The Sea Shall Not Have Them

THE TIDE IS RISING FOR BRISSY BAND THE SEA SHALL NOT HAVE THEM, AS CURT EMERTON TELLS LUKE HUDSON

Instrumental rock outfit The Sea Shall Not Have Them create the kind of pretty, ambient sounds showcased in new ep Traces, which sees them tagged as one of Brisbane’s must-watch outfits this year.

“I felt as though the material that came together for the EP could really stand on its own,” guitarist / bassist Curt Emerton begins. “I also wanted to leave the music open for the listener’s personal interpretation too. I love hearing the use of vocals more so as an instrument, as opposed to possibly saying something that’s been said before. But at the same time, I do admire people that do it, because it takes a lot of guts. We’re not ruling out vocals in the future though, whether by me or someone else.”

Emerton says the EP was based on a short story he wrote a few years ago about a man who wanted to escape everyday life by living underwater.

“He thought it would be more peaceful, but he ultimately found it more terrifying because he was out of his depth. So feelings of displacement, struggle, lack of breath and so on came to be reflected in the music. But not long after the story came together, my partner and I went through a fairly profound life changing experience. And there were some parallels there too.”

Emerton says although instrumental music is not new to society, both he and Mat, the band’s drummer, are still stunned by the resistance to it sometimes.

“Some people just can’t get their head around it. But you are never going to please everyone, and you wouldn’t want to either. We try please ourselves first and foremost, you have to. But really, we’re just a humble little 2 piece that’s really digs playing live when the opportunity arises. Having really loud sounds swirling around and through your head and body is the fun part!”

Who: The Sea Shall Not Have Them
What: Traces EP (Independent)
Where & When: The Zoo Thursday May 15
- TIME OFF STREET PRESS BRISBANE

Instrumental music is sometimes met with resistance by music-loving punters, but local Brissie/Gold Coast act, ‘The Sea Shall Not Have Them’ are turning heads and swaying opinions with their lush, cinematic and yet at times totally rock-n-roll soundscapes.

Toted by local street press as the ‘outfit to watch’, we are proud to feature the primarily instrumental act ‘The Sea Shall Not Have Them’ as our feature artists this week.

The duo’s debut EP ‘Traces’ is distributed by Musicadium, and we are highly impressed with this journey into their beautiful, sound-driven world.

Curt Emerton who is responsible for the guitars, bass and all other sound effects took the time to answer some questions for us on Pink Floyd, music as a therapeutic experience, and even the possibility of kazoos making an appearance on the next album.

There has been a lot of resistance to instrumental music in the popular arena, why do you think that is? Do you see this changing?

Curt Emerton (guitars / bass / noises) – Most people want a simple melody and and a lyric to hang their hearts on, and that’s cool. I love that too. But I think the acceptance for instrumental music is growing. Certainly seeing an instrumental act live, an obvious example being Mogwai, can change your perception about the need for lyrics. It was really heartening to see Explosions In The Sky sell out The Zoo earlier this year. I’m in no way comparing us to them, but you look around and think “wow, people are really into this”. Instrumental music is more of a visceral experience. It really feels that way to me anyway – playing it and listening to it.

What would be your favourite instrumental track of all time?

CE – That’s a really tough question. It would change every week. From the past, the version of “A Saucerful Of Secrets” from Pink Floyd’s “Live In Pompeii” is pretty hard to top. Technically, there IS singing, but David Gilmour is using his voice more as an instrument than trying to get his point across through words. More recently, I am loving a song called “Controle” (sic) by a New Zealand band called Jakob.

If you could collaborate with any vocalist (living or dead) who would you choose?

CE – Jeff Buckley was an amazing vocalist and could suit some of the stuff I am currently demoing. Robert Smith would be another one, although his voice is so instantly recognisable, people would immediately think it’s a new Cure song.

What drew you to creating instrumental music rather than vocal-based music?

CE –The material that is on “Traces” really lent itself to having no vocals. I initially had a hard time convincing even Mat (Wilton – drums/percussion) about the instrumental direction of “Traces”. But it wasn’t a conscious decision to head this way, it kind of just happened. But as we write and play new material, it now just feels comfortable doing it this way. People come and see you, and by the second song, they get where you are coming from. If anything, it allows them to focus on the music more too. But, and I’ve said this before, we’re not saying we’ll never use vocals. You never know…

You have mentioned that the EP ‘Traces’ has a lot of parallels to a life-changing experience that occurred in your personal life. Do you sometimes find music that you have written about an emotional time difficult to listen to or do you feel that the whole process is cathartic and therapeutic?

CE – The process is more cathartic and therapeutic I think. Weirdly enough, given some of the emotional ties to some of the “Traces” material, the songs are a lot of fun to play live. It’s weird balancing act. While you never forget the origins of the songs, you have to move on from those feelings too. Otherwise, you’ll go around in circles.
Where would your ideal venue and location be to play at?

CE – I’ve always loved the Tivoli. It’s a great room and the crowd capacity is just right. Doing something really left of centre would be cool, like playing in a cave! Anywhere where there is a good room and pa, I am more than happy.

And finally, are there any really strange or exotic instruments that you would love to experiment with? Can we expect to hear some kazoo’s on the next album?

CE – I haven’t thought of using a kazoo. That’d be very cool, filtering it through massive washes of delay. I guess a sitar would nice to fool around on too. Something about the sound of those things really gets to me. I’d love to use a toy piano on something. Any instrument in the right situation can work. Mat has some exotic drums at home, and I think he is quietly itching to break out some of those. But I just love playing guitar so much, even though I’m an average player. I’m still pretty keen to see what sounds I can wrestle out of that.
- MUSICADIUM WORLDWIDE DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION

If nothing else, tonight’s bill demonstrates that the masses, very frequently, get it wrong. A beautifully captivating mélange of post-rock, electronic flourishes and angular riffs, as well as one of Brisbane’s most promising bands, two-piece The Sea Shall Not Have Them criminally open to an audience you could count without having to kick your shoes off for access to more digits. The band only occasionally address their meagre audience with dry asides and song titles, but they do their dedicated fans no disservice. Tracks like “Fluid” and “Theme From An Airless Room” shimmer with post-apocalyptic melody and wide-screen melancholia and the duo’s ability to govern such gigantic tracks in a live environment will always remain impressive, even when there are decidedly few people to impress... - TIME OFF STREET PRESS BRISBANE MAY 21 2008

Gold Coast's TSSNHT is a breath of fresh air for Queensland's post-rock scene. They quickly draw comparisons to bands such as Mogwai, Cult Of Luna and the like with their instrumental soundscapes, which benefit from contrasting gentle-moving melodies with huge riffs that scream out with urgency. If you prefer to go on a journey than listen to a trendy rock song, then check it out and support quality local music by getting along to one of their upcoming shows.

8/10 (Jake 3 – Tsunami Magazine April 08)
- TSUNAMI MAGAZINE, QUEENSLAND APRIL 2008

It’s a chilly night tonight especially here on the wharf, but quite a few fans have braved the cold to watch Gold Coast’s The Sea Shall Not Have Them (TSSNHT) for the launch of their new EP ‘Traces’.

TSSNHT are an instrumental two piece, classed as ‘post-rock’, with Curt Emerton on guitars/bass and noise programming and Matt Wilton on drums and percussion.

This is the first time I’ve watched TSSNHT live and honestly I’m blown away by the sound that comes from this duo and echoes out across the water. The word ‘big’ just doesn’t cut it. I’m reminded tonight as I sit here and take notes of a question in my 6 year old son’s homework recently where he had to come up with other words that meant the same as ‘big’. He came up with huge, enormous, giant, large, humungous and ginormous just to name a few….

Drummer Matt, who plays with head phones on for better concentration, seems to be totally devoted and has mastered his craft. Curt shows such an intense interest in his guitar playing and noise making that he seems oblivious to anyone else. Together, they take us on a journey.

It’s the type of music that’s perfect to listen to with your eyes shut or in a dark room while imagining victorious movie scenes being played out in your head. At random times during their set I can hear how I would go about adding vocals but really the music is epic enough it does not need them. Without the singing you can focus on the power. The strobe lights, smoke and erratic come flowing, and the dancer down the front helps accentuate this.

Sometimes with long instrumental sets, like the ends of some Sonic Youth gigs I’ve watched in the past, you quickly get over it when it seems to become long, unstructured and impromptu. Don’t get me wrong, I am a fan of Sonic Youth, however, TSSNHT is different. Of course, I know they have to be, seeing as they are soley instrumental and tonight they still sometimes have that chaotic sound. But, TSSNHT’s music has a pattern, a rhythm, melodies and meticulous timing that must come from countless hours of practice. It has urgency that captures your attention and absorbs you in the sound of the moment as it has done this evening. You could almost lose track of time… listen to The Sea Shall Not Have Them with the lights out or at www.myspace.com/theseashallnothavethem.
- JOSIE COOPER - GOLD COAST MUSIC INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION