Introducing: Winston Surfshirt

Carving in drectly from Sydney's northern beaches, Winston Surfshirt have announced themselves in 2017 with new single, Be About You, along with the news they've signed to tastemaker legends Sweat It Out!, Astral People and Niche Productions for bookings. Not a bad way to get the ball rolling, which would all be for nothing if their music was no good.

Fortunately, and probably why we're talking about them, Be About You is an absolute power jam, and one of the freshest new sounds we've heard out of Australia in a while. Take it in below, get to know the group a little better underneath that, and if you were smart enough to get on to tickets for their single launch at Newtown Social on March 25, we hope you enjoy that!

Tell us about yourselves?

Wagwan, I’m Winston and these are my Surfshirts:

Bustlip - Beats

Mi-K - Samples n guitars.

The Bone - Trombone.

Bik Julio - Bass.

Dool - Keys.

We make music and say things like ‘yeah the boys’ and ‘is that full cream?’. We just released our first single Be About You.

What kinda tunes we talking?

I think the initial plan and mutual love is hip hop, but because of influence and being from straya, it's hard to say. We like to describe it as A Tribe Called Quest splitting spliffs with your parents' favourite band. My background was motown and soul from me mother's side mixed with Beatles and Slade from Papa T’s collection, but growing up through the 90s you’ve got all the R&B and hip hop that was controlling the radio that you unintentionally soak in.

Plus I have two sisters who just had one Destiny’s Child album on loop.

Production/Writing Process:

I’ve moved three times in the last two years but always manage to get a good setup to write, just continuously working on music from home and for some reason when I’ve got a ‘project’ done every year I head home to London and record the vocals in different studios with Mi-K.

We linked up with a friend who plays keys in a band called Animanz and I ended up going to his flat to record Be About You on his Wurlitzer on a sunny day in London so you can hear the birds throughout the song, just gives it a nice feeling.

What do you do outside of music?

There’s an array of jobs between us… We got a trombone-playing postman who doesn’t know how to not smile, a carpenter on the bass who doesn’t know how to smile, beats are hit by a wine connoisseur on a bad man ting, the man on the keys is a model maker (centres for ants), he’s always pimping Julio’s bass and making all sorts of dope Winston gear. Mi-K is still bossing it in London reviewing restaurants and bars whilst looking good at the same time. I...don’t actually have a life outside of music soz.

Any shows coming up?

We’ll be finishing up the RÜFÜS tour we’re on at the moment in a couple weeks. We have Canberra and Port Macquarie left with those guys then our single launch for Be About You on Saturday 25th of March at Newtown Social Club (which just sold out!!!) before she gets closed down. Hashtag ‘Open Sydney’. We’ve also got Big Pineapple Festival coming up on May 27th which should be dope!

What’s the rest of the year have in store?

We'll be releasing more music and playing more shows, big things to come so y’all just gotta keep your ears clean… If ya give a damn.

Where can we hear more of your music?

My place? You’ll just have to wait or if the itch gets too much, come see a show!

Follow Winston Surfshirt: FACEBOOK / SOUNDCLOUD