Proud to be Fat

Rip It Up, Issue 232, 1 December 1996, Page 13

Proud to be Fat

A visitor passing through the capital could almost be forgiven for thinking dance music was the sum total of Wellington’s music scene. Along with the recent Infocity series showcasing the city’s guitar talent, the release of Fat Mannequin’s self-titled debut album is about to put Wellington back on the rock map. The five-piece released the Bigger Than Buddha EP in 1994, and were critically shot down as some kind of Seattle sound rip-off merchants. Strong-minded, Fat Mannequin kept plugging away regardless, and this year saw the release of two quality singles — namely ‘Room and Spine’ and ‘Other Than Stares’ — on the now Wellington-based Hark label. The band — consisting of vocalist William Hickman, guitarists Jeremy Scott and Leon Dahl, bassist Edward Brackenbury-Gray, and drummer Jacob van Holst — look set to silence the critics with their melodic, powerful, and very definitely rock album. The album was recorded at Hamilton’s now defunct Zoo Studio, and that is a story in itself. “We found ourselves sitting in the studio trying to concentrate on the job with the owners going, ‘Can we get this done in the next two days so we can get this gear out of here?,”’ says Hickman. “We’re trying to do remixes and they’re literally taking the thing apart as we’re sitting at the desk all night.” How did this come-on-hurry-up situation affect the final product? “Its cool because it has a ‘seat of your pants’ feel, which is needed with the kind of music we do. What’s on the album is the core of our live show, so its gotta be energetic and have a live feel to it.” Bassist Brackbenbury-Gray was fairly new to the band when the album was recorded in January, as Fat Mannequin have a Spinal Tap-like curse on bassists. “He’d only been in the band for, like, two months when we recorded, so it was a pressure situation for him. He had to rehearse like a madman, then go up to Hamilton with these four guys he didn’t know,” states Hickman. “It was his first time in the studio as well, so it was a learning curve for him,” says guitarist Dahl. “But it came together well — it’s a direct reflection of the live thing we were doing then.” Compared to Bigger Than Buddha, does the album feel like more of an accomplishment? “Definitely, the songs are better, the production’s better, we’re actually pleased with this. With Buddha we were pretty naive, pretty young, and really keen to get something out,” says Dahl. “Then two months later we thought, ‘Oh, bloody hell!,”’ continues Hickman. “We did it in a ten-dollar-an-hour studio at three in the morning, and all that shit. It’s just no comparison to spending three weeks in Hamilton, and being able to get up in the morning and just stroll through to the studio and work all day.” The band are also responsible for their own artwork and management. Dahl even works for Hark records. “We have full control over the cover and stuff, so everything visual you see is pretty much directly us. And the label didn’t fuck around with the music. Grant [Hislop], the owner, sort of popped in for pre-production, and checked out songs, and gave suggestions for things he’d like to see on the album,” says Hickman. “Not to mention that [producer] Zed Brooks was damn talented and a great guy to work with.” Dahl is also impressed with the sheen Evan Roberts gave the album during final mastering at Wellington’s Padded Cell. “That just polished the edges and makes it shine. Evan was really great with it, got a good sound.” Hickman continues, “It’s got suspicious little samples and good shit; quite a few cool things you won’t hear on the first listen.” Hickman writes all the band’s lyrics, as vocalists are prone to do. Is there any common thread running through the album? “There’s no general theme, just whatever falls into my head when we’re jamming usually. Things that piss me off, things that irk me or trouble I had or experiences I’ve had. The music can dictate the lyrics — if the guys come in with a minor riff and it’s crunchy and aggressive, you go with that, and it becomes part of your inspiration.” Fat Mannequin have come in for some, umm, fairly strong criticism in the past. Has this had an effect on your attitudes in general, specifically towards the music press? Usually mild-mannered Hickman and Dahl become quite vocal at this point. “Half of the shit we get told we sound like we don’t even listen to. It’s just the easy way out, to turn around and say, ‘Oh, they sound like this,”’ states Hickman bluntly. “We got all that Pearl Jam bullshit and people would read it and that would make up their mind, and they may never have seen us,” says Dahl. “It got really fucking stupid sometimes,” says Hickman. “It does puzzle me as to why someone reviewing a local band would want to try and do that... is it cool to think, ‘Ha, ha, because of my review no one’s going to come to their gigs?’ I don’t quite get it — I could be over reactive, but maybe they underestimated the impact of their reactions. It was seriously counter-productive.” All in the past guys, all in the past. With one of the finest straight rock albums released from this country, the future looks good. “When we started we set a time frame for the band. We’re nearing the halfway mark of that, and the future’s looking bright and rosy,” enthuses Dahl. “Things come in circles; we may not be part of the cool alternative club, but we don’t give a shit.” Fat Mannequin are here for quite a while longer. Give them a chance when they tour the album soon.

GAVIN BERTRAM