Following in the footsteps of The Vines and Jet, Spencer Tracy prove yet again that there's more to Australia's musical output than Holly Valance and Jason Donovan. Currently signed to a independent label back home the band are searching for major labels in the UK and the States and the album suggests they're destined for international success. Reassuring familiar yet at the same time not so anal as Jet. Tracks such as "Ocean" and "Changes" recall the kinetic energy of Oasis' "Definitely Maybe", while influences of Britpop era Blur and Supergrass add a playfulness to the proceedings. The antidote to the garage rock revolution is finally here!!!

Q: You've obviously taken your name from the actor. Was it a case of you love his films or you love the name?
John: It just sounded good. I have seen excerpts of his films, but i've never actually seen a full Spencer Tracy movie...

Kim: ...i've actually seen a few on Midnight Movies, but it's after midnight and I usually never remember it when I wake up.
 

Q: Back home in Australia you've had the album out, can command a reasonable audience for a tour and have played with the likes of The Sleepy Jackson and You Am I. Over here it must feel like your starting over again. You two (Lee and Kim) have got the whole siblings in a band thing going how, but how did you actually get the band going though as four piece?
Lee: We formed in school and just started doing gigs around South Western Australia. We were playing blues when we first started and then when I finished school we started doing originals and playing the set were playing now. After those early gigs we headed to the city and started playing round Perth and doing national tours of Australia.

Kim: A lot of British pop was an influence on us. Oasis, Supergrass and Blur were all big influences on us, but even American stuff like Green Day and Weezer. And then Australian bands like You Am I and The Sleepy Jackson. And mine and Lee's dad and Shaun's dad were all in bands together and were playing in rock bands when they were 17 and 18 years old and are still playing in bands now. So we've had that real old skool rock influence the whole time as well. So there is that 3 minute rock song, but there's also the 10 minute Led Zeppelin rock ballad.
 

Q: Every band we speak to from Australia has such an enormous amount of respect for You Am I, but they've never ever made much of an impact over in the UK. Is it pretty much the same in Oz in the fact they're more a muso's band?
John: They're sort of icons in Australia. They've never really cracked it big time, but they've always been a solid rock group and they write awesome songs.

Kim: Being a band in Australia there was always a sense you could make it within Australia, but now the focus is there bands are actually starting to look overseas as well. And recently it's been happening more than ever and it's just really positive.
 

Q: Travelling this far to play ITC Unsigned you must be tremendously confident that you've got that special something to stand out from the other 50 plus bands playing. Have you listened to the unsigned CD and thought better than them, them and them?
John: Actually I listened to the unsigned CD today and I thought...well, our productions better. But all production is is money and we'll just have to wait and see what the bands are like live. I reckon that's the best way to judge a band, to just watch them live. Back home we toured with Echo & The Bunnymen, Veruca Salt, You Am I and The Sleepy Jackson so we know we can hold our own.

Kim: We play the biggest venues in every state back home. In Perth we've played two of the biggest festivals to about 30,000 people and in Sydney we play a place called the Metro which holds about 1500 people, the Prince Of Wales in Melbourne holds about 1000 people. Next year we've been invited on the Big Day Out tour cos we went down so well on the Perth date of the tour last year. It's mad, were going to be playing the same tour as Metallica!!!