For a band with over a billion streams and 12 years worth of experience in the industry you’d assume they’d pretty much made it, right? But in the case of Australian band Sticky Fingers, they’re only just getting started.
With a dedicated fanbase, more loyal than man’s best friend, the five-piece band have sold out arenas and stadiums around Australia, Brazil and New Zealand, where they would often compete with the noise levels of their chanting audiences. The band were so prevalent in their home country, they became one of the Top Five most streamed Australian artists from 2016 – 2019.
Then for a while, things went quiet. Battling with addiction and mental health issues, the lads took time off to focus on themselves and yet as the years went by, fans still remained as devoted as ever, patiently waiting for their return and longing for the day they release new music. Finally, they have resurfaced and have since blessed their followers with not one, but three new singles ahead of their album next year.
Their new music remains true to their signature sound, with singer Dylan Frost’s gravelly vocals riding atop their reggae-doused melodies and indie instrumentation. It’s this undeniably feel-good sound which has inevitably led to their success – you can’t help but lose yourself to their warm, sunshine-tinged music which seems to fit perfectly into the background of any occasion. Summertime festivals or lazy Sunday mornings, Sticky Fingers (casually known as Sti-Fi) seem to lighten up the mood with their smile-inducing sound and jangly guitars.
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The upcoming album 'We Can Make The World Glow, is set to showcase some raw and vulnerable themes. Not afraid to open up, we’ve already had a preview of the challenges that Frost in particular has faced, but here he is, out the other side, stronger than ever and delivering an impressive performance with 'My Rush'. A song which emits a spine-tingling sensation with lyrics like: “I could wake up in the ward dripping epipens…”
Bassist Paddy Cornwall speaks of the moment the song was created, sharing: “A wave of darkness hit the room. Though it felt like the right lyric it didn’t make us feel good recording it… A couple of hours later Diz overdosed and wound up in the hospital. Not the kinda voodoo shit you wanna predict while writing music. We stopped the sessions at Dizza’s joint after that. Too damn spooky. 'My Rush' as a whole is a damn spooky song really. ‘How dark does the rabbit hole go?’… PS Diz came out okay he’s still nuts as ever but he’s here and singing like a champion on this one.”
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The new music video for 'Saves The Day' sees the first time the band unveiling intimate, behind the scenes footage. Further emphasising their new found desire to break down any barriers with their audience. Cornwall admits: “Spending a year off the piss and the gear has been hard work that I’m pretty proud of. You find yourself with a real clear headspace looking into the past. There’s a lot of bitter pills to swallow looking back on the way I’ve behaved when I been messed up. Picking fights and being a gronk.”
“‘Saves The Day’ is about the importance of confronting your past and coming to terms with it. ‘I said I’m sorry sister for the damage I have done, I said I’m sorry Mumma for what I’ve become’. It was one of those songs that came out of nowhere. Sunny arvo at Seamus’ house. Bashed it out in under half an hour. These kinds of songs are often my favourite.”
Their brutally honest lyrics and laid-back, life-is-too short approach is something that their fans cling on to. There’s no facade with this band, just five guys creating music and dealing with the repercussions that life on the road can throw at you. It comes as no surprise that they have got themselves into some sticky situations (excuse the pun), with fights within the band bringing them close to their demise, but somehow things always seem to simmer down and at the end of it all is the creation of new music.
So yes, Sticky Fingers may have a billion streams, five albums under their belt and performed at arenas around the world, but after taking some time off to heal and reflect on their past, it seems like this year is the beginning of a new chapter for the band. Sticky Fingers are one of the planet's most popular rock bands, but they're only just getting started.
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Words: Alexander Williams
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