Release Date: Friday 13th of APRIL 2018
Not afraid to dig deep emotionally, the Collegians band from Melbourne, Australia, are set to reach out to listeners all over the world with their unique brand of bittersweet alt-rock. Fronted by the brooding and raw-throated vocals of British-born lead-singer Glenn Patrick, Collegians have succeeded in creating music that connects on a deeply emotional level with many listeners.
Exposed Vocals Score: 8.7/10
Embracing pop-hooks, dark-synths, and a rock-backbone, Collegians bring together both echoes from the past, and current modern contemporary grittiness, in-order to create music that is both powerful and honest.
Their stories of isolation and desperation, of hope and desire, are what make their unique brand of sound stand out in the crowd, and what has listeners coming back for more.
Formed in 2014, the band inked a deal with music label Cultivator Records in 2015, and work on their new album started with the groups exciting debut-track “Vaccine” and follow up “Black Mass”.
Now with the anticipated release of “killer” due to drop on the 13th of April, their third installment is already creating hype on all the media platforms.
Collegians over the past 8 months have made steady head way taking out a finalist position in the U.S.A songwriting competition and walking away with the honorable mention prize, but more recently they have secured not one but 4 finalist positions in the International Songwriting Competition representing Australia in the Rock genre with Aussie greats Birds Of Tokyo.
With every member of the band confident and well-versed in playing live shows, Collegians are focused on creating a live experience that captures the raw emotional power that can be found in their new album. This desire to reach out to a wider audience by unleashing their explosive energy on stage, is something that the band takes very seriously, as Glenn has been quoted as saying;
‘We all got into music because of the connection it makes with other people, no matter where you are, what you’re into. Music is such a blend these days that an audience reflects that. We just want to get onto that emotional level with crowds, and with whoever gets into the music. It’s all give and take, and we’re looking forward to the possibilities that lie ahead.’
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?
Collegians: Three of us grew up together, in the western suburbs of Melbourne, while our singer, who was born in England, spent a little time there before coming to Australia.
Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?
Collegians: Make sure your songs are the strongest you can make them, then tailor your live set to incorporate this. Before you gig, there might be a few things to consider. Do you want to slog it out and build your fan base steadily or try and fast track it? If you’re going the organic route, choose some bands you might want to play with and that are a good fit, and get some gigs with them. Work on getting as many support slots as you can. If you want to go the less frequent gig route, the quality of your songs is essential, and your social media numbers need to be so good, the likelihood of successful turn outs at your gigs will increase. As for airplay, that’s another dimension entirely. Firstly, your songs need to stand out, and depending on the genre, they need to sound as good as the best that gets played, or better. But it’s not just about the song, though that is the crucial, critical ingredient. It’s about how that song gets the attention of the music loving public, and that’s where it gets tricky, especially in such a saturated market of great songs and artists. Persistence helps, of course.
Exposed Vocals: Do you ever make mistakes during performances? How do you handle that?
Collegians: Everyone makes mistakes. Even musicians. Depending on the kind of mistake, a performance without one, is a rare entity. Generally, the best way to handle a mistake is take note of it, then carry on as if you hadn’t made one. On most occasions, the adrenaline and excitement that everyone present is experiencing, leaves little room for contemplating the consequences or execution of a mistake. It all happens so fast, which is the beauty of a live performance, that a mistake usually goes unnoticed by the audience anyway. And sometimes, mistakes can be good, they’re a very human thing.
Exposed Vocals: Do you tour? Anything interesting happen on tour that you think our readers would enjoy hearing about?
Collegians: Each of us has toured with other bands, quite extensively, but with this band, we have yet to embark on such an undertaking. We feel we are at the early stages of establishing a base, we’re just getting as many songs out there as we can, before we release an album. We intend to tour once the album is released.
Exposed Vocals: Any planned studio upgrades? What are you working with now?
Collegians: Every person in the band has their own set-up, and their own particular favourite software and studio toys but we do all our finished work using Pro Tools.
Exposed Vocals: How do you find ways to promote your music? What works best for you?
Collegians: Keeping a constant online presence, collecting as much content as we can, sometimes using the services of an online PR company can help too.
Exposed Vocals: If you could perform anywhere and with any artists (Dead or Alive) where and who would it be with? Why?
Collegians: That’s a difficult question, there are so many artists (dead and alive) we would love to perform with, too many to mention. Having said yet, we’d also love to be part of what’s going on right at this moment, with new artists, we hope to get on some big outdoor shows later in the year.
Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?
Collegians: We’ll be releasing another single in the next couple of months, then an EP and then another single to coincide with the album.
Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?
Collegians: I think making music is so habitual for us, not making it would be tantamount to jeopardising our health.
Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in the next year or so?
Collegians: An album’s worth of great songs, then some live dates across the country(Australia) and in the US.
