this but when you are an independent band eleven tracks sits nicely with the pocket (laughs) and also it gives you momentum for the next EP or something like that. It’s a well-deserved number, ten / eleven tracks 45 minutes, we are not charging too much for it and it’s easy to play live (laughs). So, if you have to play those eleven songs and then you have to play another ten songs you are like “shit that’s two hours” (laughs). Eleven was not a number that we were striving for it was the number that just fell into place. These are the eleven songs, these are the ones.
Rossco – They transition really well; you have a good mix of your high energy stuff like “The Good and the Bad” all the way to slower tracks in the sense of “Falling off”. It’s a really good mix from start to finish. How did you come up with the Title for the album “Summertime High”?
Kym – We were sort of sitting on “Foolish Appetite” that was sort of in the mix, Gunners did “Appetite for Destruction” and that whole “appetite kind of thing” and when we came up with the album cover and artwork and it had that “Summertime Highs” type of vibe to it. We then kept listening to all the tracks it just had that “Summertime High” and “Summertime” spark of fun energy. When you listen to the album it’s fun to listen to – we then put two and two together and “Summertime High” was a no-brainer.
Rossco – The album cover, I love it.
Kym – (laughs).
Rossco – You have 4 guys parachuting down on a tropical island filled with female natives which is extremely rock star, very cool, who idea was that?
Kym – (laughs) Not to boast but all of ours (laughs).
Rossco – It was extremely cool, I loved it. The music clip for “The Good and the Bad” – I liked it a lot because it showcased the cheeky side that every band member had, and it reflected on how you guys love performing together. I saw that cheekiness / naughty 80’s rock star giving the guy in the sound booth a little bit of lip and saying “No we are doing it our way” which translates really well for the song. How did that idea for the music clip come about and did you always want to have that split of live performing and being in the studio?
Kym – Brain storming ideas especially with music videos as a band we are on point working together. With the first film clip “Art of the Heart” we were all like we need “Roller Girls” and a “Hungry Jacks” and all that sort of shit. Then all of a sudden Lukey is like “Man lets do a bowling alley”! Then that brainstorming just shifted, that was way more doable and that’s how that film clip came about. We go to band practice and jam out, the other half of band practice is brainstorming for video clips. All of a sudden someone will throw something out, we are not sitting there saying “your idea is shit” or anything like that more like “that idea is cool, what if we can mould it into this idea” – we are so lucky to have all of us on board being so open-minded with ideas to get it over the line. Basically all we wanted to portray on this film clip was live and studio base, we already new the studio in Geelong – we were like “fuck it we will film it there”. For the live aspect we were trying to book spots in Melbourne an do a massive Gig day so we could get enough money (laughs) to actually pay for the rental of the studio so we could film the video as well. We got contacted by “Silverback Touring” and they said we are doing a home-gown gig and they were like we want you boys on it. I called them straight back and told them that we want to shoot a film clip, “do you care if we have cameras” I asked – so we killed two birds with the one stone (laughs). The professionalism with filming the clip that Armstrong Pictures had with filming the actual clip, was like “man where these guys to start with” (laughs). We were so happy to find out who these guys were, now we know that anything it possible. Instead of creating that one scene fifty times over – if it is not going to work the first 4 times, lets just fuck it off and lets just do another scene. It just came out so well, when we looked back on the first cuts of the film clip we were like “fuck they have done it, they have done a good job”.
Rossco – It was a very slick clip from start to finish and worked so well with the journey at the start of the studios to having the story rollercoasting to get to where you were at the end where there was the congratulating hug on stage, very cool. Is there anything on the cards for any other songs to have music clips off the album?
Kym – We are talking “Nightmare Games” because it is such a different vibe, shooting a clip like that, brainstorming that is going to be top calibre (laughs), coming up with something that is cool. That song is based on horror 80’s movie – if you listen to it you can pin-point which horror movie it is based on. To put in our YouTube clips it will open up a whole new ball game, no boundaries kind of thing.
Rossco – Were there any songs on the album “Summertime High” that took longer to get on the album as in the writing aspect? Did you have any that were on the backburner for say like eighteen months or was there one that stood out to you that was not quiet ready to be on the first album but made the second?
Kym – Well “Good and the Bad” was a throw away, that was not a song. I wrote some lyrics to it, and it was called fucking “Monster in the Bottle” or something like that and those lyrics just didn’t sit well with how that riff went. That same riff was the riff driver of the song of what we had back then. I wrote the lyrics in the frame of mind that it wasn’t working lets just fuck it off and then it sort of re-birthed itself as we were writing these tunes for the new album. Kudos to Cammy that wrote the riff, he always loved it and didn’t want to fuck it off.
Rossco – (laughs).
Kym – But then Lukey jumped on it and said, “There is something about that riff, we need to have it” so then we revisited it, put new melodies on it, new lyrics on it. The lyrics were not as confronting, and the thought was to write something more about ever-day stuff and it just turned into this love Ballard. Once we heard it come back to us we were like, “Holy fuck this song is pretty good , it’s not bad, that’s our Bon Jovi” (laughs). We called it “Bon Jovi” ’till it had a name (laughs).
Rossco – That is awesome (laughs) I know covid was tough on the music industry particularly on the east coast, you guys did it really tough for a long period of time, how did that affect the birth of “Summertime High” rehearsing, writing, brainstorming? How did you adapt?
Kym – You got be strong on that fucking messenger, facebook messenger the group, if a question came up, we needed an answer now and we were on it. At practice I needed to remind the boys, whipping the boys “When some thing comes through messenger make sure you fucking answer it, I don’t care what you are doing, just do it” (laughs). You have to be brutal that way, with covid and all that shit you can fall into a pattern where we are not going to do anything for two weeks and let’s just fucking chill out because there is nothing to do. Fuck no! There is heaps to do, if you are in lock down and you can’t physically train you can jump on messenger and talk about brainstorming this or brainstorming that or what post are we going to put up in the next two days. There is a heap of shit to be done, I think for our band covid was a blessing in disguise for the break that you have from the normal and realise that this is a business, social media is a big thing this day and age. We are not escaping it, I don’t give a fuck who you are, social media is the one key point of promotion – it’s free, you don’t have to pay for it. It’s one thing that we have really been attacking, keeping up on it, keeping people entertained / amused all that kind of shit. Chris Maric is our mentor at the moment, when he loosened up and told us about these things we are still slowly adapting. We have not just jumped on it; we feel if we just jumped on it people would think that you are just doing this because; but we want to twinge it in with other things. We are slowly doing it and pump it later (laughs). We are not big on personal posting and stuff you know, we are not big on that, to get that to where the band is it’s a whole thing to understand. Algorithms and all that sort of bullshit, there is a lot of shit to get your mind around but having this down time it’s a got thing to learn how to do these things (laughs).
Rossco – (laughs) What’s your favourite song on the album, do you have a favourite child / song?
Kym – Off the album hmmmm (thinking).
Rossco – For me it’s “Falling Off”. I love that song, it is catchy, so relatable, it is slower, but it still has that eighties rock mentality to it. It’s chorus is catchy as all hell. Do you have a favourite one that you love performing?
Kym – I love “Pieces of you love”, there is something about that song, I think it is because it is a bit more sexual (laughs) I don’t know there is just something about it, the way that I wrote the lyric, writing the lyrics at the time you don’t know what you are writing until all of a sudden you are like “lets have a look at it all”. You re-visit a couple of lyrics and tidy it up, they you read it as a full and be like “fuck that’s a jam” some of the lyrics there are a bit naughty but even the instrumental side of things it’s a heavy song – short and sweet. When it was fully written and we first heard it back we were like “fuck” this song has worked out the way that I wanted, that everyone wanted it to be. Even being in the recording process you get three songs fully done then you listen to it and you are like “fuck” then you listen to the next two or three and you are like “fuck these are even better then them two” (laughs), we need to go back but we don’t need to go back just “stop it” lets leave them ones just as they are perfect.
Rossco – If you could take on song off your debut album “So dirty right” and that song was able to fit in well with this album “Summertime High” what would that one song be?
Kym – “So dirty right” the harmonies are good, the chorus is pumping, it’s just one of them songs that when we are jamming we are like “augh” but once we are finished with it we are like “fuck that was satisfying” (laughs). You get a certain satisfaction out of playing that song, that’s why I would add it to the album.
Rossco – Almost like a secrete twelfth track so to speak like a marvel super comic ending. Now with the launch being postponed due to covid and I know you guys have rescheduled a lot of stuff for next Friday I believe.
Kym – Yes.
Rossco – What’s the next big plans for Dangerous Curves, what was on the horizon before this pandemic?
Kym – Oh man touring, touring especially in the home country, we have been offered tours through Europe and stuff. Talking about home much coin it’s costing man, fuck we just want to dominate in our own area at the minute. Touring is a big thing, we are trying to organise a tour for the east coast up to Queensland – Brisbane – Sydney and all that sort of stuff, especially with the pandemic a band from Melbourne it just didn’t work, and I gave up in the end. I was like “fuck this” lets just worry about our launch and what’s in front of us for the next couple of months especially trying to navigate around these lock downs, border shuts. I am not going to call like other bands, it is really difficult to explain now in the minute, it’s like “fuck” I am not going to say too many words as I will get myself into trouble (laughs).
Rossco – (laughs) please don’t.
Kym – It is kind of like you are from Melbourne and we’re from Sydney and you guys are disgusting and we’re not. I know that’s not how it is but in saying that it’s what the media drives, that sort of thing. How are going to promote a Melbourne band when the majority are going to be like “Melbournians they are fucked at the moment” it’s a bad time, it’s a real bad time to try and promote and tour around. Especially if you plan a tour and it is set, then you have to worry about numbers then all of a sudden it shuts down again because Melbourne is in lockdown it is like “fuck, how are we going to push tickets for a Melbourne band” reality is that all your fans are going to come and see you and fair enough but we want people that aren’t necessary our everyday fans to come and check the live show out – broaden those horizons. It is very hard to broaden people’s horizons at the moment, that’s why selling the album online at the moment is so important as most of them are going overseas. They are paying massive with shipping at the moment, shipping is ridiculous we are selling that many CDs to Canada but to Canada it is $24 in shipping – we are selling the CD for $20, they are paying more for shipping than they are for the CD.
Rossco – If that isn’t rock star I don’t know what is (laughs).
Kym – (laugh) We are sitting there thinking we can’t do anything about it, it is out of our hands unless we get a distributor over there to do this and that but at the same time, we are waiting for people to put their hands up to buy a thousand CDs. Sweet we are the middleman, not anyone else. You don’t want a middleman taking eighty percent of this, we are not even making overheads for what we are spending to create these things, and all of this is coming out of our own pockets – that’s how it is. We don’t have a record label at this stage, record labels this day and age are in it for themselves and not anybody else.
Rossco – Once you have dominated your side of the coast is there any appetite over to the west? We seem to be reasonably covid free over here.
Kym – Dead set anywhere we can play, where people can come and see us (laughs) we will definitely go.
Rossco – (laughs) You guys have played and support some massive acts like Chocolate Starfish, Bullet Boys, Fozzy just to name drop a few, I ask you this question. Dangerous Curves are headlining sixty thousand plus filled stadium full to the brim, tell me three supporting artists that you would want to play, they can be dead or alive. Who would they be and why?
Kym – Yeah right (thinking).
Rossco – They are supporting you, you’re not supporting them, everyone is coming to see you – who will be the best fit for your fans.
Kym – That is a question and a half, that’s a hard one actually “fuck” they are coming to see us and no one else? So we need Poison to start with, that’s the crowd demographic we are looking for. That’s such a hard question. Poison to start with then probably…
Rossco – Motley Crue.
Kym – Nah fuck Motley Crue, we love Motley Crue but Motely Crue would just steal it, we need to keep that steal (laughs). Umm maybe then, maybe Aerosmith, they would sit well between us and Poison. They are the American Rolling Stone aren’t they?
Rossco – Pretty much (laughs).
Kym – (laughs) Plus I want to see if Mr Tyler does order chicks to get shaven and bathed before they come to his tent (laughs) and I will be just popping my head in and be like “Hey this shit really does happen” (laughs). If you could rewind it to the good old days, fucking oath those two would be the ones that would be like “This is going to be exciting, this is going to be the one”.
Rossco – Kym it has been an absolute pleasure talking to you, I am looking forward to when you guys can actually get out and gig on the road, no doubt this next Friday will be a big one for you. I wish you all the very best, hopefully we can get that album up to maybe number one with a little bit of poking and prodding because I think that four is a dis-service because it is a smacking album. I thank you for you time, it has been an eye-opener and truly rockstar. Thanks for that chat.
