The name of this Sydney band, Raw Idiocy, plus their ridiculous description of their music as “progressive post apocalyptic folk metal” just goes to show how seriously they take their music personas. Raw Idiocy is a fun-loving gang of youngsters from different cultural and musical backgrounds, who have come together to form a special mix of sometimes melancholic, sometimes acoustic, pop rock, filled with powerful melody and lovely vocal harmonies. They go on stage for the Emergenza semi-finals at The Factory Theatre in Sydney on the 18th of October. So be sure to check them out. Before the show, they sit down and have a heart to heart with Emergenza.

FOR THOSE WHO WEREN’T AT YOUR FIRST ROUND CONCERT, CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT WHO RAW IDIOCY ARE?
We are a four-piece band from the Sutherland Shire in Sydney, consisting of misfit multiculturalism in Australian, American, English and Irish backgrounds. This background helps add to our sound a unique style of combined jazz-fusion elements, with standard rock music. This provides our own musical groove that we can’t seem to define, yet which captivates and pleases audiences nonetheless.

WHAT’S ONE OF YOUR LIVE SHOWS LIKE?
Our lives shows are always a surprise in the sense of never knowing how one might go. With this knowledge we just drive straight in and make the most of the performance with having fun and just playing our music. Our goal is the hope that the audience will feel this and have as much fun with us. Our shows are entertaining to watch and listen to as we engage with the audience on a personal level and aren’t just a group of musicians on stage to watch.

WHAT WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE FIRST ROUND FOR YOU?
It was amazing to play at such a large venue, as it was much nicer and more enjoyable compared to the smaller stages we find ourselves playing on usually. It was an incredible opportunity to display our music to new bands and new people and just show that we are there to have fun and that we love music. However our biggest highlight was hearing that we made it to the next round and audience members, friends and strangers, cheering and sharing our excitement with us.

CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THE FIRST ROUND AND WHAT YOU LEARNED FROM IT?
We learned a lot by watching the other bands and how they all interacted with the audience in seeing what was acceptable as well as a turn off for them. The main thing we learned was how much stage presence is a key factor in being musicians.

SO HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING ONE STEP CLOSER TO THE EMERGENZA FINALS?
It’s very nerve racking to be so close to possibly playing in the national finals at such an iconic venue but it’s also very exhilarating. We thrive on these feelings and we definitely plan to put this energy into our Factory Theatre set! We are excited to be able to play with all the other bands on our night, as the night will be a fun filled night of amazing music for everyone, which we believe is the main point for the evening.

WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO BETWEEN GIGS AND WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING TO PREPARE FOR THE NEXT PHASE OF THE COMPETITION?
Between rounds we have been hard at practice playing gigs at differing venues and practicing different set lists to find which we think will work best for the semi-finals. We have also starting recording and therefore focusing more strongly on each section of the band. We have been rehearsing in fine-tuning our skills as musicians as a whole, as well as spending a lot of time together so we become closer and more in sync when we do perform.

HOW ARE YOU PLANNING TO PROMOTE FOR YOUR UPCOMING GIG?
We are making flyers and are starting to hand them out at our gigs leading up to the Factory Theatre. We have been using all of our social media outlets to spam our friends, as well as with word of mouth and following up with people who have shown interest in us.

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO THE MOST ABOUT THIS ROUND IN THE SEMI-FINALS?
We are so excited to be playing on such a large stage in front of a bigger crowd. We are nervous but excited to let loose, step out of our comfort zone and have fun in utilising the freedom of all the space, which we hope will help us take our live act to the next level needed to make it to the finals.