Perth’s piece punk outfit Ratking have just released their single ‘So Wrecked Youth’. The band have also their signing to new Australian record label, Elevnth Records. Tomatrax caught up with AJ, the band’s guitarist, to ask a few questions.
How did the band form?
The majority of us were in a band years before and after a long hiatus we renamed ourselves, changed genre and started anew.
Where did the name Ratking come from?
Josh, Iain and myself were sitting out the back of my house having beers and a gigantic rat ran along the branches of the lemon tree we were sitting under. We labelled him the king of the lemon tree and decided to name our band after the dude!
What was the inspiration behind the video for so ‘wrecked youth’?
Iain (Our drummers) beautiful mind. A whirlwind of ideas revolving around our government and the intricate weave of money surrounding our education.
What made you pick ‘so wrecked youth’ as your latest single?
So Wrecked Youth musically is a much darker song than anything we’ve released and we wanted our first single this year to diverge a little from our previous two releases.
You have two singles / video clips to follow this year, how will they compare to your most recent single?
They will be substantially different, but still holding a common theme. The next two releases will have a mixture of many things!
What made you decide to release three singles in isolation rather than an album or EP?
We initially were planning to release our second album mid this year, but considering we so recently released Commonwealth we thought we’d make more of a visual approach. Our music is an extension of us and the videoclips are our best way of attempting to show it visually.
Are there any plans for an album?
There absolutely are.
Your songs deal with some dark themes, where do you get the inspiration for your lyrics?
Our insipid government, our disposable digital lifestyles and the general lack of care in our society.
When writing what comes first, the words or the music?
The music. Most of the time lyrics are not written until the song is (in our opinion) complete. Mind you, that doesn’t mean that the lyrics can’t re-shape the music later.
Do you ever listen to your own music?
We would if we didn’t feel like dickheads doing it haha!
What other music do you listen to?
Our musical tastes are extremely varied. We move from Johnny Cash to Cypress Hill to Trapped Under Ice in 5 minutes.
What do you plan on doing once your two up coming singles are out?
Album No.2 and touring!
Check out Ratking’s facebook page to find out more!
