Plastic Palace Alice - Heat Up This Summer

Plastic Palace Alice have had an amazing year. Their music has been hailed by music press and national radio alike. They’ve also developed a notorious reputation for wowing punters with their euphoric live show. The Dwarf sat down with bassist Gabriel Piras ahead of several shows the band is playing this summer.

The Dwarf: How did Plastic Palace Alice come to be?

GP: Rob had a pile of songs; Lise was cajoled into putting off her career as a composer to play said songs on the piano. I saw the duo do a show and introduced myself. They advertised for a drummer and Jeremy rang. We searched for the right singer/percussionist for a while til it transpired that my good friend Em was the perfect girl for the job all along. Huw joined when Rob finally convinced us he didn't have enough fingers to play all the guitar parts.

The Dwarf: What is your mantra when it comes to writing music?

GP: Depending on what day it is, either "Om Shanti" or "What would (they who were bigger than) Jesus do?" or "The only problem here is that you don't accept that I'm right".

The Dwarf: What bands do you guys get inspired by?

GP: Hmm. If you listen to our record it's pretty obvious we love David Bowie, The Beatles, Neil Young and Tom Waits. But there's heaps of others! We do a lot of talking about bands and artists that influence us, all the boys are pretty daggy about rock-nerdery, especially on car trips, whereas the girls are a little classier. When it comes down to having a direct effect on how we play I have to say it's our fellow aussie up -and-comers. When there are bands we like on the same bill or just in the crowd, it really energises us - we want to put on a good show for them!

The Dwarf: You had a massive response for 'Empire Falls' from Triple J this year. How has that been?

GP: People know the song and it's awesome to have a direct positive reaction while you're playing. Saying that we can't wait to get the album out in March, because 'Empire Falls' is a real thumper of a song, but the band has a pretty diverse range, it'd be great if people eventually sing along to a ballad or two as well!

The Dwarf: You're playing a lot of shows over the summer. Do you enjoy summer gigs more than winter ones?

GP: Definitely. Loading gear in the rain blows big time. However, I would play nude in a hail storm if the gig was good! It's always the mood of the crowd that makes a great show, and in winter it's harder to get people out. Playing heaps in summer is more of a reaction to how the punters are feeling!

The Dwarf: The gig on the 28th has a great line-up. What can punters expect from your show?

GP: We'll be off to play the Pyramid Festival shortly after so we're gonna be jubilant and excited I reckon! We're working on new songs at the moment so we might even get a couple out. I'm looking forward to playing with Special Patrol again, we had the pleasure in Adelaide not long ago - they are heart breakers. Armen Firman are a band I've been listening to online for ages and can't wait to see live. Stony Silence and The Rock Bottom Boys is a new all star crew headed by our producer Jonathan Burnside, come early to check his dirty blues stylings!

The Dwarf: Looking ahead, what does PPA have planned for 2008?

GP: Loads of hijinks! We've got some festivals, some supports, and our album comes out on March 1st so there's a national headline tour in the works. Yet somehow we still find the time to watch the best serialised television the digital age has to offer - how do we do it?

Plastic Palace Alice play with Special Patrol, Armen Firman and Stony Silence and the Rock Bottom Boys at The Evelyn on December 28th

Share this article on Facebook