Halloween-ish special

On Sun Nov 1, the night after Halloween, Local Fidelity is going to revisit the ghosts of the past and play two hours of great Australian bands that are sadly no longer kicking around. Some of them will be fresh casualties - Young & Restless, The Lucksmiths, Gameboy/Gamegirl, Damn Arms are some of the bands that called it quits this year - while others, such as Sandpit, would have departed a long while ago.

If you have any suggestions for favourite Australian bands that are now just bone-dust, please leave them in the comments & hopefully I can revive them briefly, on-air, on Sun Nov 1, 7pm-9pm AEST on FBI 94.5FM or www.fbiradio.com.

Voltaire Twins, Perth

Current band rollcall?
Current band rollcall (and what instruments/roles you play)?
Tegan Voltaire - synths and vocals
Jaymes Voltaire - synths and vocals
Jye Satti - live drums

Voltaire Twins has been around since …
Saturday morning mini synth jams suddenly got serious. Somewhere along the line, we became a band.

Let's play Six Degrees of Six Degrees of Voltaire Twins. What are some interesting musical links you could come up with?
Tegan once accidentally met the band The Eagles, but didn't realise it when she worked in a coffee trailer many many years ago.

First song ever written?
We wrote a song called Burn about brothers and sisters. We ditched it years ago, but we've recycled bits of it into a few different songs now.

Music making for you began when …
Primary school recorder was our first foray into music. After that, Jaymes played Trombone in the School band and Tegan sang in the school choir. We got a piano in year ten and learnt the keys.

Most unusual sound/instrument you've used in your music?
In primary school Jaymes once made an instrument out of a hose and a funnel and some other garden instruments. Tegan made a guitar with a shoebox and elastic bands. Jaymes did a remix that had this weird sound in it that sounded like a duck quacking backwards in a hallway.

Strangest gig you've ever played?
We once performed a Valentine's Day show dressed as Marie Antoinette and Louis the 14th. Wigs and everything.

Do you pin up images when recording to help inspire your songs? (Or put up other things in the studio for the same effect?)
We're actually in the studio recording as we write this. There is a big photo of Russell Crowe in the toilet. Ponder THAT.

Unlikeliest thing to influence your music?
Billy Ray Cyrus.

Most unconventional topic you've covered in your lyrics?
In the early days we had a song about a postman - but it was the centre of much contention, so we dropped it.

If you had to offer any of your lyrics as love advice (or life advice), you would offer ...
Fight then leave, never say please.

Most useful lyrics you've heard in a song?
Sing your life.

Do you think the country/city/town you live in affects your music in any way?
Perth's small - there aren't that many venues and big events going on all year round, so I think you do have to be a bit more creative and make things happen yourself, sometimes.

You would love to record with …
David Byrne, Giorgio Moroder, Arthur Russell

Favourite person you have performed with/recorded with …
Jerry Bouthier did a JBAG remix of our song D.I.L, which was really amazing.

Outside of Voltaire Twins, you spend your time …
Tegan: Mainly playing SNES, DS, making dress-up costumes, eating cheese Twisties in bed.
Jaymes: eBaying, DS, DJing, dressing up as various animals.

Next for you is …
A trip to Melbourne and glamorous Sydney just before Christmas!



Voltaire Twins were one of the many amazing bands who contributed to the Local Fidelity compilation fundraising CD earlier this year. The band has since released its first single, D.I.L., a punchy, whipsmart electro number which comes with some very fine remixes, such as the aforementioned JBAG makeover and the awesomely named Boy-Crazy Stacey mix. To find out more, head to the Voltaire Twins MySpace.