This alternative rock band from Sydney has a big sound and can’t wait to blast you away at their next gig. They go on stage on the 2nd at The Factory Theatre to battle it our in the semi-finals, along with eight other rocking bands. Between promoting their debut EP and rehearsing for the gig, they sit down with Emergenza to talk about the band, what makes them unique, and what they might have up their sleeves on the 2nd for the semi-finals.

CAN YOU GIVE US A BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO THE SOUND OF U:CODIA?
We're an alternative rock band. Big guitars, big drums, big everything really. But with a focus on melody and dynamics. We like to create lots of imagery and opportunity for fans to engage, both lyrically and musically.

WHERE DO YOU DRAW YOUR MUSICAL INSPIRATION FROM?
Bands like Foo Fighters, U2, 30 Seconds to Mars, Kings of Leon, Tool, etc. would be some of our influences. But at the end of the day, the best music comes by drawing from your own personal journey. So we are inspired by our influences, but we're committed to staying true to ourselves and doing our best to create an original sound.

WHO WRITES THE SONGS AND WHAT ARE THEY ABOUT? WHAT'S YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS LIKE?
Writing is quite an organic process for us. Ed, our lead guitarist, will often spark the first idea with a riff or the start of an arrangement he has been jamming on, but then we all work together at rehearsal, contributing our individual ideas and really panel-beating the song until we are 100% happy with it. After we have the arrangement locked in, Josh (lead vocals), takes it away and writes the lyrics and melodies. Even those get run by the rest of the band to see if there's anything that needs changing.

YOU MENTION YOU'VE JUST RELEASED YOUR DEBUT EP. CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT THAT?
Yes, the debut EP is a big dream come true for us. We have only been together as a complete band for just over a year. When we decided to record so early in the piece though, there were easier roads we could have chosen, but we’re not a band who likes to do things in half measures. We all talked about it and decided if we were going to do it, then we wanted to do it properly. So we chose to record at The Grove Studios with Josh Telford who has worked with the likes of Silverchair, Eskimo Joe, etc. The guy is a mastermind and The Grove is an incredible studio to work in. Then we had the EP mixed in New Zealand by the very talented Nic Manders and mastered in New York by Andy VanDette at Masterdisk (David Bowie, Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chilli Peppers… the list goes on). We couldn't be happier with the result. We're really, really proud of it!

WHICH ONE OF YOUR SONGS DO YOU THINK SPEAKS TO YOUR FANS THE MOST AND BEST REPRESENTS YOU AS ARTISTS?
Probably track four from our EP. It's called “The Impossible Room”. It's a very inspiring song. Our fans have really connected with it both live and on the recording. The song means different things to each of us personally, but musically, melodically, dynamically and lyrically it very much encapsulates who we are as a band. It's actually the song we'll be using for our first video clip, which we are recording on the 9th of November. Exciting!

UP TO THIS POINT, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY HAS BEEN THE BAND'S BIGGEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS? OBSTACLES?
Accomplishments? Definitely recording and releasing the EP, opening for The Angels and receiving such positive feedback about our live shows. Obstacles are things like getting our name out there and raising the funds to sustain ourselves as a band. We'll get there though. It's early days and we've accomplished so much already in such a short time frame.

WHAT WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE FIRST ROUND FOR YOU?
Getting to play in The Lair at The Metro to a phenomenal crowd. The atmosphere was electric!

HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING ONE STEP CLOSER TO THE EMERGENZA FINALS?
We are seriously pumped. We can't wait to play. We are going to give it everything we've got!

WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR UPCOMING CONCERT AT THE FACTORY THEATRE?
Ultimately, enough votes to get us to the final. But the experience of playing at such an awesome venue to an even bigger audience is a great opportunity to introduce our sound to people who haven't heard us before. So, hopefully we will come away with a much larger fan base.

WITH OTHER BATTLE OF THE BANDS COMPETITIONS AROUND, WHAT MADE YOU CHOOSE EMERGENZA?
The opportunity to gain more exposure and hopefully go international were the deciding factors for us. We would love to go to Germany! From the outset though, we have found Emergenza to be very professional in the way they go about things. We love that!