A spotlight interview with Krispy, the guitarist of Hail Mary Jane, ahead of their appearance at LOUD WOMEN Fest Gadigal/Sydney on 7 December and LOUD WOMEN Fest Naarm/Melbourne on 14 December.
How did you choose your band name?
Our name is a play on the act of doing “hail mary”s and if you combine it with “Mary Jane”, a term for weed, it’s a bit of a cheek in tongue way to praise the green goddess herself! Sisi (singer) and I (Krispy – drummer) were previously in a band together and Krispy suggested the name for it but the previous band didn’t take to it. We always wanted to do a project ourselves so we took the name and ran with it! Hail Motherly Mary Jane!
Who’s in the band, and what do you all play/do?
Sisi – Singer/Bass, Krispy – Drums/banter on the BV’s, Liam – Guitar (god)
Where do you call home (geographically and musically)?
We hail from St Kilda and North Melbourne however Sisi and Liam are both originally from the ninch aka Mornington peninsula
Describe your sound in three words.
Unorthodox Aussie Rock
Tell us about your music.
Our first ever release “SPLINTERZ” is a rowdy pub rock banger that refers to that one mate we all have who just LOVES to complain, complain, complain to the ends of the earth with their infinite list of petty bullsh*t. We’ve got a name for those kinds of mates: compulsive complainers. They just can’t bloody help themselves, total drainers. Look, we get it, this world can be bleak and irritating as f*ck. It’s ok and it’s valid to have your own problems and have those problems feel like the world to you. But, at a certain point you gotta reflect on these funny little issues and question whether these things are really worth this much trouble and time to you and try to find the humour in these things that may at once seem so troubling. At the end of the day we’re all just people’s trying to do our best. Don’t fret the small things so bad and maybe upon your reflection, you’ll realize after the fact that maybe these problems aren’t as bad as they seemed like at the time and there’s some humour in understanding that after the emotions have passed.
SPLINTERZ was inspired by getting a splinter from eating ice cream with a wooden spoon. Bloody dumb, and even dumber to complain about such a first world problem. Thought it’d be funny to make a whole track about it and include other petty issues people have complained about in the past. True story!
We’ve got a funky little banger called ‘Funk Skunk’ which is a ridiculous track about finding a weed-dealing skunk in the boot of your car. It’s a good little boogie track that we love groovin to and we reckon others do as well.
What’s your local scene like — and how do you fit in, or stir it up?
Unreal. We’re stoked to be a part of the Aussie rock/adjoining scenes. We consider ourselves a rowdy little pub rock baby the scene didn’t ask for but has taken in its arms anyway. We love the Melbourne (and broader) Aussie scene, particularly making good mates along the way and having a rowdy good time makes us feel chuffed!
If you could rip up the rulebook of the music industry, what’s the first thing you’d rewrite?
Help your mates. Don’t be a gatekeeper for information, it’s hard enough to navigate the industry yourself. You get what you give. Oh, and just have bloody fun!
What’s the wildest/strangest thing that’s ever happened at one of your gigs?
We throw a big birthday bash party gig every year where we partner with our mates from the Lizard Wizards who bring real life snakes and reptiles for people to hang with at the show. Last year we also partnered with our hairdressing friends from Parental Advisory hair who did realtime mullet haircuts at the gig too. Come play with reptiles and get your haircut at our shows, eh??
What’s the biggest hurdle you’ve faced and how did you overcome it?
Our guitarist went on a year long trip around Aus, then Sisi had a bad run of health… in between all the life things that happen to us all, we’ve been able to keep makin it work (sometimes as a 3 piece or 4 piece formation), depending on who needs the time to recover from the life things. We like to think we’re tough and will push through whatever gets thrown our way.
What’s the proudest moment you’ve had so far as a band?
There’s lots to be stoked about but a particularly noice moment recently came from the efforts of our annual Bday Bash Gig where this year we were able to raise over a grand to go towards Mullets For Mental Health. Good stuff!
What’s the strangest gig you’ve ever played?
Our first gig ever was part of a generator party put on by our mates in Raging Hormones where we got to play amongst a stacked lineup at a random underpass in an undisclosed location… was off the chain! More like this please!!
What’s next for you?
Hold us to it – we’re aiming to put our next single out in 2026. We’re putting away every loose penny to make it happen.
Where can people listen, follow, and support your music?
You can find all our socials and links to our music at linktr.ee/hailmaryjaneband
Anything else you’d like to add?
Stoked to be a part of LOUD WOMEN fest this year, it’s our first time playing in Sydney and we can’t bloody wait! You should come on down and get rowdy with us.
