Interview: The Brave Chat About Their New Single, ‘Breaking Out’

Meanjin/Brisbane-based metal band The Brave have returned from hiatus with their first track since 2019, ‘Breaking Out’ – produced and mixed by Troy Brady. We caught up with the band to find out more about the new single.

Congrats on the release of ‘Breaking Out’!!. How does it feel to have it out? 

Thanks so much. It’s been such a long time between releases and something we have been working on for a long time and, at points, weren’t too sure if it would actually happen…so to finally have it out feels pretty damn good!

What is the story behind the single? 

A few things were happening in my life at the time that ‘Breaking Out’ was being written, causing me this overwhelming feeling of frustration. As the song started getting fleshed out, I wanted to ensure that feeling was conveyed lyrically. I knew I wanted the song to be quite repetitive, 1. to get stuck in people’s heads, but 2. because for me at the time, it was that constant repetition, that Groundhog Day feeling that was wearing me down and burning me out. We’ve all been there, and all had those days where you just want to say fuck it! I’m out of here! I’m getting off this mouse wheel that is just going round and round, is doing nothing to get me any further and is slowly wearing me down… I’m breaking out of here.

Tell us how you write together as a band and work through the collaboration process.

Generally, our guitarist Denham will send through either a whole song or the start of a song he has written. I’ll then take that and just start to feel it out, see what parts I like and what parts I think could change, etc. Usually, I’ll go over the song a few times and start to either hum or ad-lib vocals over certain parts and then build from there. Denham, Dan and I will then get together and start tracking demo vocals and trying to refine the song lyrically and instrumentally.

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How was the track recorded and produced?

We recorded with our long-time friend Troy Brady, who had previously produced our album, ‘Aura’.

As a band, how do you balance music life with home life?

This is definitely one of the hardest parts about being in a band. During this hiatus, we used the time to reset and focus on our personal lives as we had all kind of put some life items on the back burner. Kids, marriage, buying houses…all the things that make finding that life/music balance harder. All these factors made it hard to get together to practice, write and get back into playing shows. But as time went on, the itch became too much, and we really started to put some more focus back into the band. 

How does this release differ from previous songs? 

With ‘Breaking Out’, we took some aspects from our old songs that we noticed translated really well live… Heavy sections, catchy chorus, bouncy riffs and a sick breakdown. We took these elements and tried to include them all in this song to make sure it is a fun one to play live.

How do you feel the sound has developed over time? 

We’re aiming for a heavier sound on this release and future releases. This is merely a reflection of what I and the guys listen to. In saying that, we still want to ensure we aren’t straying too far from our sound and always want to ensure we incorporate those elements that make The Brave, The Brave. 

What can we expect to see from The Brave?

New songs, new music videos, new look, same five mates making music together. 

THE BRAVE

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