As Melbourne band Ruckus are gearing up to take their foot-stomping country tunes to the stage at The Espy Gershwin Room for the semi-finals of Emergenza Festival Australia, they take time out to catch up with us. Don’t miss their rowdy, country show this Friday, October 10th, and while you’re waiting, check out what the band had to say to us:

FOR THOSE WHO DIDN’T GET TO SEE YOU IN THE FIRST ROUND, CAN YOU INTRODUCE US TO YOUR BAND?
The band is Mick Abrey on vocals, guitar and banjo, Bazza Tiplady on vocals and bass. Craig Nicholls on drums and backing vocals, Roly Kretchmar on lead guitar and backing vocals and Kat Mear on fiddle and backing vocals.

WHAT WAS THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE FIRST ROUND FOR YOU?
I think the highlight for us was probably the response we received. We didn’t have the foggiest idea of what to expect, and our music may be a little different, so when we got a good response we were all pretty happy. Also just being a part of the whole scene and playing at the iconic Espy Hotel was a real buzz.

OUT OF ALL THE SONGS YOU PLAYED, WHICH ONE GOT THE BIGGEST REACTION OUT OF THE CROWD AND WHY DO YOU THINK THAT IS?
I think probably “Ghosts of Mississippi”. It’s a sparse but quite heavy song with a huge chorus where we all get to the mics and belt it out. This song had a great audience reaction on the night.

CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THE FIRST ROUND AND WHAT YOU LEARNED FROM IT?
It was great playing at The Espy but one thing that stood out to us was the comradery between the bands. Everyone was very supportive of one another no matter what style of music they played. It may be a competition but we were all there with one common interest… Our love of music!!! I think we learned that we have to be on our game at every moment that is available to us on stage to be able to have a chance of progressing into the next round.

WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN UP TO BETWEEN GIGS AND WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING TO PREPARE FOR THE NEXT PHASE OF THE COMPETITION?
We’ve been practicing, playing, practicing, writing, playing… Did I mention practicing?? Also trying to choose the songs that we think will make us stand out and give us the best chance of winning this round… Oh… And practicing!!!!

SO HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING ONE STEP CLOSER TO THE EMERGENZA FINALS?
It’s a great feeling. There’s a lot of talk about Emergenza and we want to be part of the next stage. That makes you a little nervous and apprehensive at the same time… But that’s a good thing!!!

WHAT DO YOU HOPE TO TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR UPCOMING CONCERT AT THE ESPY?
Our spot in the next round.

For more details on the show at The Espy, October 10th, click here.