Bon Chat, Bon Rat are an electronic band from Sydney. Their music is a hypnotic melange of vocals that layer and clutter, chanting guitar loops and frantic rhythmic breaks. Bon Chat, Bon Rat is as much chaotic and claustrophobic as it is inspiring. The band’s new single, Blackbird, is out now and available as a free download from their Bandcamp site.
What was the first band you saw live?
I remember seeing Tool at the Entertainment Centre when I was 13. That was probably my first realisation of live music and it was pivotal in my relationship to music today.
What’d you learn from them?
You have to give people a sensorial experience in your music; you have to transport them. I guess that’s why we experiment with projections and visuals to our live shows. It should be much more than just listening to the CD.
Got any pre-gig rituals?
Rus goes into a food coma at a nearby takeaway joint while Reece and I fan the sweat of him and tell him everything’s going to be okay. Meanwhile we actually learn what we’re supposed to play. It’s like cramming for an exam.
What do you think the most important issue facing artists in NSW is?
Not enough venues are doing things against the grain. There are too severe liquor, OH&S and security laws in place which are choking small venues and preventing a flourishing music/arts scene as in Melbourne. Venues have their money set on pokies and generic music which has fostered an antisocial, cultureless clubbing vibe. There are those venues who are doing things differently, like Tone, Goodgod Small Club and a number of art spaces. These types of venues should be seen as a way forward for music, the arts and nightlife in Sydney.
If you weren’t a musician, what do you reckon you’d be doing?
We’d probably be insurance brokers with high cholesterol.