Meet The Musos: Get To Know Perth Indie Rockers DICE
In celebration of their upcoming tour and festival appearances, we had a chat with DICE’s lead guitarist Tom King to suss out everything you need to know about the four-piece act.
DICE (Supplied)
Perth-based indie-rock outfit DICE recently got fans excited with the announcement of their second national tour for 2023.
Set to hit all major Australian cities with additional stops in regional areas, the band promises to bring their much-admired alt-rock repertoire, featuring crowd favourites such as Stockholm and Eyes Ahead, as well as classics Stop Sign and Reality.
The news comes right after the band's hugely successful May-June tour in support of Time Will Tell, which was sold out three months in advance before the band left their home state.
The band was also this year’s National Winner of triple J Unearthed’s Splendour In The Grass performance competition, which saw the four-piece open the main stage on the first day of the festival.
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The tour is set to kick off in Torquay on 10th September, before journeying through Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast, Sydney, and Adelaide (you can find more ticket info here).
They’ll also be performing at Wanderer Festival in Merimbula and Yours & Owls in Wollongong.
In celebration of their upcoming tour and festival appearances, we had a chat with DICE’s lead guitarist Tom King to suss out everything you need to know about the band.
Give us the story behind your name?
Myself (Tom King, lead guitar) and Ben got matching DICE tattoos in Bali around August 2019 to commemorate our friendship (going on 11 years now!)
When we formed the band in mid-2020, we went through a few band names (The Daydreamers, Mie Goreng…) however, DICE sounded the best to us! Fast forward to October 2022, we returned to the same tattoo parlour with Lenny and Regan, and they also got the matching DICE!
If your music was a flavour, what would it taste like?
Honey-Comb. Silky smooth but with a bit of added crunch.
Who are some of your biggest musical influences, and how have they impacted your own sound and style?
Each of us has extremely diverse musical tastes, which has helped us hone in on our own unique sound for each track we write.
One day you’ll find me listening to classic rock bands such as Oasis, followed by a small band out of a small town who no one has heard of, while others I’ll be dancing along to The 1975 and headbanging to IDLES.
Our individual tastes (which do often cross over) have allowed us to pick and choose certain musical elements of artists we like when writing together.
What’s been the biggest moment in your career so far?
Opening the Amphitheatre stage at Splendour in the Grass 2023. We had no expectations going into the set, and the hill quickly filled with a few thousand people, which was a super special moment we will look back on for years.
What's the most unusual or unexpected source of inspiration you've drawn from when writing a song?
Hmmm… good question. Ben usually writes our lyrics about something nonsensical before adjusting them to be relatable for our audience. Our track Silky Blends & Lemonade off our newest EP is actually about Tacos.
Can you share a hilarious or cringe-worthy moment from your early days as an artist?
I think a lot of our early shows we would now classify as cringeworthy! Personally for myself (although embarrassing to admit), I didn't actually know what guitar pedals were until about 3 months into gigging.
I used to lug my 2005 Fender Mustang 3 amp with built-in effects to every show and change the settings manually before starting each song. Just the thought of doing that now makes me cringe. I now have a large collection of pedals and a small collection of savings!
What are the top three tracks or artists you’re vibing on rn?
What’s something that fans might not know about you?
Alongside being bandmates, the 4 of us are actually best friends. We love to hang out and do non-band-related activities! Playing music with your 3 best friends is definitely the greatest feeling in the world.
If you could only listen to one album for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?
At the moment, Nothing But Thieves' new album Welcome to the DCC has been on repeat. The layering of every track is so unique, and each time I listen through, I hear new ideas that I would love to try and incorporate into our music. Plus, it's great to put on no matter what mood I’m in.
What's in the works for you in 2023?
We’ve got the national tour coming up in October, which is super exciting, and hopefully, we’ll be making an appearance at a few more festivals over the summer!
DICE LIVE DATES
Presented by Tone City Records & Four Tone Artists
Tickets here
Fri 10th Sep - Torquay Hotel, Torquay
Fri 29th Sep - The Croxton, Melbourne
Sun 1st Oct - Wanderer Festival, Merimbula
Thurs 5th Oct - UC Hub, Canberra
Fri 6th Oct - The Zoo, Brisbane
Sat 7th Oct - Solbar, Sunshine Coast
Fri 13th Oct - Crowbar, Sydney
Sat 14th Oct - Yours & Owls, Wollongong
Sat 4th Nov - Lion Arts Factory, Adelaide
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