An Interview with Trick Shot

If you are not yet too familiar with the soundscapes of Trick Shot, then let us be among the first to introduce you as the band has recently dropped several singles that each showcase a different side of their songwriting, presence, and even personality.

One of the most recent ones, "As You Grow", comes through with a very classic but pop-rock drive, and everything is really nailed aesthetically from the guitar tone to the vocal approach.

This track in particular hits this arena-rock style feel, and the vocals are powerful and anthemic, double-tracked for thickness and to add some depth to everything.

This really works well along with the progression and riffs for the track because it's kind of like a fists-in-the-air sing-along in a way. I really adored the approach and style for this track, and I feel like it speaks volumes for the band because they're able to put tons of that colorful personality into a track and still have a come through with an edginess and almost vintage Rock aesthetic.

Songs like this let you know that this is a band that has a real love for their craft and also pays a lot of attention to the details when they're creating a track so that it comes out exactly how they want it to be in the end.

The guitar work is all around outstanding, including some lead stuff towards the middle of the track, and it really just showcases the band's ability to display an almost live-performance-style energy and have that energy feel infectious as well.

Now, as you listen through to the most recent releases from the band, you start to get a feel for the slew of influences that come into play when we're talking about how these guys came to be.

Songs like "Punk In The Corn", are a perfect example of giving off this kind of hair metal feel along with elements of punk and even heavier sections as well.

There's some trudging palm muted guitar stuff going on here, and you still have all this righteous character and color coming through from beginning to end.

This track felt a bit heavier and harder edged than "As You Grow", but it still boasts some of the Staples that you tend to hear with their music.

It was a thriving track and is actually used as the official track for the Indie music festival of the same title, Punk In The Corn.

This one also had an intense energy that was completely addicting, and I think the energy of how they perform their songs is a strong attribute as to why they have this feel.

To an extent, it almost feels like some of these tracks were recorded live on the floor and everyone involved was just feeding off of each other's energies the entire time, giving the songs these alive and breathing kind of Vibes.

That electric energy is so powerful with both of these tracks that it's crazy.

Then there are songs like "This Life", which also boasts that great energy but has more of a message to send lyrically that makes you think a little deeper. I love the riff of this track because it's a little outside the box, and so is the time signature.

This is definitely a band that puts thought into how they write their songs and make sure that they perform them with heart and love for their craft so you can hear that bleed through in the songs themselves.

These tracks were all massive, and they are only the icing on the cake.

The band has released a handful of singles this year already, and they each come again, showing a different side to how they do their thing, their artistry, their personality, and everything else.

I love listening to a band on record and immediately knowing that I want to go see them perform live.

It rarely happens, but with Trick Shot, you can hear the effort put into capturing the right kind of energy on record, so going to see them live would just be amazing.

With the release of these outstanding singles, we wanted to have a chat with the band to see where they came from, what's coming up next, and how they feel about everything.

Here's what happened.

Buzz Slayers: Let's talk about the "As You Grow" single! This was such a great heavy rock single with anthemic undertones and an arena-rock feel to it! Where did this track come from?

Ian - As with most of the songs I write, it started with the intro riff, then came up with some complimentary ideas for the verses and choruses. Next I used my electric drum kit and Superior Drummer VST to write the drum parts. Then grab the bass and put down the bass lines. I got the chorus idea from watching my 4 year old daughter playing with her Bluey figurines. Once I had the main chorus hook, the verse lyrics just flowed out. The guitar solo is usually the last thing to get written and recorded. 

Buzz Slayers: I'm hearing a few different approaches on your releases! Who are some of your biggest musical influences?

Ian - I'm a child of the 80's Rock and Metal scene. I've always been a super fan of Iron Maiden's Dave Murray and Adrian Smith and heavily influenced by the usual 80's guitar Gods like Randy Rhoads, Steve Vai, Vernon Reid (Living Colour), Paul Gilbert, Gary Moore and then others such as Frank Zappa, AC/DC, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath.

Buzz Slayers: I loved "Punk In the Corn" which came through with a thrashy punk feel! This is the official track of the Indie Music Festival of the same name, correct? How did this happen?

Ian - Our bass player and Admin Guru, Dave, messaged me and asked "Are you doing anything in October? Do you still have the recurring dream of playing guitar in America? How much do you love me?" etc  As with "As You Grow", I had the backing for the track already done, but didn't have any vocal ideas and when Dave said "We've been invited to play this awesome new festival called Punk In The Corn in the good ol' U.S of A" the shout chorus of Punk In The Corn just slotted in like it was meant to be! I had to do a couple of rewrites of the lyrics due to a few bands dropping out and others joining the line-up, but I decided to shoehorn the bands into the lyrics and came up with the festival anthem.

Buzz Slayers: Are you guys performing at the Festival? Any touring in support of this release?

Dave - At the minute this is the only date we have, though if ducks do line up, we shall be rockin' and rollin' and whatnot as much as possible!!

Buzz Slayers: How did it all start for you as a band?

Dave - I actually answered a 'Bassist Wanted' advert for another local original band. Never let the fact that I had never played a bass guitar ruin this story though! Ian was already the gunslinger for this act and we connected as I recalled seeing him play at one of our local premium rooms almost 20 years prior! He kinda stuck out for the times with an Iron Maiden amp front grill. Through a decision to have us muso's as 'guns for hire' in this act, Ian and I wanted to explore writing and recording our own material, and thus in the Southern Summer of '22, Trick Shot was born.

Buzz Slayers: Did you record this in a home studio setup, or did you go to a big studio for this?

Ian - As with all of our tunes currently, they're recorded in my studio (a room within a room in my back shed) Due to time constraints of full time work and a beautiful 4 year old daughter, I don't have the time to jam for hours with the lads and spend hours running over riffs and piece songs together as a band, so it's all live recorded guitars, bass and vocals and an electronic kit, Superior Drummer and a ton of midi note editing to make the drums sound in time. We do have plans for album #3 to be recorded at a friend of mine's studio.

Buzz Slayers: Now that this is out, what's next?

Ian - We're trying to get album #2 completed, but we decided on a slow drip feed of 10 or so songs being released as singles across the next 3 months. Just in time for the Punk in the Corn festival.

Dave - Ian in all his wisdom has been cajoling me into self producing all the demo's I previously sent him, kinda like giving myself an emema almost, lol. Once I get a whole backlog of tracks out of my system, we shall look at co-writing the batch of songs that will be album #3.

Buzz Slayers: Who's in your headphones right now?

Ian - The Rising Fall. A band we're sharing the stage with at PITC and who we've gotten to know via the internet.

Dave - If I'm in a throwback mood, anything from 1986-88, Bon Jovi, Poison, GnR, etc. Currently, any bands that are spun on OTAT247 and The E:W:L Indie Review Show. Damn, there are some KILLA underground bands out there, such as Joe Booe, The Rising Fall, Fast Food for Mutants, The Quits, Tension Splash, Deedra Patrick and the list goes on!!

Buzz Slayers: You've had 10 releases this year so far! Amazing! How long does it take you guys to track your songs normally?

Dave - The tracking seems easy enough from the songwriter's perspective, I write and record a two track demo, then sometime in the future a little piece of magic comes back from Ian! The 10 songs that made up our debut album 'Magic Bullet', depending on one's outlook, were released 3 times in a year and a half! Mainly as us having to change labels due to the unfortunate passing of our first label owner, Adrian Collis (RIP). Then we signed with a Canadian label who re-released them again, both after we self released our first three songs!

Ian - The saga of Magic Bullet! It was a little unfortunate with the timing of life during the first year and a half of the band and our releases, but as they say, "Everything happens for a reason" It normally takes around a month to get a final cut of a track. For Magic Bullet, Dave had his tracks already written and he'd send them to me in demo form and then I'd rework them into the final product. These new tracks are all written and recorded by me during the 2 hours of studio time I get each night. It might take 2 or 3 nights to get the basic format of the song down and then I'll spend a week recording the guitars, bass and drums, then I'll let the song ferment in my brain, plus annoy all of my work colleagues with the instrumental tracks blasting through my bluetooth speaker at work,  and see what I can come up with lyrically.

Buzz Slayers: What would you tell people they can expect from the band musically?

Ian - We've decided to bite the Magic Bullet so to speak and plan on releasing a ballad on album #3......should be interesting. Never fear though, the 80's guitar rock is ingrained in my DNA and there will always be Rock guitar lines flowing from my fingers. We also shared the stage with a band called Appomattox Run the other night here in Adelaide and the 2 back up singers gave us a plethora of ideas for future releases. Maybe some twin guitar harmonies ala Iron Maiden will get a look in too.

Dave - I wrote 'Magic Bullet' with the ethos that if you are having a hard time with life, after listening to Trick Shot for a song or the whole discography, we hope your life is that little bit brighter. As for live, an absolute party! No point in not shaking your money maker, one is dead a long time!

Buzz Slayers: Before we go, what would you like to express to fans of the music? 

Dave - Gratitude for all that they have offered us on the journey thus far. If you are new to the band and our sound, we would love for you to be taken to a place where peace, love and kisses hold your heart and you may lay your head down at rest. Should you catch us at a show, hopefully you will leave saying something along the lines of "WTF just happened there?!!" in a good way!

Ian - We'd love to thank them for the listens on their favourite streaming platforms. It really means a lot to us that people like our music enough to follow us and listen as often as they do. We really hope to branch out and start doing more shows in other parts of the world. We have just secured a Victorian booking agent, AllyOop Management, and she has been a Godsend in pushing us to get off our proverbial backsides and get out of our little town of Adelaide. We can't wait to see our American friends and fans in October '25 at Punk In The Corn.

SPOTIFY

WEBSITE

INSTAGRAM