They Must Be a Dream: Hackney-based psych-rock outfit Tempesst breaks down their debut LP

In the opening shot of the video for “Mushroom Cloud”, the lead single from Tempesst’s debut album “Must Be A Dream”, released Sept. 30, lead singer Toma Banjanin, wears tears artfully drawn on his cheeks in a playful yet strange homage to everyone’s favorite prison tattoo. He sings directly to the camera, alone on center stage, against a background of shimmery rainbow streamers. As the camera pans back slowly, the stage is revealed to be part of a nondescript banquet hall, prompting you to wonder  “which senior’s bingo game did they break up to shoot this?” As the rest of the band enter the frame, set up playing their instruments somewhat haphazardly on the banquet hall floor, it becomes clear that the name of the game is suede and corduroy (maybe a bit of velvet if you insist), vintage flares, button-up-shirts-that-are-mostly-unbuttoned, tinted glasses, shoulder length hair, and above all, a truly impressive adherence to the color beige. Who knew that glorified brown had so much depth? 

In short, they look like what I imagine the house band at a kinda nice but kinda skeezy ‘70s piano bar would’ve looked like. Or a casino. Either way, the reference points are immediately familiar to anyone versed in ‘60s and ‘70s rock ‘n’ roll, yet their careful cultivation is evident. I’m not saying it’s inauthentic, but rather deliberate, a visual counterpart that matches their sonic presentation with unmistakable deftness. I appreciate the cohesion. Like a more self-aware, less chaotic Robert Plant, maybe. Although I’m careful to note that this is inspiration rather than imitation. Notice no head-to-toe handmade tie-dye like John Sebastian performing “Darling Be Home Soon” at Woodstock in 1969, or skateboard themed photo shoots featuring fluorescent pink shirts emblazoned with their own names as per Marc Bolan (there’s always the next album though).

Unusually for a rock band making music today, the first thing I’m drawn to about  Australian-born/London-based Tempesst is the way they look (not to discredit the music though, which we’ll get to momentarily). It’s something I find increasingly unusual in an age where style and ceremony are often sacrificed as part of an act’s presentation in favor of relatability and access. I like that Tempesst isn’t super active on social media. I like that they’re not incessantly live-streaming. I like that they keep their publicity music related (not to say that artists can’t have personal opinions or be politically active; that’s not what this is about). I like the mystery, I like knowing less about them, and above all I like that they let the music speak first. More of this, please. 

And the music, for that matter, is fantastic. It’s psychedelic rock that remains somehow age-less, managing to carry its older influences gracefully by remaining faithful to both instrumentation and melody, while combining a modern sensibility that keeps the listener from immediately dismissing the record as Moody Blues-lite. They’re also not simply riding the wave of Australian psych-rock revival pioneered by Tame Impala, Pond, and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, although Pond’s frontman Nick Allbrook does play flute on tracks “Better than the Devil” and “Walk on the Water”. Album highlights include “High on My Own”, “Better than the Devil”, “Walk on the Water”, and, especially, “Voices in My Head”, the album’s closer, a sort of psych-soul ballad which includes a lovely horn section. And, just in case you weren’t already sold, they release all of their music themselves through their independent, Hackney-based label, Pony Recordings. 

Frontman Toma Banjanin sat down via email to detail the process behind creating a debut album with bandmates Andy Banjanin, Blake Misipeka, Kane Reynolds and Eric Weber, their future plans for Pony Recordings, and what’s next for Tempesst. 

[UNPUBLISHED]: It’s so lovely to meet you! To begin, could you tell me a little bit about each of yourselves, your band and how you got started making music. How would you briefly describe your band and your sound?

[TOMA BANJANIN (lead vocals, guitar)]: Kane, Andy and I have been friends and have played together since we were teenagers. Blake was actually mine and Andy’s neighbour on the Sunshine Coast in Australia, he’s a few years younger so we weren’t really close back then. We met Eric through a mutual friend once we were in London. Our sound is kinda psychy, synthy, soulful, rock ’n’ roll.

[UNPUBLISHED]: So “Must Be a Dream” is Tempesst’s first album, although you’ve been together for quite a while and have released the EPs “Adult Wonderland” and “Doomsday” over the past couple of years. What has the process been like making your first full-length record? Why do you feel like now was the right time to release your first album and do you feel like the process of making “Must Be a Dream” has been any different compared to recording your previous releases? 

[TOMA BANJANIN]: The biggest difference is that we were able to take our time in the studio. All of our other recordings were pieced together in various studios and our houses, a day here a day there. This record was made over six months in our own studio, it was a completely different experience. We didn’t have any time restraint, which was both good and bad. Good in that we didn’t stop working on each song until we were all happy, bad in that it’s much harder to finish songs. You come to a point where you feel like you can’t improve a song anymore and that you should just move on. We finished the record early in 2020 and just wanted to get it out as soon as possible, so that’s what we did.

[UNPUBLISHED]: I was really interested in covering your band specifically because you release all of your music on your own label, Pony Recordings, which you run out of your own studio in Hackney. Especially as the internet and streaming have allowed artists to independently release music more successfully and major labels have lost significant control over the music industry, what has it been like running your own label? Why did you choose to release this first album independently rather than signing with someone else? 

[TOMA BANJANIN]: The label is pretty simple at the moment. We’ll be releasing our records and our friends' records, the next release is “Sunglasses” for Jaws’ new album coming out in January 2021. We like the idea of being completely autonomous, our studio and label just make it a little easier for us. 

[UNPUBLISHED]: How would you describe this album sonically? I hear a primarily psych-rock based sound, but you definitely integrate numerous other genres within the LP (“With a Woman” sounds a bit more surf-rock and laid back than the rest of the record, and I also love the horns on “Voices in My Head”). Did you have any specific inspirations for how you wanted this album to sound and the instruments you wanted to incorporate/the production techniques you wanted to use?

[TOMA BANJANIN]: I was listening to the post-Beatles records in the lead up to making “Must Be a Dream.” Wings, Venus and Mars, Plastic Ono Band etc. We had lots of friends drop by and add little bits that were totally improvised. Nick Allbrook [from Australian psych-rock band Pond] added some flutes on “Better Than the Devil” and “Walk on the Water”. Our friend Joao Mello played the Sax solo on “Mushroom Cloud” and we ended up using the first take. You end up mixing different genres and production styles through collaboration and in the end if it sounds good, it sounds good.

[UNPUBLISHED]: You’re from Noosa in Queensland originally, but you moved to New York and are now based in Hackney. Why did you decide to leave Australia and finally settle in London, and do you feel like you’ve taken any influences from each location and combined them in your music?

[TOMA BANJANIN]: It’s quite common for Australians to do a gap year or two or four. Mine just turned into ten! Australia is very beautiful but it’s literally on the other side of the world. I still spend part of the year in Australia, but London is home for now. Who knows where creative inspiration really comes from? I know it’s not exclusively tethered to my location but your environment would have to play a part.

[UNPUBLISHED]: What is the collaboration process like within the band for each project? (Do you have a primary lyricist or do you all write on the record? Do you start with the lyrics or melody first? Do you have any specific producers you like to work with or do you do the production yourselves? etc.)  Do you have a method for how the music usually comes together or is it slightly different each time? 

[TOMA BANJANIN]: We’ve worked with Elliot Heinrich, our producer, on every release. Our usual process is that one of us will bring an idea and we will work on it together, music first, melody and lyrics second. For this record, I wrote the majority of the lyrics and the guys critiqued, except for “With a Woman” and “Age of the Bored”. We’re all interested in the entire writing process, lyrics included, so our future records will continue to be more collaborative. 

[UNPUBLISHED]: Everything Tempesst puts out is very aesthetically cohesive and visually interesting, which is quite cool to see and something I think can sometimes get lost in rock music. Even your older releases, like the music video for “Too Slow,” looks very visually distinctive, and you can definitely see an aesthetic progression through each of your releases, culminating in “Must Be A Dream.” How did you decide on the visual sensibilities for this album, and did you have any visual or stylistic inspirations for this particular record?

[TOMA BANJANIN]: This would be thanks to my brother, Andy. He directs all of our videos, photoshoots and artwork.  

[UNPUBLISHED]: Do you have a song from this album that was your favorite to either play on, write, or record?  

[TOMA BANJANIN]: I had fun recording “Voices in My Head”. It’s an old song and it’s been through the mill. I feel like we finally got it right.

[UNPUBLISHED]: What do you hope people take away from listening to this album?

[TOMA BANJANIN]: Whatever they’re looking for...

[UNPUBLISHED]: I know COVID has definitely ruined any promotion/touring plans for the moment, but what’s next for the band once you’re able to get back on the road? Do you have any loose plans for another album as well?

[TOMA BANJANIN]: We’ve started work on the next record; that will keep us busy for a few months. We also have a tour planned for March but we’ll have to wait and see about that.

[UNPUBLISHED]: This is slightly unrelated, but do you have any favorite artists, songs, or albums you’ve been enjoying recently that you’d recommend?

[TOMA BANJANIN]: Julia Jacklin’s latest single “to Perth, before the border closes” is very nice.

[UNPUBLISHED]: Finally, if people want to check out Tempesst and Must Be A Dream,  where can they find out more?

[TOMA BANJANIN]: The usual haunts - Instagram, Facebook, Spotify, Apple Music.

You can check out Tempesst’s debut album “Must Be a Dream” out now, on Spotify, Apple Music, and other major streaming platforms

Tempesst’s music video for lead single “Mushroom Cloud”:

You can follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.  

And keep up with Pony Recordings here: https://www.ponyrecordings.com/