Party-folk band the Drunken Poachers never struggle to bring the good time vibes.
With seven musicians on stage making it easy to build the energy and draw the crowd into the action, the Melbourne-based outfit leads by example when it comes to beer-swilling, moving with the music and singing along.
But what has become a mainstay in the Victorian pub music scene had far humbler beginnings a decade and a half ago when brothers Scott and Corey Bakker decided to explore new musical instruments.
“My brother and I had always played instruments growing up,” Scott Bakker said.
“Going back 15 years or so…a couple of bands I was in had just wrapped up. And Corey, who had always been a musician but had never really played in a band, mentioned that he wanted to learn banjo.
“I said, well, if you learn the banjo I’ll learn the mandolin, and we’ll start a band. So we did. The whole idea was to be a party band, two parts folk, two parts Irish, two parts bluegrass.”
The Bakker brothers began playing as a duo, but their infectious love of a good time soon drew other musicians into their orbit.
“We’d be out somewhere playing and someone would say hey, I’d love to play with you guys,” Bakker said.
“We’d say great, come play, and we just kept meeting people along the journey. So that’s how we became a seven-piece, because we just liked everyone.”
With layered harmonies, multiple instrumentalists to feature in solo spots and the ability to move musically from the sensitive and beautiful to the raucous and rowdy, the Drunken Poachers come across as an eminently Australian version of newgrass superstars the Punch Brothers.
“Bands like (the Punch Brothers) absolutely influenced us, but Old Crow Medicine Show is one we really looked towards in the early stages, especially for that sort of party vibe,” Bakker said.
“Our gigs revolve around getting suitably drunk and then making sure the crowd gets suitably drunk as well. Getting the whole room involved, making sure everyone has the best time they can.”
The Drunken Poachers are at The Barwon Club on Friday 5 December as part of Stars & Bars: Down by the River. Visit barwonclub.com.au for tickets and more information.
