Getting to know Carb on Carb
New Zealand-based emotive-punk duo Carb on Carb are Nicole Gaffney (vocals, guitar) and James Stutely (drums). They’ve just released their new single and are hitting the road soon. We asked them to tell us about themselves:
We are… James and Nicole. We are two people who love to tour, eat fake meat and swim under waterfalls. And we are coming back to Australia in couple weeks time!
“It’s Been a Rough Year” is… out now and we’re very happy that it is, we’ve been working towards getting this new music out for so long that it is such a relief. It’s about those end of year retrospective moments when you’re feeling run down and maybe disappointed in your accomplishments or lack thereof, but recognising that sticking around and continuing to try and be a good person is maybe enough.
Our second album is… coming out in May. It’s a little scary – we’ve invested so much work and heart in it. We recorded it in Sydney last year, then sent it to the US to be mixed by Chris Teti, who in my opinion produces the best sounding emo records out there at the moment, so that was a little dream come true. And also I think what the album became was hugely affected by the fans we gained with the last album. The support we received gave us the confidence to write something ambitious and cohesive, and I honestly believe the album would be very different and not as good without that! It’s called For Ages.
Home is… the best album by The Hotelier. But really, home is the North Island of New Zealand. We’ve spent a lot of time driving up and down it and getting to know all the beautiful spots that are tucked away. So many amazing waterfalls, springs, forests etc hidden away in patches of farmland.
James grew up in Whanganui, Nicole in Auckland and we’ve lived and played music in both Auckland and Wellington. With the regular touring and visiting friends and family that we do, we feel at home in places all over the island.
We spend too much time…
Nicole is currently addicted to the Sims phone game and the new Queer Eye. James spends a lot of time mulling over spreadsheets, Google maps and checking prices of flights and rental cars.…a bit dry, but at least it allows us to tour as much as we do with little money.
We’ve never… wanted to add a bassist to the band. I [James] was thinking about putting on a prank show though where I ask like 9 people to play bass in the band and go from 2 piece to 11 piece with 9 bassists and be like “are you happy now?”. I got as far as making a list of potential members but decided finding 9 bass amps would be too much of a hassle considering the prank itself is probably not that funny.
It might surprise people to learn that… Nicole is one of the main coordinators of Girls Rock Camp! Aotearoa, the New Zealand edition of the international programme. She worked as a mentor at the first one in Australia in 2016, and it’s been a big part of her life since then.
…
Carb on Carb upcoming tour dates:
Wednesday 14 March – Crown & Anchor, Adelaide
Thursday 15 March – Yarra Hotel, Melbourne
Saturday 17 March – No Front Fences 2, Canberra
Sunday 18 March – House Show, Doonside
Wednesday 21 March – Hamilton Station Hotel, Newcastle
Friday 23 March – Marrickville Bowling Club, Sydney
Keep up to date with Carb on Carb on Facebook.
Interview by Bobby Townsend.
