Talking Pretty with Pretty Talks
Photo Credit Megan Donnelly
Celebrating all things bittersweet in the world, alt-pop trio PRETTY TALKS have returned with their new single ‘Hurt Me’. Written about a relationship breakdown, ‘Hurt Me’ is an on-point snapshot of the highs and lows of young love; a fact brought visually to life by the track’s accompanying music video. We got the chance to chat with Pretty Talks to ask them about the new material, the band’s history and the direction for the future of their music.
For those that haven’t heard your music before, how do you describe the Pretty Talks sound?
The PRETTY TALKS sound is a collection of bright, shimmery pop production over honest, self-reflective lyrics without a fear of going a little bit grittier in aspects. We bring a mix of textural percussion, 80’s-inspired synths, layered, purposeful guitars and glossy vocals.
You have just released your second track 'Hurt Me'. What inspired the song?
Most of our songs start with Liam or Tommy bringing forward the skeleton of a song which we then collaborate on and expand on together. We then dive into conversations about themes and lyrical ideas as well real-life experiences.
With Hurt Me, Liam was staying with his mum up the coast and was thinking about the journeys that relationships around him had taken. The song at it’s core is about a relationship in free-fall and those real-life experiences had a profound effect on the finished product.
When and where was it written? Any stand-out or special moments in the creation of 'Hurt Me'?
In the creation of Hurt Me, previous single Need You and an, as yet unreleased third track, we escaped as a band to the singer’s childhood home in the foothills of Dural. We spent four days tracking the songs and finishing the production with our close friend Blake Wares (lovemedo). This was interspersed with big family dinners and very late nights. We’re really proud of what we were able to create together in that collaborative space.
“We’re really striving to be a multi-dimensional band artistically ”
Who came up with the concept for the music video? Is making music videos something you as a band enjoy or do you find it challenging to get the picture in your head to translate onto film?
Liam came up with the original concept, bringing in influences from UK TV-series Skins and Pinterest mood boards, and then bounced off ideas with the rest of the band. Together we hashed out scenes, discussed set locations and production ideas and then collaborated with The Million singer Jacob Thomas who we brought in as Director of Photography. As a band we love translating the stories and emotions behind the song into a visual medium, it allows us to dig deep creatively and add another layer of storytelling, so it wasn’t a difficult process. We’re really striving to be a multi-dimensional band artistically and music videos are, for us, the next most important thing to the song itself.
Can we expect a Pretty Talks album or EP out soon?
We’re constantly building our catalogue. But we feel that right now, with the way the music industry is structured, that it’s better for us to be consistent in releasing singles for the time being. We just really want to put good music out there. Currently, we’re aiming to release a third single before the end of the year.
Is the band planning to tour soon?
We’re super invested in building a live show that we’re proud of before we consider touring. Right now the focus is on building a fan-base and collaborating with local artists.
“We’ve been flirting musically and intellectually ever since”
How did Pretty Talks come about? Whats the story behind the bands formation?
We all met at a music college in Sydney’s CBD. Liam and Tommy had originally been paired up for a group project and bonded pretty much instantly. We met Hadi, who was also studying there, at the uni bar one night. We’ve been flirting musically and intellectually ever since. Prior to PRETTY TALKS, we wrote and gigged as a more rock-focused act called The Hideaways which we were lucky enough to release an EP under before the pandemic enabled us to pursue a new musical direction.
In your wildest dreams did you think this is where you would be in 2022? Releasing music? Doing interviews?
Honestly it’s great to see people are enjoying our music and our work and it’s great to open a window to our process and our band. We really believe in these songs, what we’ve created and each other, so it’s really gratifying.
If you weren’t recording musicians what else would you be doing now?
We’d probably all be actively pursuing other creative outlets in some form. It’s something that all three of us are attached to and feel is necessary in our lives.
Who do you credit as your musical influences?
The 1975 - Lyrically they’re fantastic. Musically they’re fantastic. They continuously push the pop genre forward with every release and their ability to build a world with all of their combined art is really inspiring to us.
MUNA - Their soundscape, their use of emotive language and specifically their use of sidechained bass left a big mark in the production of Hurt Me.
The Horrors - They have this very unique approach to fuzzed out but melodic bass guitar and Hadi had that in mind when it came to drawing tones for the choruses.
Who in your crew or team deserves a shout out but never gets one? And what is they do that keeps your world turning?
We’d love to give a shout out to Jasmine Calacoci for all the work she does with our graphic design and album artwork. But also for being there for all of us emotionally and bringing our egos in line when necessary.
“We also really want to be part of a collaborative local scene”
Where would you like to see Pretty Talks in a year's time and five years down the road? What do you hope the band has achieved?
In a year’s time, we really want to be bringing our music to a live audience in the way that we’ve always envisioned it; with an exciting and immersive show. Other than that, we just want to keep releasing music, videos, merch and complementary artwork.
In five years time, the sky’s really the limit. We don’t really see a cap on how far we could progress but we’d love to have an album or two out and hopefully be touring nationally. We also really want to be part of a collaborative local scene.
Interview by Michelle Symes
October 2022