Australian cult favorite Richard Davies has spent decades crafting offbeat, beloved indie rock—first with The Moles, Cardinal, and through a vast solo catalog. A lawyer by day and father of two, Davies has never been a household name, but his work is championed by indie royalty, from The Flaming Lips to Robert Pollard.
This Friday, The Moles return with Composition Book, the third release on Pollard’s new Splendid Research label. Recorded at Davies’ Cape Cod home using an iPad, the album blends his signature off-kilter songwriting with warm acoustic textures and stunning vocal harmonies.
Ahead of the release, we’re thrilled to premiere “Tragedy,” a standout track from the album, and share our conversation with Davies about the recording process, the influence of his collaborators, and what keeps him inspired after 35 years in music.
A big thanks to Richard for taking the time to chat with us! Keep reading to hear the premiere of “Tragedy” and his thoughts on Composition Book. Don’t forget to pick up a copy of the new album at your local record store or directly from Rockathon Records HERE.
The Fire Note: It’s been six years since the last Moles record was released. Can you walk us through the timeline for creating Composition Book? When did the writing and recording process begin, and how did the album develop over that period?
Richard Davies: Quite a long time in gestation. My ipad has a faux-Composition Book cover and the process was really like making notes in such a book over the period of a couple of years. I’d come home from a trial and sit with it for awhile and play with whatever was there. Music and lyrics tended to come very separately. I would have Malcolm Travis and Sue Metro play and record at my house on occasion when there was enough for them to work with. Sue used to work with Tom Scholtz from Boston and she is very good with tech. I could not have brought the songs to completion without her and Malcolm, or without Matt Gerhard who’s based in Austin. He mixed the last Moles album Code Word (2018), and he is very good at being patient and working with me on mixes.
TFN: Were there particular artists, albums, or genres you were listening to while creating Composition Book that inspired its direction?
Richard: The Sweet, Creedence, Chuck Berry, the Bats, and some Shirelles.
TFN: Composition Book was recorded on an iPad at your home. How did this approach influence the creative process?
Richard: Substantially. I played all of the guitars myself. I had the time to play guitar how I felt it, and strike a mean between competence, which is what musicians tend to default to when they are on the clock in a studio, and inspiration/serendipity. That was a major departure from a lot of my own guitar playing on earlier works. Having the ipad and the accompanying materials you need – the right preamps, some nice instruments etc. handy, really let me get into the character of my own playing in a way that there was not time for in a lot of my earlier records.
TFN: With the album set to release on February 7th, any hopes for how fans will receive it?
Richard: I think people who know my songs going back over the years will recognize that it’s me, older, still thinking, still with my finger on a few pulses, taking the temperature.
TFN: You have some incredibly talented musicians featured on the record. Were there any standout moments after hearing the final mix that caught your attention or surprised you?
Richard: I have played and recorded with the drummer, Malcolm Travis, for many years now. He is willing to try anything – he plays some patented backwards rolls on a song called “Lost Generation” that he would just play to make me laugh but they’re so good they had to be in a song. The bass player David Gould is a highly polished performer. He knows what he’s doing but has no ego or attitude about that fact. As a rhythm section they had the courage or mental issues, depending how you look at it, to play along to my garden sprinkler on “Rattlesnakes, Vampires, Horse Tribes and Rocket Science.” The garden sprinkler is very analog.
TFN: You’ve described Caroline Schutz and Katherine Poindexter’s vocals as “a beautiful instrument together.” Can you talk more about their dynamic and how it impacts the album?
Richard: Sue Metro, who engineered a lot of the album, had a microphone that records 360 degrees. We drove to Richmond VA where Katherine lives, counted the plastic bags in the trees, and set the mic up in the living room. Katherine and Caroline just belted it out for an afternoon. They are both very experienced and capable so there was no fuss. I made them a curry to return the favor.
TFN: Robert Pollard called you “one of the last great songwriters on planet Earth.” How does it feel to receive such high praise from someone as prolific as him?
Richard: Robert Pollard is a one-man patented certified Flying Nun/U.S.100% guaranteed original. He has an elastic ego, as in he does not need to cosset or protect or justify himself – he just is, calls it like it is, and has no tickets on himself. In that way he is very Australian-style. I cannot help but feel fortunate to know him and be his friend, so there.
TFN: Pollard acknowledges the longevity of your songwriting. What’s the key to staying creative and inspired after 35 years in the industry?
Richard: Not being able to help it really helps. I didn’t start writing music until I was in my early-mid twenties but since then it has been part of who I am, so I have been fortunate that way. I was only “in” the industry for about ten years, so I think it has helped immensely that I have had twenty five years of loving music and loving making it but not really being a part of the industrial side of it. More like a sheltered workshop.
TFN: Are there songs or ideas from the Composition Book sessions that didn’t make the album but might surface in the future? What is next for The Moles?
Richard: Next is a tour of the East Coast, Boston, DC, Philly and Brooklyn from Feb 12 to Feb 15 with the mighty and also 100% original Tobin Sprout. I have heaps of material lying around. I would like to put some to tape with the road band, Dion Nania, Mike Mimoun, Jonah Maurer, Jay Pluck and Dorian “Train” Deangelo.
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