STACK NZ Nov #57

MUSIC

FEATURE

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Black River Drive found themselves in Nashville to create their second album Quicksand. Singer/guitarist Sam Browne explains to Ricardo Kerr just how they got there.

S am Browne, singer/guitarist with Auckland rockers Black River Drive, now reckons that their debut Perfect Flaws was not without its faults. “I was really still finding my voice when we did the first album,” he tells STACK. “We got it right on a few songs … but overall, it is lacking in confidence and weight.” But having spent the last four years relentlessly refining their craft, he is a lot more comfortable about Black River Drive’s eagerly anticipated sophomore release Quicksand. “I definitely have a more refined sense of how to create now than I did then; what I like and don’t like, and what works for me. In terms of how we work in the studio, we don’t stop working on something until it is as good as it can possibly be. And vocally, I’ve never been stronger. My range has probably expanded by an octave since we did the first album.” Quicksand was recorded in Nashville with veteran producerTobyWright (Alice in Chains, Ozzy Osbourne) and Browne says the move fromAuckland toTennessee was a

Nashville,” Browne says. “I’m not at all one for believing in fate and so forth but we simply couldn’t let this slide!”. The most notable change for Black River Drive since 2010 has been the addition of guitarist DavieWong of the now-defunct Shotgun Alley, to the core line-up of Browne, Rusty McNaughton, Matt Stone and MikeTan. “We met Davie through playing a few shows

with Shotgun Alley,” Browne explains. “Even back then I knew I wanted him for Black River Drive.We finally got him to start jamming with us halfway through this year. It’s been great having [Davie] on board.” With the crew now up to five members, each of them chomping at the bit to make a name for themselves, the sky is the limit. So what is Browne’s favourite track on the new LP? “It’s hard to pick favourites, but I do love Grenade,” he replies. “It’s a riff unlike anything we’ve done before. It’s one we all love to play and audiences respond to it even if they’ve never heard it before. I also love I’m Ready Now.They all have their moments really.” Like so many projects today, Quicksand was created in part with crowd funding. Even though the band are now at the end of that process and they did reach their funding goal – where so many others have failed – they aren’t completely convinced that it’s necessarily the way to go. “It seems like ‘money for nothing’, but nothing could be further from the truth.We had a very stressful eight weeks from starting our crowd funding efforts through to the final hours, where we only just managed to hit our target”. Even with all the ups and downs that came with it, would the boys ever try it again? Browne is coy on the subject. “I can’t say for sure if we would, maybe with a bit more thought behind it next time.”

I’m not at all one for believing in fate and so forth but we simply couldn’t let this slide!

difficult, but logical, decision. “Our friends Cy andVanessa fromTattletale Saints had just been to Nashville to record, and came back filled with stories about the city. Being based there for the duration of tracking was fantastic – it allowed us to leave normal life distractions behind, and really focus on what we were doing.”The band’s partnership withWright came from a chance meeting in Auckland, again facilitated by friends of the band. “Toby

Black River Drive, Quicksand , is out on November 7

had recently relocated from LA, to of all places,

NOVEMBER 2014 JB Hi-Fi www.jbhifi.co.nz

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