KATHEMATICS- DIVORCE DEATH DEPARTURE

CROSS CULTURE E-ZINE, AUSTRALIA

One of Melbourne’s most energetic bands has re-surfaced as a two-piece and with their first full-length album… and oh what an album it is. Albums this good don’t come along very often… this is an absolute gem of an album.

It is hard to believe that the intensity found on this album comes from a two-piece… Kathematics even manage to put The White Stripes to shame. The album kicks off with ‘Sue Never Ever’ a brash alternative tracks that conjures up the power that only Melbourne band 13 Tears seems to have managed to do in the past. ‘Vampire Love’ is some great experimental alternative music under some fine grunge vocals while ‘Come Find Me’ conjures up some of the finest punk intercity you are ever likely to hear… as does ‘Deathwish’ which also shows that this a band with a great future ahead of them.

‘Axe Girl’ is slower but doesn’t lose any of the intercity while the pop-punk of ‘Neverbeen’ may sound cheesy when done by some bands… but Kathematics pull it off beautifully. They sound just as good on the very fun-sounding ‘I Get Left Behind’.

Just how good this band sounds is summed up with ‘Bleed’ a song that really does sound a lot like the early work of Kittie… that is a compliment in the highest order.

RATING:- ****½ (out of 5)

-DAVE

KATHEMATICS

Divorce, Death, Departure

(Smashed Records)

At the risk of flogging a once useful metaphor within an inch of its poor, pathetic and exhausted life, the transformation of local band Kathematics from their original three-piece, pop-punk guise into the darker Pacific-North West punk two-piece found on Kathematics’ new album, Divorce, Death, Departure, presents more opportunities for mathematical analysis.  The first is that contrary to the application of a skewed version of the law of mathematical induction, knowing the original quantity, and making certain assumptions about sequencing: namely, that a band (especially one with an original pop edge) is likely over time to accentuate its pop aspect in a quest to achieve broader popular acclaim.  Kathematics have definitely taken a step toward the darker realm, forgoing light pop melodies for heavier guitar licks.  There’s a brash, cutting edge to Sue Never Ever that’s closer to the shadowy regions occupied by Slant 6 and Team Dresch than anything found washed up from sparkling Californian pop punk, and Vampire Love packs a punch as tough as a collective of Olympia anarchists transposing their rhetoric into direct resistance.  The second is that a reduction in band membership has, counter-intuitively to ordinary mathematical assumptions, resulted in a band that is sharper, tougher and exponentially greater than the sum of its parts.  Come Find Me has that most significant of rock’n’roll qualities – a riff that slices and dices the aural into bite sized pieces – and Axe Girl struts with the aplomb of Joan Jett taking on the institutional apathy of the music industry.  The third is, like chaos theory would suggest, the original Kathematics pattern of light and dark, riff and melody is still there whether Kath is laying on the sneer in Bleed, or channeling happy Kathleen Hanna in Epiphany.  You don’t need to have the slightest iota of mathematical knowledge, or even the vaguest interest in numbers to enjoy Divorce, Death, Departure.  Just enjoy it for its many and varied artistic qualities.

PATRICK EMERY....

Kath crawled out of her sickbed today to meet Danny and engineer Luke at Tran Aqua Studios to finish part two of Divorce Death Departure The Album and all we can say is WOW.

From www. loudnoiseandpictures. com

If a band reached 2 on a New York radio station, chances are you'd have heard of them. Yeah well you haven't! Cos they're Kathematics.

Kathematics are Melbournian duo (Kath, guitar + vox and Danny, drums) who wield up-tempo Lo-Fi pop-punk rock with dark grungish riffs as featured on the 2008 U.S. Warped Tour CD. Yeah – they sound pretty successful, huh! Oh and Clare Bowditch is a fan too.

Well maybe if you're in the Melbourne indie music scene or you have a finely tuned ear set to Triple-J, you might have heard of them, but if you haven't – it's high time you took notice. How can you not love a song title like (You Look Like) Alyson Hannigan!

They've put out a couple of EP's already, and they've just finished recording a new album, Divorce Death Departure. LNaP took the chance to ask Kath a few questions before they head off to their legions of American fans.

Loud Noise and Pictures: For those who haven't yet heard the sounds of Kathematics, give us a brief low-down.

Kath: Two-piece, riff-based, raw, in-your-face grunge punk!

LNaP: How has the transition into a two-piece been, and how has that changed the sound of the band?

Kath: The two-piece came about by accident. We were looking for a female bass player but when that didn't happen, Danny and I started to play as a duo and really enjoyed it. Then I wrote an entire new set of songs a few months ago, totally changing my guitar sound and the way I played to make the two-piece sound full.

LNaP: The title of the new album 'Divorce Death Departure' seems a lot more grown up than the previous EPs 'Splat,' 'Do The Math' and 'Add It Up,' has there been a significant maturity develop within the band?

Kath: Yes definitely. I went through a life-changing experience late last year that forced me to grow up. These songs are a result of that.

LNaP: Where does your musical inspiration come from? Axe Girl sounds like what would happen if the White Stripes and The Black Keys got together and let Karen O sing.

Kath: I love that description! Yeah that is spot on. I was always a fan of punk, pop-punk and grunge but I started to broaden my taste in the last year getting into music I never really liked before like blues (The White Stripes) and electronic stuff (Peaches) and I love Nick Cave's new band Grinderman as well, I guess all these new influences have seeped into my songwriting which I think is great as I think I was getting really stale as a writer.

LNaP: You've supported some fairly diverse acts in the past (Sleater Kinney, Clare Bowditch, Kisschasy, Young and Restless, The Spazzys, The Vasco Era, Mach Pelican, Killing Heidi, Deborah Conway and Vika and Linda), how does Kathematic's sound translate to the varied audiences?

Kath: Our sound has changed throughout the years but I guess we have always had a bit of a pop sensibility and catchy hooks so we usually fit with a variety of bands and most audiences dig us. Even now that we are heavier the songs are still catchy.

LNaP: Your film clip for Add It Up was guest programmed on Rage by Clare Bowditch.
That must have been a spin-out, or did you know it was on the cards – is she a friend of the band?

Kath: Our old bass player did a music course Clare was teaching a few years back and Kathematics played a gig with her way before she was "Aria Award winner Clare Bowditch" and she became a friend of the band. She emailed us to tell us she was programming the song so yeah, it was a spin-out. I have a lot of respect for Clare. There aren't many people in the world that are beautiful inside and out and the way she balances music and family is something I can only aspire to.

LNaP: How did you manage to score U.S. representation? What is planned for your upcoming tour of the States?

Kath: We hooked up with our U.S. manager after she found us on myspace. She is currently putting together a tour of New York and surrounding areas in October. We are getting really good venues wanting us to play there and have had solid radio airplay in NY over the last month so it's pretty exciting for us.

LNaP: When can we expect to see 'Divorce Death Departure' in stores?

Kath: There are still 5 more songs to complete, after that our manager is going to try and get us a record deal in the States. There is no release date set for the album in Australia as yet.

Thanks to Kath for her time, and best of luck for the impending US tour. If you want, you can hear some of the tracks from Divorce Death Departure on their myspace, or you can see Kathematics live before they head o.s. at the following gigs;

15 Aug 2008
9:00 PM
The Blue Tile Lounge w/ Tiajuana Souvenirs and Che 90
Fitzroy, Victoria

24 Aug 2008
5:00 PM
Grace Emily Hotel (Smashed Records Fair)
Adelaide, South Australia

26 Sep 2008
9:00 PM
The Birmingham Hotel
Fitzroy, Victoria

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www. loudnoiseandpictures. com