A spotlight interview with Sarah, Cole and Jo from Hot Mess, ahead of their appearance at LOUD WOMEN Fest Gadigal/Sydney on 7 December.
How did you choose your band name?
We are Hot Mess and we are a hot mess.
Who’s in the band, and what do you all play?
We are Cole Flett (vocals, guitar), Jo Ware (vocals, drums) and Sarah Wright (vocals, bass).
Where do you call home (geographically and musically)?
We are a punk band from Bellingen, on Gumbaynggirr Country on the mid-North coast of NSW.
Describe your sound in three words.
Political, irreverent, menopausal
Tell us about your music
We recently released the single ‘Gendered’ on a compilation of international femme punk bands called Girlz Disorder (Vol. 5) produced by Mass Productions. The song is for trans youth and is inspired by Cole’s experience as a fierce and loving parent of queer kids. We’d love you to play it and turn it up loud.
A common thread that people really relate to in our songs is that we call out injustices and inequities for women and people from the LGBTQI2S+ community. We’ve had a lot of women coming up to us and saying they’ve finally heard their truth on stage.
We have fun with our songs. One song is called ‘Manopause’ and it makes fun of men in middle age, the changes they go through too. It seems a lot of guys like the song, actually, as they’re not used to talking about their embodied changes.
What’s your local scene like — and how do you fit in, or stir it up?
We stir up our local music scene bringing attitude and some crazy antics to the stage. We don’t think venues in our rural area around Bello have seen vulva hats up there on stage before. There aren’t too many raging menopausal punk acts around here!
If you could rip up the rulebook of the music industry, what’s the first thing you’d rewrite?
Well, we’d have to start by smashing capitalism and the patriarchy. We’d want to normalise women’s presence on stage in a rage-truth-telling way. We’ll see what happens after that.
What’s the wildest/strangest thing that’s ever happened at one of your gigs?
We got banned from Dorrigo Golf Club after a set that featured our vulva hats, some fake orgasms on stage and a feisty, radical cheer. Can’t imagine why!
What’s the biggest hurdle you’ve faced and how did you overcome it?
Getting booked for gigs especially starting out. We were totally new to the scene and didn’t have many contacts of our own. Nobody knew who we were. We’d just cold call venues. We’ve been persistent. If someone turned us down, we tried somewhere else.
What’s the proudest moment you’ve had so far as a band?
Maybe getting our vinyl, Bandish. It was just crazy to see it so beautiful and strong. What a moment opening the box.
What’s the strangest gig you’ve ever played?
We played on a car trailer at a forestry blockade at Camp Nunguu on Gumbaynggirr Country. It was awesome but hilarious. The trailer was so bouncy and we were there in the bush with generators and things. Cole’s youngest was climbing on a car at the time. It was actually a privilege to be part of it.
What’s a dream gig or collaboration you must make happen before you die?
We’d love to play in Canada or somewhere internationally. It spins us out. We are three women who never played in a band before. Now we’re doing gigs and have vinyl. Who knows where it could go.
Dream lineup: you + three other acts (alive, dead, or imaginary). Who’s on the bill?
Okay, on the bill there’s Dead Pioneers, an incredible Indigenous band doing punk and spoken word, Fanny as an iconic and inspirational group of women early on in the scene leading the way, and our good friends, fellow femme punk group GI Jane because, firstly, they rock, and secondly, they’re great humans who we’d love to share the experience with.
What’s next for you?
In march next year we’re putting on the third International Women’s Day festival in Gumbaynggirr Country. Make a trip if you’re up for it – a full day of women’s music and politics up here on the mid-North Coast. We’ve got some local gigs including in Bellingen with our mates the Leftards, and we’re getting up to no good, writing our next vinyl, all that stuff.
Where can people listen, follow, and support your music?*
We’ve got Instagram | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify
Anything else you’d like to add?
Thanks to Loud Women. You rock! It’s really, deeply appreciated. And hope to see plenty of youse on Gadigal Country on 7 December
