University buddies making it big.
From messing around in University, playing music in each others rooms to taking on the big stage and performing all over NZ. Castaway knew that they had something special together from the very start. We sat down with Castaway to learn about their journey and how they got to where they are today. Check it out.
How did this all start, did you grow up loving music, singing. Was this always a dream for you?
We all grew up in different parts of NZ. In 2018, we all went to the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, and we all went to the same hall of residents. So, none of us had met each other before that first day, and we all somehow ended up in the same building. We met each other, and from there, we started playing music and just jamming in each other's rooms. It was very much a youthful Uni experience, and then we started realizing that we actually had a bit of a unique chemistry. We enjoyed doing it and thought we should make this a bit more of a thing. The house we lived in was called Wilson's house, so when we’d all go out for drinks and get a little drunk, our chant would be ‘Willson, Wilson, Wilson’. So, when we were looking for a name for our newly formed band, Rhys was like, what about Castaway, kind of like Wilson. So, our name is homage to the roots, which is us jamming out in each other's bedrooms, just having fun and enjoying music together, which is what we still try to do today.
Who are your music inspirations?
We probably have similar inspirations in The Killers and Coldplay. But beyond that, we all have quite individual tastes as well, which I think gives us such a good understanding of a range of genres that we can bring to the table and add a taste of each to our own music.
What’s your favourite part of the song-making process?
It's always a nice feeling when you get to the end of the day at the studio and all the tracks are down, and you get to have their first listen through it; that stands out for me. I think most of the process feels like it's pulling teeth, but that part is always so satisfying. We have a lot of inspiration and messages that we want to convey, but it’s all about making it work with the sound and the overall feel of the album. We were talking about this the other day and what our strengths and weaknesses are in this process. Rhys is a ruthless creative and will just get in a room and just play guitar and create a song out of thin air. Austin will bring in that attention to detail, academic thoughts on how we can arrange the instruments. Then I guess I (Jack) really enjoy writing lyrics and bringing words and poetry to the table. It just shows that everyone has a really important role in the whole process, and it works best when we all play to our strengths.
Let’s talk about your new single, Move On. What was your inspiration?
This was a labour of love from our lead singer Jackson. He was with his partner for a few years, and then they went into a long-distance stint. The song's called Move On, and it's all about exploring the difficulties of distance and the questions that come up with: Can this love survive the separation? But also the hope and the belief that you share when you've been with someone for a few years, and you deeply trust and love them. So, it's a very raw one, probably one of our rawest so far.
What’s your process when it comes to music videos?
We were fortunate to get funding from NZ on Air last year to film our first music video, which was a crazy experience. I don’t think any of us had a video in mind when writing the song, but there was something kind of special about fleshing out how to visually represent the idea and what that's going to look like. We were lucky enough to work with an epic team who allowed us to have creative freedom but also have someone support us in areas we may not know on. It was like we didn't know what the hell this looks like or if this is going to look cool, but when you work with someone that's so good at what they do, like as soon as you see the product, you're like That's cooler than I could have ever imagined. And that's a fun part of the process. It's the same working with a great producer or anyone in the industry. It's like how good things can be. And that's why you work with others.
Let's talk all things tour.
With our first EP that we put out (Chaos and Order), we did a few local shows, which was awesome. We then spent a lot of time locking in and taking music seriously and getting our work complete and ready to take out to audiences. It had been a long time in the making, so when it was finally done, we were like, let’s do a tour! To explain, our latest EP is called Nondual, which turned this into the Nondual tour. Nondual was this idea that I had come across a couple of years ago, looking at philosophy. It's a different way of viewing the world and everything as though it's all connected, that the experiences that we go through individually are somehow a collective and the same struggles, yearnings and desires that we all face are somewhat universally experienced. We wanted to go into this tour with that and bring that connection along.
And has it been sort of like what you expected being on tour?
Yeah, I have been summarising it so far because nothing went to plan, and everything worked out. So, it's been it's a real laugh and I mean I didn't come into it with too many expectations about what it's going to look like, but it has superseded that. It's like going away for a weekend with your best mates; it’s always fun, and it's always crazy, and it's always terribly organized, and things happen, and you just have to roll with it. But it's in those moments of chaos and confusion and tension that the beauty of the relationships comes to the surface, you know. So, it was great to bond as a group of best mates in those circumstances.
Have you felt that looking back at what you were then versus now, there's been quite a change, or have you stayed similar in the sound?
Yeah, when we started doing Chaos and Order, we were just in the middle of Uni, having a bit of a bash around the instruments with our mates. And we were finding our footing as musicians. It was just a hobby at the time. Now, we'd taken a lot of influence from the university music scene, things like Ocean Alley, those sorts of bands that were popular around 2018- -2020, where a lot of the influence for the tracks came from for the Chaos and Order EP. After we'd released that EP, we sat down and decided to take things a little bit more seriously and invest in the craft of songwriting and ourselves as musicians, which I think sort of culminated in where we are right now with Nondual.
What do you have coming up that you can share with us?
We’re working on the next body of work, trying to figure out exactly what we want to hit home. It’s coming.
What burger do you think the band or your music would be if it were on the BF menu?
When we play live, we try to switch instruments a lot. It’s very dynamic and fluid, and that goes back to our University roots of just playing around and having fun as mates. I feel like if you could get a Bastard, add chicken to it, and have something for everyone in it because the Bastard is so comprehensive, then that would sum us up as a band. It’s unexpected but gives you a bit of everything.
To round out an epic interview, we had to put Castaway through our quick-fire round.
What is your go-to song for Jam Out in the Car? Good Luck Babe - Chapple Roan. Tangerine - Ocean.
Who is your favourite artist at the moment? The Last Dinner Party, Sam Fender.
One thing you can’t perform without? A shot of Bumbu, My lucky Navina socks.
One artist or band you would love to co-lab with? Daft Punk.
Go to BurgerFuel order. Bacon Backfire with Kumara Fries, Burnout with Kumara Fries.
Fire or Backfire
Pickles in burgers - Fire
Crocs - Fire
Karaoke - Fire
BurgerFuel Aioli - Fire
Acoustic performances – Fire
NZ Music Month - Fire
Festivals - Fire
Singing in the shower - Fire
Pineapple on pizza - Fire
Supermarket in bare feet in NZ - In the summer fire otherwise backfire
Check out Castaway's newest single, Move On ,Out now!
