Self-described as pop punk with a slap bass thrown in, it’s easy to imagine how their funky take on a classic pop punk sound never fails to get you going. They’re experts on the battle of the bands formula by now, managing to make it to the finals of several other competitions. But, now’s their chance to shine on the Emergenza stage. They’re on their way to the semi-finals at The Espy on the 19th, so be sure to check them out then. Before the show, they chat with us on how the first round went and what they hope to get out of their next gig.

CAN YOU GIVE US A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO THE SOUND OF THE SPITTING SWALLOWS?
Our sound is a mix of pop punk and rock with a bit of slap bass thrown in.

WHAT WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE FIRST ROUND FOR YOU?
The biggest highlight for us was probably Jazza smashing a shoey from his cowboy boots, that and advancing to the next round.

WHICH ONE OF YOUR SONGS DO YOU FEEL SPEAKS TO THE FANS AND REPRESENTS THE BAND THE BEST?
To be honest we’ve never thought about this before but off the top of my head, probably “Hallinbeck”. It’s a short and sweet pop punk song with a good groove to it. We bust out a bit of a jig half way through, which always seems to go over well.

UP TO THIS POINT, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY HAS BEEN THE BAND'S BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENT?
Most likely making it to seven battle of the bands finals and losing them all..
But in all seriousness we played at the Australasian final in Sydney in Global Battle of the Bands and came 7th out of 17, so that was pretty sweet.

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY HAVE BEEN YOUR BIGGEST OBSTACLES SO FAR?
Managing to actually have band practice and trying to find where Wes is on Sunday morning. We have a lot of trouble with getting our songs recorded too for some unknown reason.

HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING ONE STEP CLOSER TO THE EMERGENZA FINALS?
Gooooooood, this comp is so well-organised and runs really smoothly. It is always good to know that some people actually enjoyed your songs enough to want to hear them again too.

WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR UPCOMING CONCERT AT THE ESPY?
Ticket to the next heat… haha. Or if not some new friends will be fine.

WITH OTHER BATTLE OF THE BANDS COMPETITIONS AROUND, WHAT MADE YOU CHOOSE EMERGENZA?
We like to spread ourselves pretty thin and try to get our noses in everywhere, so we have played all the other comps around including Emergenza. Emergenza does stand out to be among the best though, standard wise and how it’s so well organised.