INTERVIEW: Cub Scouts

On the Saturday of Valley Fiesta, almost immediately before they’re due to play their set, I meet with Tim [vocals], Sam [keyboards] and Zoe [bass] of CUB SCOUTS - recent winners of the Queensland Music Awards Song of the Year for their single ‘Do You Hear’ and three of Australia’s newest indie darlings (alongside bandmates Dan [drums] and Andrew [guitar]).

We chat for a while about their success in the Queensland Music Awards, scooping up some incredibly prestigious titles like the aforementioned Song of the Year and beating out acts like Busby Marou and Kate Miller-Heidke.

“We were not expecting it,” Tim says, and Zoe and Sam nod their agreement. “When we won Pop Song of the Year, we were really not expecting it. We were up against amazing artists. And then when we won Song of the Year as well, we just did not believe it.”

They’re young. They dress snappy. They have a female bassist. Statistically, there are few bands as destined for the relative success of indie music superstardom as this one. And, as their recent success clearly indicates, they also know how to wield their instruments.

Ten out of ten.

When we first meet, I ask Tim how his day has been. “Good,” he tells me. So far, he’s managed to catch a few bands, including fellow Brisbane artists Palindromes who opened the festival. “I’ve heard about them before,” he says, “but I’ve never seen them live.”

A year ago it was Cub Scouts playing the opening slots at festivals. In 2011 they opened St Jerome’s Laneway Festival, thanks in large part to Triple J Unearthed. “It was a bit rained out,” Tim says, “and the stages had to be rearranged a bit, but it was a great experience.”

It was also the first festival they ever played. Thankfully, neither rain nor stage fright could deter them. As we talk, dark storm clouds begin to roll out over the Fortitude Valley. Though the three of them express slight dismay, they don’t seem to be overly concerned. All three agree that it feels like a while since they last played a show, and they can’t wait to get back on stage.

In a few months, they’ll be heading on tour around Australia, playing four shows over two weekends. They’ll be joined by Sydney songstress Phebe Starr. “She’s amazing,” I say, barely holding back my enthusiasm, and the whole table bursts with agreement.

“She has an amazing voice,” Zoe enthuses.

“We have the same booking agent,” Tim tells me when I enquire, “but that’s not why we’re touring together. I had actually heard her on Triple J, I think, and written down her name and then just forgotten about it until our agent suggested that we go see her at Bigsound. We loved her. We were so excited when she agreed to support us on the tour.”

I also ask what it was like to work with John Castle (who has worked with The Cat Empire and Washington).

“Great!” Tim becomes emphatic in his exultation of Castle. “He’s so funny; it was a great experience. We’d heard some horror stories about producers saying, you know, ‘no, that chorus sucks, get rid of it’ - stuff like that - but John really didn’t seem to want to do that, and he didn’t. All he did, I think, was make the songs a little bit... brighter.”

As far as the future goes, Cub Scouts have a timeline that will see them through to midway through next year, and everything’s going according to schedule thus far. For the immediate future, Tim has a family dinner to attend after the show. “I’m hoping I’ll catch some more artists,” he says, “but my sister’s up from Melbourne so...we’ll see.”

Words by Cheryl Billman, check out her street on POSSE.COM

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