Here comes the sun
The Bravery's lead singer, Sam Endicott fills Brooke Salisbury in on The Sun, The Moon, film and feuds:
It's New York city in 2003, and a new-wave revival is sweeping through town. At the helm are The Bravery, The Strokes and The Killers: synth-pop monoliths sporting their debut wares. You couldn't mention one without the other, to their collective frustration. Fast track to 2008, and things have panned out very differently for The Bravery.
The band has recently released The Sun & The Moon Complete, a two disc set featuring a Sun side and a Moon side, remaking their sophomore release, The Sun & The Moon (released 2007). Flirting with either side of the musical spectrum, the release suggests the band's gravitation toward a more organic sound. "We wanted to make two albums, and make them incredibly different. We're a rock band, first and foremost. The disco and dance influences come second."
The Sun album sees the band delve into raw instrumentals, far away from the pop of their self-titled debut album. And for a rock band, the lengthy process of production still shocks the singer. "It's like how DJs make music. Everything is totally manipulated and messed with, and it's all so digital. We're still very much into the digital sound, though. Making the last record just means we have can incorporate a lot more into the live show. We have a much wider range of sounds than when we started."
Endicott is, largely, the creative force that has driven the band since their art school inception. He engineered their first album, is a songwriter and directs the bands videos. Publicly, he's made no secret of his interest in producing for other bands. "I've started talking to a few people about working with them, I'd love to get that happening. It's a time thing, though. We're always on tour
Not contented by the creative pursuits of his supergroup, Endicott's loyalties also lie in film. Behind the scenes, he toils with the direction of the bands videos and stepped in front of the camera in the film Modern Romance. The band's tour coincides superbly with the Sydney Film Festival, to which he states, "That's awesome. I'm going to see me some film. I'm one of those crazy film guys that sees all kinds of productions, I've seen every movie." Again, he says, it's the time thing that stops him pursuing it further. "I'd love to get more involved in film making. I write scripts, I write short films and I directed the last clip for the band. It's something I'm very involved in. We've been touring for a year though. The Bravery are busy."
On the very day of The Bravery's debut release, The Killers lead singer, Brandon Flowers engaged in a public feud with Endicott, declaring The Bravery's existence a tribute to The Killers' star status. The bands' duel was fuelled by their sharing the label Island Def Jam, a fact little ignored by American press. "To be honest, the whole thing left a very bad taste in my mouth. I was naïve at the time and I definitely don't look back on it fondly," Endicott reflects.
Swimming in the sea of indie disco and synth acts, the band have experimented with their sound and toured tirelessly. In Sydney, you can't go to a club or bar without hearing The Bravery's first hit and best known song, ‘An Honest Mistake'. Though, over the years the band has stepped away from the synthesiser and picked up the guitar again. Don't expect it to last though, says Endicott. "Stuff that we do in the future will lead back towards dance. The sound on the Sun album is far more acoustic, and that's an experiment for us. We love the electronic elements, the synthetics."
When I point out the irony of their perch on the We Love Sounds line-up, among a formidable array of DJs and dance acts, he laughs. "That happens to us a lot, actually. It's weird. Don't you worry about it though. We still know how to bring the disco."
The Bravery play the Metro Theatre on Fri 6 and We Love Sounds on Sun 8 June. The Sun & The Moon Complete is out now through Universal.