Introducing Adelaide Band Division…

Tonight is the night! The shroud of mystery over Adelaide’s newest band Division will be over tonight when they play their first show at a mystery location in the city. All will be revealed! Hi Fi Way did an interview with Matt ‘Footy’ Horvath (recognisable to most as the owner of Adelaide’s best record store Clarity Records) about the band, the style of music they play and a little more about who is in the band.

There has been an air of mystery over this show, has it been hard keeping a lid on the excitement?
Not only has there been some mystery about the show, there has also been a bit of mystery about the band in general. I don’t think it’s anything we’ve done on purpose, it’s just something that has organically grown as a result of the four of us being in a jam room for three years now and waiting for the right moment to release anything out into the world. Because of all the hard work that has been put into the band behind the scenes for so long now, it has been hard to contain the excitement about the show as the date draws closer.

How do punters find this secret venue?
All will be revealed on the night. People who will be in attendance at the meeting spot on the night will be escorted to the location.

What can punters expect to hear on the night?
We plan to perform about ten songs on the night, which is a few short of our full repertoire at the moment.

Are you nervous?
For me personally, after over 20 years of playing in bands, I’ve never been as nervous in the lead up to a show as what I am now. This stems from the fact that for years I’ve gone through every scenario in my head as to what a Division show might look, as well as for me personally I haven’t played a live show of any type for about three years.

How would you describe your music sonically?
Our aim is for the music to speak for itself and we’ve tried not to pigeonhole ourselves. But we have drawn influences from bands within the punk, post-hardcore genres.

Is the band building towards an album or EP?
We will have a 12” coming out on the night of the show. The 12” is part of a series of releases the band has planned. Everything is already all recorded and the records will be coming out through Clarity Records in due course. For the moment they will only be limited physical releases and then the music will eventually find itself onto digital formats.

Who would you say is the biggest shared musical influence/ inspiration for Division?
Fugazi is our main influence, as well as bands like Rites Of Spring, Sonic Youth and Dischord Records bands.

How did the band meet?
We’ve all been friends in the music community for a very long time. Alex and I have been wanting to do a band like Division for over ten years. Alex is an incredible musician and songwriter, making music with Alex has been a long time creative aspiration of mine. However we all live busy lives and the idea never came to fruition until a few years ago, but I’m so glad it finally happened. Our drummer Will is from D.C. and grew up within the music community over there. I met Will at Clarity Records and when he introduced himself he mentioned how he’s a drummer, played in a Dischord affiliated band and if I ever needed a drummer for anything that I should hit him up. Anthony is an incredible bass player whom I’ve seen play in bands for years now and was a big piece of the missing puzzle that brought everything together.

What inspired the band name?
As a band we have set out to try break the mould of the current practices within music. Different ways of expressing art, playing shows and releasing music. The music industry can become stagnant. Complacent. The name Division is inspired from the idea of separating ourselves from what is considered the norm within the music industry. As musicians and artists, we are afforded the platform to say something strong, take a stand and construct something with substance. Take a risk. Be dangerous and exciting instead of following a particular formula that music can be known for.

What’s next for Division?
For now just concentrating on playing some shows. Putting out these releases. We are also tinkering with a whole bunch of new material which will probably surface once the ball starts rolling.

Interview By Rob Lyon

Catch Division tonight, meet at Clarity Records to be escorted to the venue…