A Sense Of Belonging With BEN SIMPSON From CHAVEZ CARTEL

After spending their first couple of years refining their sound and
learning their craft better, Gold Coast rock outfit Chavez Cartel
are finally starting to bear the fruits of that labour, having also
managed to conquer the UK and USA in recent years.
With a classic rock sound embedded with elements of grunge, Chavez
Cartel found pieces falling into place earlier this year with an
appearance at Big Sound 24 introducing the band to a wider range of
possibilities and contacts than ever before.
Harnessing this renewed vigour, the band headed for the studio to
begin the next phase of their musical journey, with the result
being new single All I Know, which showcases the evolving sonic
world in which Chavez Cartel find themselves gravitating
toward.
HEAVY caught up with frontman Ben Simpson to get more
details.
"It's a little bit 90s sounding - like a lot of our stuff is, I
think," he explained of All I Know. "It's got some 90s elements in
there. It sounds like a dirty Oasis track to me, if I strip it
back. A punky, dirtier Brit-Pop song. The song itself is about
grinding, day-to-day life. Stuck in traffic. Back and forth from
work, feeling like you're wasting away. It's a bit of a miserable
approach to working class life, but it's got a bit of life in it,
so it's not a miserable song. It just touches on the misery of some
days."
In the full interview, we discussed All I Know in greater detail
and its potential inclusion in their upcoming album. Ben described
the song as a bit of a miserable approach to working-class life,
but with a bit of life in it. We also discussed the concept of the
film clip that reflects this theme.
We spoke about the band's transition from releasing smaller EPs to
an album. Ben expressed his dissatisfaction with EPs, stating that
they are not as valued as albums. He mentioned that the band is now
ready to release a full album, having accumulated a body of work.
Ben also shared that they have learned more about production,
including vocal layering and counter melodies, which will be
incorporated into their new album. The conversation also touched on
the changing attention spans of people due to social media and the
internet, with Ben expressing his preference for longer, more
immersive music experiences.
Ben touched on the band's continued musical growth and clarified
that the changes were natural and not a deliberate strategy to veer
off into different genres. He explained that the band started as
purely grunge, but over time, they added elements from punk and
Britpop, while maintaining their grungy sound. Ben confirmed that
the singles they released were a good representation of their
current and future sound.
We also spoke about upcoming shows and plenty more.


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