Maribou State (London) talk about their new LP Portraits and their upcoming Australian tour

London’s Maribou State are heading to Australia for a five day DJ set this month and they kindly took some time out for a chat about the upcoming tour, as well as giving a bit of insight into their debut album Portraits.

Congratulations on the release of your debut album, “Portraits”, this year. How was the process in getting that together? Any particular challenges?

Thanks! The LP actually took almost a year and a half to write. We had very broken studio sessions due to touring commitments so that definitely presented itself as a challenge. We’ve always tried to maintain a relaxed working environment in our studio, never stressing too much or over doing it, which in turn helps to eradicate the usual challenges you might expect. Our studio is a small shed in one of our gardens, so we can come and go when we want, it backs out onto a nice woodland area, so the whole process was just really enjoyable.

Who do you like to listen to? Is there anyone in particular from whom you draw inspiration?

We both listen to a very wide variety of music, some artists you may expect, and others you may be shocked to hear. Either way there’s far too many to list. We’ve recently discovered Unknown Mortal Orchestra, a band called Khruangbin and an act called Nick Hakim, all of which have been influences to us.

You’ve done some great collaborations – are there any others in the works?

Unfortunately at the moment there’s no collaborations on the table. We’re currently just focusing on our live band. We’ve been touring the live show since March and until we look at starting album two (which is very soon) we’ve literally not had any time to be in the studio. As soon as the year is out and the tours are all finished we can start to think about who we would like to get involved and would actually want to be involved!

You’re coming here straight off the back of some festival shows and a UK tour, for those attending your upcoming Australian shows what can they look forward to?

Exactly. Since putting our live show together in March the year has been very busy, as we’ve continued to DJ as well as play live. Unfortunately due to costing, were unable to bring the band out to Australia just yet, so we’ll be DJin on this trip, which is still a lot of fun! People coming to the shows can expect two smiling guys, most likely sun burnt, playing everything from Disco to Drum Solos.

On your previous visits to Australia have you had any close encounters with our myriad of lethal wildlife?

Fortunately there have been no encounters, which I say with relief – as I unfortunately bear a terrible phobia of spiders. I had a real close run in with a Drop Bear when we first headed out to Oz but our good friend Pedestrian thankfully saved the day.

What’s next for Maribou State?

After this DJ tour in Australia, we’re heading out to America for another DJ tour. Then it’s all about a holiday and getting prepared for our next London live show at Koko. After that we’re going straight back to the studio to try and get our heads around album 2!

You can catch Maribou State next week:

Wednesday 11th November – Woolly Mammoth, Brisbane
Thursday 12th November – Oxford Art Factory, Sydney
Friday 13th November – Shadow Electric, Melbourne
Saturday 14th November – Rocket Bar, Adelaide
Sunday 15th November – Garden Party @ The Court, Perth

You can stay up to date with the band here: http://mariboustate.com/

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