Monday, October 4, 2021

(Mini) October Long Weekend Monday Spotlight: Amyl and the Sniffers

Concluding the long weekend of (Mini) October Long Weekend Monday Spotlights, Amyl and the Sniffers.

We made it to Monday after a regular weekend full of picnics.

So let's shine the light on pub rock/punk rock Amyl and the Sniffers from locked down Melbourne.

Amy Taylor, Bryce Wilson, Dec Martens and Fergus Romer are the ARIA Awards winners (in 2019), for their self-titled debut record winning the Best Rock Album category.

The band was formed by housemates Taylor, Wilson and Martens and former band member Calum Newton (AKA Candy) in Balaclava, Melbourne. 

The four wrote, recorded, and released their first EP, Giddy Up, in a span of 12 hours.

Calum left the band to pursue solo music and was replaced by Fergus Romer. 

They take their name from the Australian slang for amyl nitrite, also known as poppers.

Amy Taylor compared their music to the drug in an interview with Paul Glynn of the BBC: "In Australia we call poppers Amyl. So you sniff it, it lasts for 30 seconds and then you have a headache – and that's what we're like!"

Their sound has been compared to 1970s hard rock groups such as Iggy Pop and The Stooges and The Damned.

However, Taylor has cited a number of varying influences including Minor Threat, Ceremony, AC/DC, Sleaford Mods, Dolly Parton and Cardi B.

In February 2020, the self-titled album was nominated for the Australian Music Prize of 2019.

In July this year, Amyl and the Sniffers announced their second studio album Comfort to Me. Including lead single Guided by Angels, along with Security and Hertz.

Comfort to Me album was initially scheduled for release in early October 2021, however was pushed up to 10 September.

Until next time that's it for the (Mini) Monday Spotlight series. Back to TV tomorrow with big finale reviews of Dynasty, Mr Corman alongside Stan hit Billions. There will also be big hits like Vigil getting my verdict.

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