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ON THE COUCH WITH: Ash Grunwald

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ARTIST INTERVIEW

Access All Areas.net.au: An all electronic album? Collaborations with Kram? A steamy calendar for vegetarians? Have we got the right Ash on the line?

Access All Areas.net.au: On the eve of his latest release “Hot Mama Vibes” we welcome to AAA and thank him for his time- Ash Grunwald! How’s it going Ash?
Ash Grunwald: Great thanks.

Access All Areas.net.au: We’re speaking on the eve of the release- do you get nervous at all when you have new material?
Ash Grunwald: I don’t know- you do like to see how it’s gunna go but at the same time you’ve gotta have pretty thick skin too because you can get pretty varied reviews. The further you go on in your career the more likely you are to have people bag you so yeah it can be a bit nerve racking but you just get excited that it’s all finished because there’s a lot of stuff you have to do to make an album happen.

Access All Areas.net.au: On that...do you usually plan a new album or does it just happen ?
Ash Grunwald: Yeah you do have to be pretty organised about it which doesn’t work very well for me (laughs). There is a lot of stuff that goes in to it though. A lot of deadlines....that side of the whole thing can be pretty difficult sometimes.

Access All Areas.net.au: So I see there’s quite a few different people involved in “Hot Mama Vibes” tell us about some of the collaborations.
Ash Grunwald: Yeah, I used about three or four different producers from the hip hop scene. There was Countbounce who did the last album and he’s really good on his production. Really crisp, clean production. Also a guy called Mr Trials from the Funkoars who’s more from the hip hop scene. And then Chasm from Sydney. Then I sort of produced the band tracks and there were about eight band tracks on there.

Access All Areas.net.au: This album seems quite different in terms of sound, it’s more electronic than your previous albums, has that been a gradual change in sound for you?
Ash Grunwald: It’s sort of been a gradual thing over time. I’ve wanted to use more of the electronic elements for quite a long time but because I was from the roots scene I guess I was a bit hesitant. I thought people, my actual fan base, wouldn’t really accept it. As much as they did when I did “Fish out of water” they were really supportive and it went really well. It had the best acclaim out of all of my albums so I sort of felt encouraged before this one to do whatever I felt. It really felt like the audience had given me the green light to experiment a bit more.

Access All Areas.net.au: Does this crossover in sound, as encouraged as you felt, make you cautious at all with taking the new album on the road?
Ash Grunwald: Nah not at all. I’m actually really looking forward to it because I’ve got a four piece band and we’ve actually done rehearsals which is something that I’ve never really done before (laughs).

Access All Areas.net.au: So how have the rehearsals been going then?
Ash Grunwald: Ah good, we do really long days! It’s amazing how long it takes to do! I just can’t believe it. I don’t know what I was doing beforehand! I’d give guys a gig and I’d be asking them to do something quite difficult and then they’d ask if we could rehearse and I’d be like “Nah! No time for that. Just rock up on to the gig!”. I mean it was even with the Falls Festival and really big gigs like that. Yeah I don’t think it was very fair of me actually (laughs) now looking back on it!

Ash Grunwald: It’s going to be really interesting though. It’s a real mixture. We’ve got one guy playing MPC and drums and synths, another guy triggering the beats from the computer and playing percussion, and then another guy playing junk percussion like bits of car door, kitchen sinks, and different things that go bang and clang. So it’s a pretty eccentric little set up we have going.

Access All Areas.net.au: Yeah a bit of everything, no wonder you need rehearsals!
Ash Grunwald: (laughs) Yeah certainly a few things to get together.

Access All Areas.net.au: You’re currently on a full on string of live gig dates- I imagine life on the road must be quite difficult to juggle with family life. Is it challenging to get the right balance?
Ash Grunwald: Well it’s sort of the way it’s been for a long time now with my partner Dani. We’ve been together for nine years and we’ve got an eighteen month old daughter so a lot of elements of it are actually good. We’ve travelled a lot of the world together and now our daughter Sunny, when she was just one year old had already been to Canada and Europe and different places. But you do have a lot of time away from home as well. You’ve got the choice of either moving around as a family from gig to gig which, if it’s done continuously, can be quite difficult and tiring, or spending a lot of time away from the family. You’ve got to basically mix and match to get the ultimate formula going.

Access All Areas.net.au: Do you have plans to take Hot Mama Vibes overseas in 2010?
Ash Grunwald: Yep definitely. And it’s a good example of that family thing because the first two months touring Australia I’ll gig and then fly back to the family for a few days and then after that we all go overseas for a month. We’re going to Belgium, Portugal, France and a few other places and then we come back and I tour Western Australia. So it’s sort of a mix and match to make it all work.

Access All Areas.net.au: Sounds like you’ve got it sussed out!
Ash Grunwald: (laughs) Yeah well we’ve got a lot of practice! We’ve probably been living on the road for the past four years I guess.

Access All Areas.net.au: On a less serious note- I know you’ve won a swag of various awards over the years but one you’ve scored this year is one of the “Sexiest celebrity vegetarians of 2010”! You’ve gotta be happy with that?
Ash Grunwald: (laughs) Oh I never thought I’d find myself in that category....but yes I was very stoked by that! (laughs)

Access All Areas.net.au: You didn’t have to make any appearances as a result of the award- no shirtless photoshoots or anything?
Ash Grunwald: (laughs) No, no, no nothing like that! But it was good to be in it- maybe if I’d won it I’d have had to do something like that.

Access All Areas.net.au: Alright well before we head off I always try and get a bit of a scoop at the end my interviews- is there a hint of something you can give us an exclusive to AAA?
Ash Grunwald: Let me think.....mmm well I just can’t wait get on tour but I’m going to be starting on the new album soonish. I’m building a new studio at my place so then I’ll start working on the next album. I am toying with the idea of going more into the electronic area and maybe even doing an album with more guest MC’s and stuff on it so I can just take it in a completely different direction. There was also half the idea of doing an album or some collaborations with Kram from Spiderbait. So there you go- that’s a half scoop!

Access All Areas.net.au: Fantastic- we scored a bundle of scoops there! So no plans for a 2011 Vegetarian Calendar from Ash Grunwald? (laughs)
Ash Grunwald: (laughs) No, no nothing like that at this stage! Might have to work out before that!

Access All Areas.net.au: To keep up to date with Ash Grunwald’s latest news, touring dates and possible calendar details head to ashgrunwald.com. Hot Mama Vibes is available now online and in stores. A big thanks to Ash Grunwald for speaking to us today!
Ash Grunwald: No worries, thanks a lot for having me.

Interview by Adam Todd

INTERVIEW - APRIL 21 2009

Access All Areas.net.au: Hey Ash, how’s it going?
Ash Grunwald: Hey i’m good, just on my way across the nullabor heading to WA for a surfing holiday before i start a national tour, so i’m doing good.

Access All Areas.net.au: What’s been doing lately for you musically?
Ash Grunwald: Well not too much, i’ve been having a bit of a break in between touring, which has been going really well. I’ve had a lot of great shows since my most recent record “fish out of water” came out & i’ve had the chance to get overseas for a few festivals & other things, so its been good. I’ve got a big national tour coming up in a month or so, which will take in a lot of WA, along with south Australia, Melbourne & the east coast of Australia. Its been great for me how things have gone with the record, so i’m happy.

Access All Areas.net.au: You had your most recent release in the record “fish out of water” in august of last year, how do you feel it has gone for you?
Ash Grunwald: This record has really surprised me in how well it has actually done, i mean it really has surprised me the way it has been received. I’ve surprisingly had songs from the record not only on triple j radio, but also on stations like triple m & some tv shows & stuff like that so its been a real surprise to me & i’ve been really greatful for everything i’ve been able to achieve on this record.

Access All Areas.net.au: With the record, you worked with the dj of Melbourne hiphop group Tzu to create a lot of beats which overdubbed the acoustic & lap steel guitars you usually play, was this the direction you wanted to do or just something opportunistic that occurred?
Ash Grunwald: Well yeah, this was the direction i wanted for the record & was really happy with how my ideas turned out. On the previous record, i worked some beats into the music with the producers in the studio i was working in & was able to mix them in with some instrumental sounds & as much as i liked what we’d accomplished, i wanted to take it one step futher & work with someone who knew about creating a beat & how it worked & everything with a beat, so i looked around for a proper dj in the hiphop scene. I found one by opportunity, i bumped into the Tzu guys in Melbourne & got talking to their dj about my ideas & from there we got working & we were able to create some great stuff. There’s still of course my guitars & other percussion but we really got the beat into the ,music which is what i wanted & was really pleased with how things turned out with working with the dj on this record.

Access All Areas.net.au: With the record, you had a couple singles in “breakdown” & “devil called me a liar” which both had good airplay on triple j radio & other networks, were you surprised at all at how well these went getting airplay for yourself?
Ash Grunwald: Of course, i’m always pleased in how my music goes & its always a surprise to me as to how a song goes. Personally i’m surprised if one of my songs makes it onto triple j alone, so to get onto triple m & other networks was just amazing for myself & hopefully i can move forward from here & really get some more music out there with the impressions i’ve made with these stations.

Access All Areas.net.au: With the single “breakdown” it made it into the triple j hottest 100 for 2008 at no. 50, was this a surprise to you & were you pleased with where it came in?
Ash Grunwald: Well to be honest, this is my first ever entry & to get it into the middle spot at 50 was very pleasing. I’ve been working hard on my songs for a number of years now & to be recognised in a countdown such as this is always a real privledge to an artist. I feel really special about this as its not the usual for someone like myself, i’m usually happy to get a song played at like 3am on the station, so to have it in such rotation & in a great position was really cool.

Access All Areas.net.au: Having been playing music solo for a number of years, do you feel each record is a step up in success from its previous effort?
Ash Grunwald: I think so, well actually for me its about 2 steps up from the previous success. On each solo record i’ve done, i’ve been able to do some great shows & get out to some really amazing places & this has continued with the most recent record, which was really fun to record & now play on tour.

Access All Areas.net.au: With the record, you have toured overseas on this one, as a solo musician, do you feel it is difficult to play big shows such as festivals overseas or do you feel it isn’t an issue?
Ash Grunwald: Well i feel that up until about 5 or 6 years ago, it definitely wouldn’t have been possible, but with artists such as Xavier Rudd, John Butler & others, the doors for solo musicians has really opened up here in Australia & overseas. The confidence of an artist to play solo to a crowd comes to the individual & i feel it comes naturally to myself which is something i really enjoy. I’ve had the opportunity to play to places in Europe & in Japan as well as here in Australia & the shows have all been great. I’ve got some more international shows in the future & i’m looking forward to getting out to places like Canada & back to England again to do some shows which will all be great.

Access All Areas.net.au: With your time off, is there any hobbies you like to do in your spare time?
Ash Grunwald: Well yeah, i surf & skateboard which are both fun, then i enjoy spending time with my baby & also enjoy just travelling around as its always fun to go on an adventure.

Access All Areas.net.au: In the coming months you have a large Australian tour to do, are you looking forward to this?
Ash Grunwald: Yeah, i’m looking forward to getting back out on the road, starting with WA & on from there. Its been a while since i’ve had a tour like this, so its exciting & will be a lot of fun.

Access All Areas.net.au: At the shows, in the set will it be mainly a showcase of the new record or some variation with older material?
Ash Grunwald: I’m looking for it to be mainly a showcase of the fish out of water record, being the new record i feel its what the people will be looking to hear. I’m of course going to play a bunch of old material, probably mainly from the previous record as well as some older stuff, i’ve got a 1 & a half hour show so who knows what i’ll come up with for the sets, maybe even some new material.

Access All Areas.net.au: With the tour, will you be solo or will you be accompanied by some backing musicians?
Ash Grunwald: I’ll be touring with some backing musicians, i’ve got people playing percussion & some other instruments. The guys who are backing me are simply there to enhance the solo show i perform, not to be a band as such, i’m not into having a band when its basically myself performing, but the guys will be fun to have on the road.

Access All Areas.net.au: With the shows, do you have any supporting artists?
Ash Grunwald: Yeah, there’s going to be a solo dub artist by the name of Soria as well as another instrumental band who will be playing, they are both greatly talented artists so it will be nice to have them opening up the shows.

Access All Areas.net.au: With the shows, you seem to have a wall of sound you create, do you feel you have developed this up over the years & can the fans expect to see something like this on the upcoming tour?
Ash Grunwald: Well of course they can expect it, its how i play. With this “wall of sound” i have, its what i’ve worked on over the years as a solo artist, its what you need to be able to play to large audiences when you’re the only person up there playing otherwise its going to be a quiet show for a lot of people. I feel i really can control a good crowd through my show techniques & its always fun to get a real big crowd going to the music i play. Of course i’m still a blues musician but then again i’ve progressed into a lot of other styles so i combine it all to create my show & i feel its a good show that people can enjoy.

Access All Areas.net.au: Do you have much else coming up in the near future?
Ash Grunwald: Its just touring from here on in & once thats done, i’ll probably take time off to work on new music.

Access All Areas.net.au: Well Ash, thanks for your time, its been a real pleasure speaking to you, all the best for the tour, have a nice day.
Ash Grunwald: Thanks mate, have a good day, bye.

Interview By: Ben Coby.

ARTIST BIOGRAPHY

ARIA Award nominated roots troubadour Ash Grunwald has been locked away in studios around the country for the past few months laying down tracks to his impending fifth LP, Hot Mama Vibes due in store July 2010 through Shock.

Hot Mama Vibes is the follow up record to his successful, ARIA nominated LP ‘Fish Out Of Water’ and sees Ash continue down an unmarked road of collaboration with some of the country’s most respected Hip-Hop artists, who’ve stepped in to produce and contribute to his unmistakable sound.

Musical guests such as Mr. Trials (Funkoars), Count Bounce (TZU) and Chasm (Astronomy Class) have joined Ash on this recent journey, basting his traditional blues and roots sounds with beats and adding flavours of funk round every chord change.

The exchange has spawned successful collaborations to date. Ash Grunwald’s track ‘Fish Out Of Water’ was produced by TZU’s Count Bounce while Grunwald’s soulful chorus to Funkoars ‘Little Did I Know’ was a Triple J favourite and was followed by a subsequent tour earlier this year. Ash Grunwald has also featured on the Astronomy Class track ‘All I Want’.

Walking is the first single off ‘Hot Mama Vibes’. The booty shakin’ ditty is a dirty, rocking, Howlin’ Wolf inspired tune about a man trying to get back to his woman before sunrise.

www.ashgrunwald.com

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