The Wombats perform in The Current studio
by Jim McGuinn, The Wombats and Leah Garaas
May 07, 2015
The day after playing a sold out show at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis, the Wombats returned to The Current to record an in-studio session – playing with the same drum kit the band donated to Minnesota Public Radio when they visited back in 2011.
The Wombats—Matthew Murphy (guitar, lead vocals), Tord Øverland Knudsen (bass, guitar, keys) and Dan Haggis (drums)—released Glitterbug just last month, reconciling and progressing the sound of their first two records. "What we had to do on this album was figure out our sound and our place in music," says frontman Matthew Murphy (Murph). "I think we have done that. We're really proud of the album."
Like the Wombats' previous releases, Glitterbug features outstanding production and technology, but the power trio is happy to add a human element to their live show. When the band played a festival in Germany a few years back, drummer Dan Haggis asked the monitor engineer for more keys in his ears but he ended up muting his headphones. "[Murph and Tord] starting looking at me in front of 15,000 people like, 'What're you doing?!'" says Dan. He ended up making an executive decision to restart the song. "Fortunately [the crowd] was very forgiving and they don't want to see you fail so they gave us a second chance." Bassist Tord laughs and adds, "Those are the things that people remember."
Songs Performed
"Greek Tragedy"
"Give Me a Try"
"The English Summer"
All songs off the Wombats' new album, Glitterbug, out now via Bright Antenna Records.
Hosted by Jim McGuinn
Produced by Derrick Stevens
Engineered by Mike DeMark
Web feature by Leah Garaas
