Friday August 20, 2021
Why hasn’t anyone ever called their band Cheap Date before? It’s perfect for the transitory nature of rock and has an inherent self-deprecating touch to it that’s difficult to resist.
Thankfully, this debut track by the Brisbane based band lives up to the name. Beside Me has all the sweet and sour you want an indie pop-rock record to have, as well as a few other worthy attributes that are a cut above—most significantly, the lyric.
Led by artist Lara Dee on vocals and guitar and featuring Flynn Donaldson (lead guitar), Willow Giles (drums), Brian Butcher (keys) and Harry Shakespeare (bass), theBeside Me is an ode to high school heartbreak and the allure of hooking up with that wrong person—who can’t relate to that? Beside Me explores emotional anxiety yet does so with a healthy dollop of tongue in cheek, and nifty imagery, like the snippy refrain that follows the chorus, And if I had a daughter I wouldn’t want her talking to you. No glowing references here!
The track utilises a guitar-driven rock sensibility to underscore some decent melodies; after the initial cycle of verse, pre, chorus etc., the band powers up, along with the dreamy textural layers, allowing a more jam-packed, verified rock trip to begin—and it’s all performed with an unanticipated level of confidence.
This combination of 90s powered pop-rock thrills and a more considered lyric is no surprise when you hear what Lara has to say about it, as she explains, ‘One of the major messages in this music is the normalisation of feeling attraction toward men and woman. Beside Me is about a male and a heterosexual relationship; however, the music to come tells my story in more depth.’ That music is in the form of an EP, due out soon. As Lara says, ‘We have big things coming. We are releasing the second single (or the second episode). We plan to release the full EP (almost like a small book) at the end of the year.’
A recent highlight for the band has been their appearance at the Loud For Leukaemia concert, a charity event Lara Dee organised in honour of someone close to her struggling with a blood disease. The event was held at the Zoo in Brisbane and raised over 5000 dollars.
‘Performing at that was inspiring. Seeing so many people come out to support a great cause instils faith in modern humanity. We 100% plan to do more charitable events in the future, and giving back is a huge part of what Cheap Date is about.’ And hear, hear to that.
