Melbourne’s rock’n’roll kings The Casanovas have released their fifth album, Backseat Rhythms, on Rubber Records. Backseat Rhythms was mixed by legendary US producer Ron Nevison – a man who made his mark working on an engineer on The Who’s Quadrophenia, Bad Company’s debut and Led Zeppelin’s Physical Graffiti before going onto produce Thin Lizzy, UFO and Kiss amongst others.
The album is classic Casanovas; a pure distillation of the riff-heavy and melodic ’70s hard rock that they love, bottled into the aural equivalent of one of those minibar miniatures that always leaves you wanting more.
Australian Musician editor Greg Phillips recently caught up with Casanovas guitarist Tommy Boyce over a zoom call to talk about the creation of their new album Backseat Rhythms
Backseat Rhythms follows the band’s 2020 album Reptilian Overlord, which got the best reviews of the band’s career, and a rapturously received European tour in October 2022. That tour came nearly 20 years to the month since they first toured Europe with The Datsuns, and took in 15 shows across Spain, France, Holland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany (including a performance on the legendary Rockpalast!).
The new album is the first to feature new drummer Brett “Wolfie” Wolfenden who joined in time to tour the last album and who has previously played with The Pictures, legendary Masters Apprentices frontman Jim Keays and Todd Rundgren. Wolfie, who has joined frontman/guitarist Tommy Boyce and longtime bass player Damo Campbell, is helping The Casanovas take their sound to new levels.
The Casanovas formed in 1999 and got caught up in the early 21st-century rock mania, sharing a bill with a barely known White Stripes early on before touring Europe with The Datsuns. Then came SXSW, Triple J rotation, The Big Day Out, and shows/tours with Motörhead, Mötley Crüe, The Darkness, The Living End, The Black Crowes, Redd Kross, Airbourne and others. They always had deeper roots though; they were as much The Powder Monkeys as AC/DC, and very much a merging of two great local traditions – hard rocking punk and larrikin Oz rock – so they naturally stuck to their guns when rock was no longer in fashion. These days it’s like the early days at the Tote all over, and with new drummer Brett Wolfenden on board (Wolfie is a longtime sideman of You Am I’s Davey Lane and has played with Jim Keays and Todd Rundgren), joining frontman/guitarist Tommy Boyce and longtime bass player Damo Campbell, they are finding an even greater joy in playing.
THE CASANOVAS’ BACKSEAT RHYTHMS IS OUT NOW ON RUBBER RECORDS
Order Backseat Rhythms here Stream Backseat Rhythms here
Backseat Rhythms album launch – The Espy Gershwin Room, St Kilda, Friday, 13 October 2023 with guests The Stripp. Tickets on sale now.
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