Ben Andrews from My Disco talks to TIM SCOTT about their reactive new single ‘Young’, their deliberate change of pace and “locking in” Albini for the follow-up to their 2008’s album 'Paradise'.

After two critically acclaimed albums and a clutch of singles, Melbourne three-piece My Disco – seemingly tired of descriptors such as “angular”, “minimal” and “post” – have decided to try something a little different.

The result is 'Young', an epic instrumental jam that clocks in at 10 minutes, 50 seconds. Released as a limited edition 12” and taking in elements of kraut and progressive rock, 'Young' is a departure from the taut and tight songs found on their 2008 record Paradise. However, it still retains the hallmarks that has made My Disco so great: contained but spot-on instrumentation; repetition; and a near-psychic connection between guitarist Ben Andrews, his brother Liam on bass and drummer Rohan Rebeiro.

“We wrote 'Young' as well as the new songs on the upcoming record really gradually,” explains Ben. “We were getting a bit sick of the minimal references that were being used all the time. It wasn't a conscious reaction against that but we wanted to do something that was all a bit more high energy. With 'Young', we extended it to make it what it is.”

And extend it they did. Ten minutes of blissed-out rock that grows from a Neu!-style jam to a heavy repetitive beat. But as Ben explains, its early incarnation was even longer.

“When we first started we jammed it out to like 15 minutes but when we recorded it we did three takes: one was six minutes, one was eight and one was 10 or 11 minutes. There is a lot of improvised sections where we’re just trying to get the most out of it.”

So how long does it go for live? “We know the first section of the song – it goes for a specific amount of time – and then it's up to Ro [Rebeiro]. We have to listen to the drum changes. When we hear him go into this particular section we know it's near the end.”

Not to be outdone, the b-side is just as interesting: a remix by friend Qua (aka Cornel Wilczek) that tweaks the song enough, but retains all the urgency of the original.

“We've never done a remix and thought it would be cool. Qua got it back to us within like a week. It was pretty much the first take he did … It's just a coincidence that it's nearly the same length. We were worried that he was going to do a three-minute radio mix and we'd be the first band in the world where the remix is actually shorter than the original,” he jokes.

And the name 'Young'? A reference to the new sound or to producer Mikey Young who recorded their last song for a split 7” with US band Young Widows?

“No real reason, it had a bunch of names. First, it was called 'Welcome to Yamagata' after this cool poster that this dude made for us when we went to Japan. Then it was called 'Toughen Up', and even 'Australia', because someone said, ‘Oh play that song it sounds really Australian.’ I think they were talking about the energy level because normally we are [generally] more subdued.”

“We were worried that he was going to do a three-minute radio mix and we'd be the first band in the world where the remix is actually shorter than the original.”

Having finished writing the new record, My Disco are about to launch the single before embarking on a US tour with Young Widows. They will take time out halfway through the tour to return to Steve Albini's Electrical Audio studios in Chicago, where they recorded Paradise.

“Yeah, we've locked in Albini. It's actually pretty cool. We do five or six shows then five days recording then eight more shows. For us that's a short tour. It's the shortest we have ever done overseas. We own a whole backline in the US and keep it with a friend in Louisville [Kentucky], so it's going to be pretty easy. We are going to the South and the Midwest; places like Louisville, Athens, Atlanta, North Carolina – the weirder less popular places – then we are doing New York, Philly and DC.”

Touring North America, however, has been both a blessing and a curse for My Disco. Last year’s tour was cut short when bags including a laptop and a passport were stolen from a show in Toronto, making it impossible for Liam to cross the border and continue playing with the band.

“It went from a great show where we had sold a couple hundred bucks in merch to a crazy situation where somebody - we don't know who - stole the bags from behind the merch table. To make matters worse, the bouncer was trying to kick us out when I went to the bathroom to look for the bags. It got to the point where I was getting a bit rowdy and smashed the bouncer with the box of T-shirts.

“I was so livid and angry. I just turned on him,” Ben recalls. “It seems that every fucking tour some bullshit like that happens. So I got banned from the bar, we lost all our shit and we couldn't get back to the States because Liam's passport was gone.”

While Liam flew back to London to sort out his visa, Ben and Rohan limped over the border with seven east-coast shows still booked.

“We had a few options,” explains Ben. “We could just wait in New York for a week and spend money while waiting for our flight to the UK; we could go on tour with Young Widows and sell merch; or we could go on tour and play with Evan from Young Widows helping out on bass. In the end we said, ‘Fuck it. Let's go on tour. If it's shit, it's shit, but at least we’re getting paid.’”

Despite the unfortunate circumstances of their last tour, Ben says the band still enjoy travelling and playing in the States. “We love the States. The more we've been there the more we enjoy it. I don't know what it is. It's pretty weird. I don't know how people live there to be totally honest.”

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MY DISCO LAUNCH ‘YOUNG’

Friday, February 12 Oxford Art Factory, Sydney, NSW
w/Qua + New War

Saturday, February 13
Toff in Town, Melbourne, VIC
w/Qua + New War

Sunday, February 14
Toff in Town, Melbourne, VIC
w/Qua + New War

Friday, February 19
The National Hotel, Geelong, VIC