When worlds collide: POND and Methyl Ethel interview each other

When it comes to the heavyweights of Perth's music space, POND and Methyl Ethel are two acts that instantly come to mind. They're acts that define the city's musical evolution and how it's perceived on an international scale; POND (led by the inimitable Nicholas Allbrook) and Methyl Ethel (the project of Jake Webb) carving out their respective lanes and watching how they alter and shape the country's music space in the process of doing so, with discographies that showcase their continued sense of evolution and growth within the indie, rock, pop and electronic worlds.

They're also two acts gearing up for a big remainder of 2021 ahead. Today, POND makes their return with a brand new single titled America's Cup, arriving alongside news of their forthcoming new album 9 - which yes, is their 9th studio album - on October 1st. Following the release of their 'comeback' single Pink Lunettes earlier in the year, America's Cup is a single that reinforces the album's seemingly frantic feeling thus far, emphasising the heavy layering of POND's music at what's arguably its most manic, yet jigsawed together in a way that prevents it from descending into all-out chaos.

"We sort of gave ourselves permission to make something stuffed this time," Allbrook introduces the album. "We'd settled into a pretty tight routine with the last few albums and wanted to shake a boat with this so we started off with filling a few tape reels with some absolutely heinous improvised sonic babble which, after much sifting, became the first few songs of the album. We also wanted to up the tempo." The end result is very much this feeling of controlled chaos we get with both America's Cup and Pink Lunettes, jagged with its rough-around-the-edges charm and how Allbrook and co. are able to sell it to the highest level.

For Methyl Ethel, meanwhile, 2021 has been a year of change. They began the year by signing to Future Classic, heralding in a new era for the band alongside a brand new label. Then, came a returning single of their own in Neon Cheap, a bright-eyed and purple-lit burst of creativity from Jake Webb that captured how their genre-shifting sound continues to evolve into the future, plucking from influences spread from their distinctive alt-pop sound right through to disco-lit dens of late nights and smokey beats.

"Picture yourself scrolling, mind-numbingly at 3 AM. Now, instead of scrolling, you’re traipsing some Vegas-like strip," Webb emphasised with the single's release earlier in the year. "All the events and people you’d normally read about are there as you walk around, inoculated, casually observing. For me, this is Neon Cheap."

Later this year, Methyl Ethel and POND will come together for a pair of shows at Perth's newly-minted Magnet House, with dates - on June 27th and 28th - pencilled in after a postponement from the end of April. You can grab tickets to both shows here, but before they meet on the live stage, we got them to meet over text message, as the pairing interview each other ahead of their co-headline shows.

Find their chats below, as well as their respective new tunes and own headline tour dates:

Methyl Ethel x POND Text Message Interview: 

POND Tour Dates: 

Thursday 24 June | The Factory, Sydney NSW (early)
Thursday 24 June | The Factory, Sydney NSW (late)
Friday 25 June | Croxton, Melbourne VIC
Saturday 26 June | Croxton, Melbourne VIC

Methyl Ethel Tour Dates: 

Thursday 22 July - Melbourne, VIC @ The Night Cat
Friday 23 July - Sydney, NSW @ Roundhouse

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Follow Methyl Ethel: FACEBOOK / INSTAGRAM