IN THE SHADOW OF IT ALL - THE NEW EP FROM SYDNEY/EORA PUNK & ROLL BAND ‘MAC THE KNIFE’
On 'In The Shadow Of It All,' Mac The Knife delves deep into the intricacies of human connection and communication. Setting the tone for this introspective journey is the lead single "Flee."
Vocalist Bryn Chapman Parish shares the band's perspective on the single: "Flee is about the power and limits of words. We aimed to capture that sense of being at a loss for words, when thoughts are scattered, and sentences just won't come together. It's a relatable feeling for anyone who has struggled to express themselves, be it due to stage fright, social anxiety, or during a heated disagreement."
Included in the 'In The Shadow Of It All' EP are well-known tracks like "Less Than Familiar," "Labour In Vain," "Blood of My Blood," and "Curb My Bite," alongside fresh takes on earlier singles such as "Barley Passable" and "LLUX." This mix caters to both longtime fans and newcomers, offering a journey through the band's sound with thrilling surprises.
If you have been following SUBCULTURE? for the past year or so, you would have seen us working across some Creative output, and PR for Mac The Knife on their releases for ‘Blood of My Blood’ and ‘Curb My Bite’ —i’m really happy to have caught up with Anthony and Bryn between their busy schedules to learn a bit more about their new EP ‘In The Shadow Of It All’, their creative processes and upcoming tour dates. —LONG LIVE MTK!
and.. If your an avid fan of The Stokes, Fontaines DC, and or IDLES — your going to love this record, and be hooked!
Hey Lads, How are you doing / who do we have here today?
Heyooo! We got Anthony and and Bryn in the house
Awesome to see 'In The Shadow Of It All' come out this week! How does it feel to have it out there in the public?
It really rewarding to finally have it all out there. We’ve been sitting on these songs for a while now and they have been a big part of our live sets so it’s great to be able to share a pretty good representation of our identity as a group with everyone
I saw you just started your tour with your Sydney show at The Lansdowne Hotel, How did it go?
It was great. We’re always so keen to play a hometown show as everyone there is just oozing with this raw energy and excitement that we really play off on stage. It was also a bit of a landmark gig for us to be upstairs at the Lansdowne so I think it’ll sit with us a memorable stop on the EP your.
Walk us through your favourite songs off the record to perform live?
Oooooooo yeah that is a super hard call to make. Playing a lot of the tracks live really breathes a new energy in to them and so we love how they all present when we bring them out.
I think Labour in Vain always sticks out as a favourite. It encapsulates the emotion and drive which we have as a band and we can always see it just gets everyone up and moving. I feel like it brings the audience closer in to us in a way that is really hard to describe.
Curb my Bite also stands out as it’s just fast and fun and gets Bryn/me out in to the crowd which all of us in the band feed off really well. It also finishes with Curtis playing such a sick solo which really never gets old.
The record really kicks off heavy with the indie punk rock and roll sound of Mac The Knife from the first song 'Flee' before diving into previously released single 'Curb My Bite' - Why Flee first to start the record, and what's the song about?
Well it’s one of the slower more thoughtful songs on the record. As an opener it’s really drivey and ominous across the board which I think drags every in to the listening experience. But then the chorus really punches through which is a really good ramp up in to some of the higher energy tracks that follow it.
In terms of meaning, it explores the notion of stage fright and that feeling of building yourself up to do something and then not being able to follow through on it. Funnily enough it makes it a really powerful opener for me/ us as it ironically is launching us in to unknown territory with releasing the EP and putting ourselves out there so that kind of a nice touch that’s in there for me/us.
Mac gives off so much energy in a similar ballpark to Fountains DC, with borderlining heavier Strokes to me; what were you influenced by while writing this record?
Man it’s like you’re in our heads hahahah. That definitely means a lot hearing that from you as a listener as you’ve hit the nail on the head with two of our biggest influences. I’d have to throw Idles, a bit of Shame, Ice Age and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in the mix as well.
How was it working with Nick at A-Sharp? Was he a part of the production or more so the Engineering etc? Would it be great to talk about his process?
It was really incredible working with Nick Hatzakos because he’s just so insightful and we clicked with him right away, and at A-Sharp, which is such a beautiful space. He really did at bit of everything for us and was so integral in helping us translate what sounds and ideas we had going in our heads in to how and what we were going to play.
We were so lucky to have Michael Khule on board as well who definitely took the reigns on the production side of things, which was no easy task as we were really set on trying to emulate our live sound through the record. But in the end I think they nailed it.
What's the meaning behind the record?
I think after we finished writing retrospectively it was clear to see that there was a motif of coming of age that tied all the tracks together. We were all going through some big changes and quite quickly moving between what are huge stages of our lives and I think that just naturally was reflected in the songwriting. There is a sense of turmoil and uneasiness about the record which often is just expressed as an outburst of emotion and energy that I think a lot of us in our mid 20s can relate to.
I see the EP has remix's on there!, How did those come together with Barley Passable and LLUX? What was it like bringing a sorta new life into Blood Of My Blood and Less Than Familiar?
It was such a new experience for us but we LOVED it. The BP boys are so so talented and I couldn’t think of better people to hand Blood off to. They worked so hard on it and you can really see that in the production and finish in it and it does really feel like a song that takes our sound and pushed it in to the French house world.
The LLUX remix was definitely more of an In The Shadow Of It All Easter egg as our mate Wade kind of sprung it on us when he was mastering the BP remix. He absolutely blew us away as well and it was so cool to see the songs take in such a unique and powerful direction.
You've got a few more dates on this tour! — Where are you looking forward to playing again and any cool locals you're looking forward to performing beside?
Well we’re just about wrapped up and we’ve just got Newcastle next week for the public holiday eve. I think we’ve been so stoked with everyone we’ve played with across the tour and have been so lucky that all our supports have just been able to elevate the gigs to a new level.
What's next for Mac the Knife after the tour ends?
Well I think we’re holding our cards pretty close to our chest but we’ve got some things cooking at the moment. I think it’s fair to say we’ve really enjoyed this release and want to get back on the horse and release some more music ASAP.
Any last words
If anyone can get us in contact with Idles, hit us up! Would be the dream to support them when they come back next year. We are willing to sell our soul.
MTK forever xxx
Flee
Curb My Bite
Less Than Familiar
Blood Of My Blood
Labour In Vain
Blood Of My Blood - Barley Passable Remix
Less Than Familiar - LLUX Remix