you’re (not)
terrible, muriel
MILL O’SULLIVAN FROM MELBOURNE
BAND PORPOISE SPIT TELLS US
HOW THEY GO ABOUT BRINGING
THE HOUSE DOWN.
Words Mia Timpano Photographs Porpoise Spit
What tactics do you use to crank up the energy at your shows?
We fuck up every single show. I always jump into the crowd and
do a solo, and nine times out of 10 my lead will come out. I’ll
keep soloing, even though no noise is happening, and say, “Well,
I fucked that up – let’s keep going.” We’re making mistakes and
it’s fi ne; we’re having heaps of fun.
So you don’t get nervous? We try and immediately quell any
nerves by going, “We’re four weirdos having a good time – hope
you are, too. Let’s all be weird.”
What’s the wildest your crowd has ever gotten? We had an EP
launch recently where people were climbing the walls. For our last
song, we did “Karl Stefanovic at the Logies Drunk” and legitimately
thought the fl oor was going to give way. The windows were rattling;
everyone was going so nuts.
How did you feel in the moment shit was going wild? I had a
serious teary after the show, because I was like, “Woah, that was
my wildest dream – and it just happened.” When you’re a musician
and you’re assigned female at birth and people tell you you’re
never going to be able to really be a rock star and sell out shows,
you don’t think it’s going to happen – especially while being very
openly daggy, vulnerable and silly.
How do you approach styling? This is a very contentious topic in
our band, because I’m of the belief that we should dress in theme
every single gig – cowboy theme, astronaut theme, alien theme –
and everyone says that’s insane. The band totally indulged me for
our EP launch, though. It was ABBA-themed, because Porpoise
Spit is a Muriel’s Wedding reference, so we wore fl uoro-green
ABBA costumes.
Why do you think there’s been an enduring association with
Dr. Martens and music fans? As a young person, there are so few
opportunities to transition into the adult music scene – but you can
get a pair of Docs. Not only do you look bad-arse, it’s also a way
of saying, “Me too.” Buying my fi rst pair of Docs was one of my
fi rst moments of self-love and self-identifying. You say, “I get
to choose who I am and this is who I’m choosing.”
DR. MARTENS X FRANKIEPorpoise Spit are wearing rad
kicks from Dr. Martens’ latest
range, out now. Check out more
of their rockstar-worthy styles
at their new Chadstone store,
Westfi eld Sydney store, or online
at drmartens.com.au. And keep
up with Porpoise Spit goings-on at
facebook.com/porpoisespitband