The Genevieves Keep on Climbing
Lending an ear to their fierce new single,"Bloody Nose"
The Genevieves have enjoyed a triumphant second half of 2024. Since I last checked in, the noise-rock four-piece have travelled to Naarm/Melbourne for their interstate debut, supported Australian heavyweights Dr. Sure’s Unusual Practice and Full Flower Moon Band, and received three SA Music Award nominations for Best New Artist, Best Song, and the People’s Choice Rock Group.
Following the swirling climbs and mellow overtones of July’s Adore You – nominated for Best Song - their newest single, Bloody Nose, is the group’s fastest number yet, and their most aggressive since October 2023’s Words. A pulsating and violent cacophony of noise-rock and punk, Bloody Nose burrows itself deep inside your ears and coils around your brain, uncompromisingly addictive in its emphatic grit and punch. It’s one of the live standouts I’ve been eager to plug myself into, primarily because it seems to promptly and unpredictably explode out of nowhere, both live and in-studio.
“Bloody Nose is a bit of a middle ground song for us: it’s pretty up-tempo and punky but also pretty melody focused. It’s a weird one to play in the set sometimes, because we have to play it after a slower song. If we play it after a faster song it can end up falling a bit flat.”
Eventually mastered by James Brown from Wizard Tone Studios, the recording and mixing was performed independently in typical Genevieves fashion. The band rented an Airbnb for a week and converted it into a DIY studio, utilising a range of both routine and previously unexplored techniques to record Bloody Nose alongside the majority of their forthcoming EP.
In the verses, Finn Larcombe’s vocals are sheathed in grungy distorted rhythm and non-stop punk drumming. James Nisbet, who’s quickly becoming one of Adelaide’s most compelling percussionists, is scarcely afforded a second to rest on Bloody Nose, driving frenetic fills and dynamic beat patterns on the kick, snare, and cymbals for the entire three-minute runtime. Once more, he employs additional services from his electronic drum machine, which can be heard most prominently at the song’s opening and closing seconds.
During the second verse, Larcombe’s distinctly drone-like vocals can be heard projected through a DIY telephone microphone built by bassist Lara Patzel. With this new toy, the band found delight in experimenting with volume and presence to create a vocal texture that complemented the ferocious nature of Bloody Nose.
“We found that the mic behaves differently depending on proximity and how loudly you sing, which was fun to play around with”.
A particularly strong moment comes after the second chorus, when the rhythm section take charge to offer a moment of respite in the midst of their frenzied blend of fuzzed-up riffs and screeching lead. Lara fingerpicks a back-and-forth bass line to accompany James’ compressed, papery sounding percussion. Before long, this neat breakdown is interspersed by another torrent of dissonance and feedback from Larcombe and rhythm guitarist Baily Taylerson.
Thematically, Bloody Nose recalls the memory of watching a friend being consoled after suffering a panic attack. As an ode to that experience, the lyrics allude to a feeling of apprehension around the propensity for anxiety to “sneak up on you”, as well as the desire to comfort a friend. These sentiments are especially poignant during the choruses, when the narrator - the comforter, in this story – tells their friend to “put your arms in mine” and “breathe in time with me”.
In regards to the title, the track originally included an IDLES-inspired section that presented the bloody nose imagery in greater detail. Whilst this segment was ultimately scrapped, the band decided to preserve the collective “bloody…nose!” chant that appears during the song’s closing moments.
“There isn’t a lot of connection between the lyric bloody nose and the themes of the song, but it made sense for some reason.”
Whatever that reason was, I’m certainly glad they included the rebellious sounding final chant, as it succeeds in fomenting a sense of anger and defiance, a faithful accompaniment for the menacing sonic atmosphere present throughout Bloody Nose.
In the broader context of the band’s discography, Bloody Nose will likely come to complete fruition as the third song on The Genevieves’ upcoming debut EP, scheduled for an early 2025 release. They’ve scheduled a launch show at Lowlife Basement Bar on Saturday the 23rd of November, where they’ll be supported by Turbo Goblin and Home Court.
When I interviewed them in February for my Substack article You’ve Got the Music in You, The Genevieves spoke about their ambitions for 2024. Aside from supporting Wolfmother, the band can tick off every other goal they set for themselves, having recorded an EP, performed interstate, and followed through on their mutual commitment to booking fewer shows and writing new material.
They’ll close out the year with a rapid flurry of shows, highlighted by another trip interstate to play Helluva Ride festival in Brunswick – alongside mutual favourites Dr. Sure’s Unusual Practice – as well as a backyard New Years Eve festival with Adelaide standouts such as Swapmeet, War Room, and The Munch.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed listening to and writing about both of The Genevieves’ singles in 2024, particularly the juxtaposition between Adore You’s mellow escalation to explosive pinnacle and the non-stop intensity of Bloody Nose’s ear-rattling sonic uppercut. They remain one of my favourite bands currently lighting up the music scene on Kaurna Land in Adelaide, and I doubt that’ll change anytime soon.
I look forward to hearing and covering their upcoming EP in 2025.
This interview and article was written, recorded, and edited on the traditional lands of the Kaurna People. The Infinite Rise observes that Country is central to the social, cultural and spiritual lives of Aboriginal people. Sovereignty was never ceded. Always was, always will be Aboriginal Land.