Merc to park new album in city

John Van Klaveren
THIRSTY Merc has the happy knack of coming up with instantly recognisable tunes.
A first listen to the band’s latest album, Mousetrap Heart, instils a warm feeling of familiarity with the groove-laden, funky sound developed for the project.
“It’s nice to have a couple of albums behind us now,” frontman Rai Thistlethwayte told the Independent.
“As a band you get better at certain things – practice makes perfect.”
Refreshed and renewed, Thistlethwayte said the band felt “good” about its new sound.
“We took our time with this one,” he explained.
“It has a way more funky sound and I tended to write more on the piano rather than guitar.
“The personnel is a little different as well. When you change one band member it changes the DNA of the whole thing.”
The change is the addition of former The Strides guitarist Matt Smith who contributed significantly to the punchier, groovier sound of the new album.
“We took a couple of months off in early ’09 because we’d done two albums back to back,” Thistlethwayte said.
“You try not to rush things but there’s a lot of momentum and you can get caught up in the early stages.
“Sometimes it takes months to know how you feel about something, so it’s nice to have some water under the bridge.”
Mousetrap Heart, also the name of the first single off the album, was recorded in Los Angeles with top producer Matt Wallace of Faith No More and Maroon 5 fame.
Thistlethwayte agreed the LA polish and production values were obvious in the sound but said the band tried hard to ensure the creative spark wasn’t swamped by the mechanics of the recording process.
“We want it to be a feel-good experience, there’s a lot of fun and a feeling of lightness in there, with danceable grooves and an up-tempo positivity – it’s like the sun breaking through clouds.”
Thistlethwayte said the band was excited about touring again after a long break.
“The tour is going to be so much fun, especially having three albums worth of material we can use,” he enthused.
“Working out set lists is more of a challenge but it’s a better show as a result. Recording is getting the chairlift up the mountain, touring is skiing down it – it’s a huge escapist holiday.”
The single is currently tearing up the Australian airplay charts, with fans and critics already placing it alongside the band’s previous instant hits including Emancipate Myself, In the Summertime, Someday Someday, 20 Good Reasons and The Hard Way.
The multi-platinum selling, ARIA-and-APRA-nominated Sydney group has embarked on an 18-date national tour.
Thirsty Merc plays at Geelong’s The Bended Elbow next Thursday.