If Andy Juggernaut is weary, he’s certainly hiding it well. The Midnight Juggernauts guitarist was up until 6am making last-minute changes to the band’s forthcoming second album, but he’s still as cordial as ever – even after a full day of interviews.

“It’s a bit of a relief actually,” he says, not of the completion of today’s press schedule, but of the band’s newly finished disc, the follow-up to their acclaimed debut Dystopia.

The Juggernauts – Andy, high school chum Vincent Vendetta and new-ish drummer Daniel Stricker (ex-Valentinos) – have spent most of 2009 working on the album with engineer Chris Moore (Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV On The Radio) at Sing Sing and Hothouse and at their home studio in Melbourne. And if the recording process has taken longer than expected, it’s down to the band’s pedantry more than anything else.

“We’ve been going back and making little adjustments constantly and have spent more time on it than we’d initially thought,” Andy explains. So is he sure it’s finished?

“I don’t think you ever know,” he laughs. “You make enough changes before you go, ‘That’s it! Fuck you, we’re finished.’ You just get tired of it – you just get over it. There are definitely problems with having complete creative control and no clock ticking in the studio.”

While fleshed out back home in Australia, many of the tracks had their genesis on the road. The band spent most of 2008 in Europe and the US, performing at some of the world’s biggest festivals including Glastonbury, Coachella and Primavera.

“Last year we were away pretty much the whole time, this year we’ve spent time just working on the record. It’s all come to a head now.”

With its pounding drums, acoustic guitars and vintage organs, the album’s first single, ‘This New Technology’, indicates a shift towards a more live-sounding direction. So have the Juggernauts deliberately toned down the Moroder-isms in favour of a more organic pop sound? Not necessarily, says Andy, adding that the band’s relentless touring and the addition of Stricker on drums has shaped the album’s sound.

“A lot of this was recorded with the three of us together, which is different to the last record,” he says. “The touring has a lot to do with that. Playing so much we’ve gotten better as a live band and it’s carried over into recording. And Chris [Moore], as well. He’s into traditional methods and vintage recording methods.

“The production is a bit more out-there on this one,” he continues. “There’s some prog and weird stuff, but it’s not one sort of thing. It has a ’70s-esque rock kinda feel, but it moves around a bit.”

The album will once again be released on the band’s own Siberia imprint. And barring any further 11th hour changes, Andy expects it to be out in mid-February.

“It’s a cool thing that we’ve been able to set up here in Australia,” Andy says of Siberia. “And we’re really keen to keep doing it that way. I guess that’s another reason why this record has taken so long. We’ve been working on all the label aspects at the same time. It’s a lot of extra time, especially while we’re touring.”

True to form, the Juggernauts will launch ‘This New Technology’ on a nine-date national tour, beginning in Perth on October 31. It follows a 10-day visit to the US for New York’s CMJ Music Festival, as well as shows at the Bowery Ballroom and Santos.

“We’ve been on a break from touring for a while,” says Andy, “but now that the single’s out we’ve prepared ourselves for a very long year on the road.”

‘THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY’ NATIONAL TOUR

Saturday, October 31
The Capitol, Perth, WA
w/Cut Off Your Hands + French Rockets

Thursday, November 5
Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle, NSW
w/Cut Off Your Hands + Seekae

Friday, November 6
The Metro Theatre, Sydney, NSW
w/Cut Off Your Hands + Seekae

Saturday, November 7
Waves, Wollongong, NSW
w/Cut Off Your Hands + Seekae

Friday, November 13
Billboard, Melbourne, VIC
w/Cut Off Your Hands + Rat Vs Possum

Saturday, November 14
Pier Live, Frankston, VIC
w/Cut Off Your Hands + Rat Vs Possum

Friday, November 20
Hi-Fi, Brisbane, QLD
w/Cut Off Your Hands + DZ

Saturday, November 21
Trackside, Canberra, ACT
w/Cut Off Your Hands

Friday, November 27
The Gov, Adelaide, SA
w/Cut Off Your Hands + Lady Strangelove

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