Supermarket Sweet

Melbourne’s greasy electro-punk geeks Damn Arms are the latest in a deluge of bands to arrive in the UK from Down Under who look set to put Aussie rock right back on the international rock map (Jet were a joke, right?). Back home, where it’s sunny, cheap to live, the food’s incredible and everyone’s friendly, they go drinking with other trendy Melbourne bands like Cut Copy. When spoilt grindie brats Test Icicles booked their last UK tour, they refused to leave their bedsit hovel without three things: guaranteed internet access in each hotel, three pairs of vintage 1990 Air Jordans, and these guys on the bill.

Vice: So what are you making of British cuisine? Tim (bass/vocals): I really like the supermarkets. You guys have so many more ready meals than us. I heard some ridiculous statistic about how many frozen lasagnas Tesco sell every second. I can’t remember how many it was but it was an incredible amount. My favorite thing I’ve tasted over here so far are those maple and pecan slices you can get in the bakery section of pretty much every kind of shop actually. Simon (drums): Yeah, you guys like mixing shit up in your shops, like those triangle packets of cold sandwiches. I honestly don’t think I’ve entered one retail establishment since I’ve been in this country that hasn’t got a fridge packed with those things. Yama (synths/vocals): The only thing I’ll remember about food in this place is fucking chips. Chips have accompanied everything I’ve ordered over here, whether I’ve asked for them or not. It’s making me ill. What’s everyone listening to in Melbourne? Ian (guitar): Well no one is really feeling American bands anymore. It’s all about British music at the moment, I think people have had enough of America’s bullshit. But metal is coming back in a big way. Isn’t black metal this year’s grime? Tim: Yeah, especially now that Dev from Test Icicles has been wearing a Darkthrone T-shirt on tour to get the ball rolling. Are there any Aussie bands people should watch out for? Yama: Sure, heaps. Melbourne is the only place where anything happens music-wise, the only place that’s producing really interesting stuff. People should check out My Sister The Cop, Children Collide, Midnight Juggernauts and The Presets. And us, of course.