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Sooo, tell us everything… How did Bangalley come to life? Where did it start and where is it heading?
“We started out as high school kids who spent every morning, recess and lunch in the music rooms, covering songs we liked or playing around with ideas. In Year 8, Aiden was on guitar, Kai on bass and Milo was singing and playing drums. We went through names like ‘Yea Oath’ and ‘Waves’, playing tracks like ‘LSD’ by the Skegss and ‘Easy’ by Faith No More.
After a break, Aiden and Milo formed an acoustic duo called Dos & Limos. In Year 10, a school assessment brought Xavier into the mix. We played 'The Sun Comes Up' by Mako Road and clicked. Our band Monke Business was born.
After gigging through Year 12 and playing at our formal, we kept writing, and on 8 May 2023, rebranded as ‘Bangalley’, named after a local Avalon headland. Since then, we’ve dropped two singles (with a third on the way), and we’re only just getting started. Bangalley to the moon!”
How would you describe yourselves as a collective and as individuals?
“We’re a considerably cohesive team, when we need to be. We certainly have fun in just about every moment we spend together. If, and when, we get on each other’s nerves we tend to know to take a step back and cool off instead of letting it get to us.
As individuals, we definitely bring different personalities and interests to the band, which the rest of us welcome and share. There’s a really diverse range of skill sets amongst the band, some of us having the brains and studying Mechatronics and Robotics, and some of us selling screws for a living.”
Where did you all go to school and have The Beaches (or your school days) shaped your sound or perspective?
“We all went to Mater Maria in Warriewood. The Beaches absolutely shaped our sound, with local inspirations like Ocean Alley and Lime Cordiale, and our mates The Rions (a year above us), who took off just as we were starting out.”
What do you each bring to the band? Who’s bringing the most energy (or chaos) to rehearsals, and who’s just there for the snacks?
“We all bring our own style and abilities. Some handle the business side, others will drive any distance with gear in tow. Rehearsals are productive, but we always have fun. We love when someone brings a new idea to workshop and build into a Bangalley creation. Our humour is alarmingly in sync, we laugh at things that aren’t even funny. If there are snacks, they will be eaten (you know who you are).”
Mullets, mo’s and steeze seem to be the vibe. Who’s leading the style charge?
“All of us, honestly. Milo’s got the retro mullet, Aiden’s rocking the mullet-mo-steezoi combo, and Kai’s got the slick mullet-mo look. We all share a similar taste in how we look and present ourselves on stage, and we think it’s really important. We also love Xavier and his Doug Judie T-shirt.”
Do you remember the first song you ever played together? Was it a total mess or a magical moment?
“Drift by Great Gable. Honestly, it wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t amazing either. We performed it live and, at the time, thought it was one of our best covers. Recently, we had a full circle moment with the song. We’ll be supporting Great Gable at an upcoming show in Sydney at the Oxford Art Factory.”
There’s a lot of heart in your tracks. How do your personal lives and friendships feed into the stories you tell through music?
“Our personal lives and friendships do feed into our music. We put our hearts into it, no matter how full or empty we feel. We find meaning in the smallest of things, no matter what. We write down and record any bit of music we feel heavily with the hopes of building upon it. Sharing those feelings and having them received means the world to us.”
Funniest or weirdest thing that’s happened at a gig?
“It happened mid-gig at our recent show in Mona Vale. A crowd member pushed everyone aside several times to do the worm. We hadn’t seen that before… definitely interesting.”
If Bangalley could throw its own mini-fest, who’s playing alongside you? Bonus points for locals.
“We would have to have some of Avalon’s best wouldn’t we? Leading this collab would be Lime Cordiale, Le Shiv and The Rions. All these fellas are legends and have been great friends and a huge inspiration to our music. Also playing alongside us would be Spacey Jane, Great Gable and Rum Jungle. It might be called a mini festival, but there’s nothing small about it. It would absolutely go off!”
