LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥 King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard is in their dad rock era 鈥 and not just because most of the band members now have kids.
Following their highly technical heavy metal concept album released last year, the remarkably prolific Australian rock band wanted to take it back to basics with their latest album, embracing a sound that reminded them of why they fell in love with music in the first place.
Taking a page from 1970s classic rock for 鈥淔light b741,鈥 their 26th studio album out Friday, the band didn鈥檛 use guitar pedals and recorded on cheap, second-hand amps from a local pawn shop, according to frontman Stu Mackenzie. Once in the studio, they relied on instinct, not strategy, for the band鈥檚 most collaborative album to date.
鈥淎t this moment in time, the easiest thing was the right thing to do,鈥 Mackenzie, 33, said of how the men approached their record. 鈥淒on鈥檛 come in with too many ideas, just pick up the guitars. Don鈥檛 worry about your bloody headphone mix, just make the music that comes out.鈥
The album鈥檚 lyrics maintain many of the poetically dark and poignant themes the band has come to be known for 鈥 like battling depression or escaping parental strife. 鈥淚鈥檝e been drinking on the job/Not much thinking going on about the passengers I got on board/Satan鈥檚 winking, givin鈥 me the nod,鈥 they croon in 鈥淪ad Pilot.鈥
But the sound of 鈥淔light b741鈥 is decidedly upbeat and nostalgic, thanks in part, Mackenzie said, to some of their relatively new identities as fathers.
鈥淏eing a parent, I think, changes everybody. It has to. I think if it doesn鈥檛, you might be a psychopath,鈥 said Mackenzie, who has a 3-year-old and 9-month-old baby. 鈥淚 actually have more gratitude in my heart than ever before. And I think that鈥檚 in the songwriting, from probably everybody鈥檚 perspective. And I think we did have a lot of fun making this record.鈥
That four of its six members now have kids makes the band鈥檚 sustained output and touring schedule even more impressive. And it鈥檚 not just their personal lives that have undergone major shifts since they got together. A lot has changed in the music industry since King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard first put music out in 2010.
But in those two and a half decades, they鈥檝e cultivated a loyal fanbase, allowing them to explore multiple disparate genres of rock and avoid creative constraints or expectations that many artists nowadays feel bound to, such as factoring in TikTok virality or Spotify algorithms.
鈥淢aybe we are in an unusually fortunate position where people actually expect us to do the thing you鈥檙e not supposed to do. And that鈥檚 a liberating feeling because it kind of just means I鈥檓 not sort of beholden to any industry trope,鈥 Mackenzie said.
That liberation is apparent in their unapologetically nostalgic album, which sounds like it was pulled from a time capsule buried during the heyday of rock and roll.
鈥淭hat was very intentional. We had had this playlist of lots of 鈥60s and 鈥70s, just like, classic rock,鈥 said bassist Lucas Harwood. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just you and your instrument. And it鈥檚 like, 鈥榃hat can I do without all the other bells and whistles that technology affords?鈥欌
When asked about maintaining their current level of productivity, Mackenzie acknowledged the difficulty of finding time to write and record music at this stage in their lives. Despite those challenges, however, the band leader is reluctant to stop.
鈥淚鈥檓 just trying to stay on the treadmill because if I get off the treadmill, I鈥檓 going to use my time in probably some form of self-destructive way. So, I need to just keep busy,鈥 he said.
