ModularPeople. Van She

VAN SHE are the freshest sounds from Sydney, Australia busting out of the gates with the release of their debut, self-titled EP in late 2005. VAN SHE are comprised from bits and bobs of 80’s post punk, funk and synth pop plus the influence of latest new wave artists like Tom Vek & Bloc Party. VAN SHE are that unique beast that one was beginning to believe was extinct – a band that takes all these influences from days gone but makes them sound unique, modern and fresh. A lazy pastiche this isn’t.

VAN SHE formed when Nick Routledge [vocals, guitar], Matt Van Schie [bass], Michael Di Francesco [synths] and Tomek Archer [drums] all responded to an ad in Sydney’s Drum Media and arrived at an audition for a vocalist for a doom metal band with influences including Sepultura, Entombed, Black Skull and Phil Collins to find the whole thing was a sham. You could call it the result of Satan at work, or you could call it fate.

The VAN SHE EP was released in November 2005 with lead track SEX CITY instantly added to rotation at Triple J and community radio around Australia. The second release KELLY hit the national airwaves as well and is the anthemic centrepiece to the EP. It has the kind of sweet sentimentality that very few songs capture, a kind of ecstatic nostalgia that artists like Daft Punk and Phoenix are the masters of. KELLY is destined to warm your cockles and tickle the memories of anyone who was once a youngster in love.

The band have toured around Australia several times, playing with the likes of End Of Fashion, Annie, Faker, Cut Copy, The Presets, New Young Pony Club, Klaxons, Gerling, Expatriate, as well as festival dates at Splendour In The Grass, Good Vibrations, Come Together and more. Van She also took off overseas, playing shows in New Zealand, New York, LA, San Fran, London and Paris.

VAN SHE recently recorded their debut album in London, working with noted producer, Jim Abbiss who has worked with the Artic Monkeys, Ladytron & Kasabian. The album is due to be released in April 2008, with the first single, CAT IN THE EYE going to radio in November 2007. Over summer, the boys will be touring with local and international acts including Operator Please, Sneaky Sound System, Daft Punk and playing at the Nokia festival in Brazil.

VAN SHE MODEP012

01.	Mission
02.	Kelly
03.	Sex City
04.	Survive
05.	Kelly reprise
06.	Here with you

Q+A

my name is	Tomek
but you can call me	Tommy K
i play	drums + sequencing / sampler in VAN SHE
the first record i ever bought was	snap - world power / arrested development - 3 yrs, 5 mnths, 2 days in the life of..
the most recent record i bought was	Annie - DJ Kicks
i make music because	making music is something i have always done, and something i always wanted to do... every time we get to a show, we're itching to go on.. somehow no matter how exhausted you are from last night, it's all automatic once you start... kinda like how no matter how full i am i can always eat ice cream...
it sounds like	a lot of different things you may or may not have heard before, exciting and strange... hopefully the sound of VAN SHE will slowly coagulate into a fresh new paradigm that can't be defined using words..
my main 3 inspirations are	my friends and what they get up to... the manmade landscape... and the natural landscape...
i live in	a warehouse in surry hills, our studio is downstairs...
but i'd rather be in	Margaret River on holidays..
when i'm not making noise i like to	draw people, furniture, buildings.. or go to the beach + get sandy.
my best friends are	all super talented..
friday nights are for	doing the things you wanted to do all week but weren't allowed...
it was so funny the time	...Matt got beat up last time we were in melbourne, after (innocently) pinching some guy's bum...
the last time i cried was	when my mum's dog died...
i just want you to know that	... despite the way I sometimes act, the truth is that I have always loved you...
favourite 5 albums ever:	These are some of the albums that influenced me most along the way.. They are journey rather than destination and even though I haven't heard most of them much in a long time, these are my most played.. In early high school I pretty much idolised drummers Dave Grohl (Nirvana) + Chad Smith (Chili Peppers) and played along to those albums til I had every beat down.. Nirvana - In Utero / MTV Unplugged in New York Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik Radiohead - I'm not going to choose, you'll find something amazing in each of their albums.. The Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour Jeff Buckley - Grace

PHOTOGRAPHY.

photos by Kane Skennar