Medium Build Interview

Mitch: Your newest single, ‘Last Time’, just came out on Friday August 29! Do you mind sharing a bit about the track and what inspired it?
Medium Build: I just love the idea of those small growth moments we forget. Like, when was the last time I slept at a friend’s house or in my childhood bed? As you grow, things change. This song came from when I ran into my ex for the first time in a non-romantic way. We were out on the street and this drunk woman honed in on us, pretended there was a mistletoe and was like “KISS! KISS! KISS!” - exactly like the lyrics. It sounds so stupid, but we didn’t want to kill her vibe, so we just pressed our lips together mechanically, not romantically at all. It was so weird.

She and her friends were drunk, and I had just quit drinking so I was newly sober. I went back to the flat I was staying at and just lay there wondering if that would be the last time we’d kiss. This was a romance that had been epic and essential to my life, but mentally, I was moving on. I think it’s a really interesting place when you find yourself breaking those cycles of obsession. As a hopeless romantic, I become very obsessed and I fall in love fast and get attached really intensely.

While the song is fun, there’s a side of grief and trauma to it as well.

Mitch: What do you hope your audience feels while listening?
Medium Build: I hope that people feel nostalgia. We really wanted it to feel like a 60’s/70’s prom first dance tune. But the lyrics are quite heavy so I hope there’s a crying in the club vibe.

Mitch: If Last Time was playing in a movie, what would the scene look and feel like?
Medium Build: This song is a foreshadowing tune. It’s playing while the couple moves in together and when everything is good but about to go to absolute shit. They’re pouring wine, they’re kissing and dancing. Everything looks good but the lyrics are revealing that something is about to change. I want this song to be used nefariously.

Mitch: For those who haven’t listened to your music yet, how would you describe your sound without mentioning any genres?
Medium Build: It’s a boy who is obsessed with trying to put the pain and sorrow of the world into three-minute forms with as much levity, humour and sarcasm as possible and a little bit of trying to rock and dance (not the genre’s but the physical motions). I try to physically embody some of those feelings of childhood, pain, nostalgia, loss, family and romance.

Mitch: You’re currently on tour around Australia supporting Alex Warren, with a couple headline shows along the way as well! How does it feel to be back? How do the Aussie crowds compare to everywhere else?
Medium Build: It feels really good to be back. Coming here twice in one year is awesome. I feel like we’re building bridges, and now Australians and I have a relationship that goes beyond digital.

The Aussie crowds are great, they’re very focused and such good listeners. The headline show at The Lansdowne was pin-drop quiet. I felt so lucky. Even opening for Alex, the kids were really into it. Maybe I’m good at my job but I don’t think it’s just that. I think Australian’s have a really high respect for themselves and the event that they’re at.

Mitch: I caught your headline show in Sydney which was just phenomenal. One thing that really stands out about your sets is the passion in your performance. What goes through your head while you’re performing? Are you feeling the songs as if you just wrote them?
Medium Build: Sometimes I can’t go back to that original feeling. There have been times I’ve been overwhelmed singing a song, but now it’s more like playing a character I know really well - the me that felt it overwhelmingly when I wrote it.

I also try to think about the person hearing it for the first time. With songs like ‘Rage’ or ‘Be Your Boy’ - ones I might be a little tired of but fans love - I put myself into their perspective. That helps me get into that emotional place.

Mitch: You’ve mentioned you’ll be going on a break for a few months soon to explore new things outside of music. Is there anything in particular you’re excited to explore and try?
Medium Build: I want to do some big physical challenges. My goal for November and December is bike-packing. I want to spend 6 weeks pedalling through the southeast and if that goes well, I might do more.

I have a friend who rode his bike across the States, and I found that so interesting. It’s an isolated thing and not dependent on others - it’s just you getting on your bike and committing. I’ve spent the last two years very publicly and constantly being surrounded by people. I would like to do some stuff alone that doesn’t involve me talking, singing or being funny and charming. I just want to know I exist as is and I think doing something alone and physical is the best way get in sync with myself.

Mitch: What is the best way for people to support you?
Medium Build: As I take this break, the thing I’m trying to remember is that the fans and I can love each other and appreciate each other but I don’t owe them anything. I think as a listener, we have to remember that these artists are people and they don’t owe us anything. The best thing you can give an artist is acceptance for what they’re giving you. You don’t have to like it but they’re giving you what they want and what they need.

If you love an artist, let them know. If you’re moved by someone’s shit, buy a shirt or send their record to someone you love. Talk about it, make a TikTok with their sound in it if you really love them. It’s silly but that shit goes far.

I love music and I don’t know how long I’ll do it for. I’d love to always have it be a part of my life but it’s definitely isolating being a public person. I love it and there’s so much appreciation for it but it can be lonely. We can see what happens after my break! I would love to start acting or try and make a movie, or other creative mediums.