Skegss may not have an overly long and thoroughly ridiculous band name, but they do fit neatly into the new wave of Australian punk bands blending raw power with a healthy dose of psychedelia and good humor. Always more FIDLAR than Oh Sees, though, the songs on their newly released third LP Pacific Highway Music hone their unique sound which could best be described as a desert-set mirage of the crashing beachside waves their West Coast punk peers have long sung about.
Now reduced to the duo of Ben Reed and Jonny Lani, Pacific Highway Music feels like a streamlined take on that sound, with the record’s 11 tracks hitting the perfect balance of loose garage-rock jams and introspective, slightly serrated indie-pop anthems. In fact it’s a similar balance that Reed brings to his track-by-track walkthrough of the record, which sees the project’s frontman either going deep on the circumstances behind tracks like “Stuck in Cheyenne”—whose title essentially speaks for itself, while warranting Reed’s thorough backstory—or simply commenting on the veracity of “Think I Can Fly” and “Batten Down the Hatches.”
With the record out today via Loma Vista, read his full breakdown of Pacific Highway Music below while streaming along.
1. “Tradewinds”
I had the theme to this one for years—I might’ve written it while I was working and really was eager for the band to get busy. But I’ve found even when you get out of ruts or positions you don’t want to be in, you can still create new ones.
2. “High Beaming”
This one’s for someone who’s always somewhat positive in the worst times. It’s a strong survival trait to have.
3. “Think I Can Fly”
This is based on a true story.
4. “Brain on the Highway”
Jonny and I have spent a lot of our time driving on the Pacific Highway to airports or gigs. The town we grew up in is a few hours from Sydney airport, so our brains have coasted that highway in a lot of different states.
5. “Stuck in Cheyenne”
We were on tour in America and we were two or three shows in. The first show was in Denver—which started with a bang! We were rolling! Excited to keep the momentum going, we were making our way to Salt Lake City through the night, but we were directed off the highway due to high winds. I think it was a notorious highway for that reason. So we parked up at a truck stop in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and stayed the night only to wake the next morning [to news] that a blizzard was on its way in the next 24 hours, and it would be impossible to get to our next gig. We sat and brainstormed all the options, but the safest thing was to stay put for a bit.
We ended up being there for three or four nights. Curious if there was much to this place, we ended up going out on the last night to a saloon-esque pub and met some nice locals and had dinner and a few beers. It was cheerful to experience a little bit of atmosphere to what we thought was maybe a quite grim place, but any truck stop anywhere is going to be grim, I think, if you’re stuck there for more than 24 hours. So we left with a good taste in the mouth. But in the days we were there, I got my guitar out of the trailer for something to do, and made this song out of it.
6. “Spaceman”
I made this song during the pandemic. I think a couple of drinks were involved, just tinkering on the guitar, having a crack at some existential poetry or something like that.
7. “Batten Down the Hatches”
Based on a true story.
8. “Aeroplane Heart”
It’s nice dreaming about the sweetness of doing nothing. But doing nothing for too long is boring. So if you think you’re going to heaven or you’ll be a ghost or whatever you think might happen when you die, do nothing then.
9. “Out of My Head”
Don’t get caught up on how someone makes you feel for too long in a negative way, pretend you get to restart life again and go do the things that make you thrive. We all say and do dumb things no matter how wise someone seems. So don’t get too hung up on your mistakes if you recognize them.
10. “It Is”
I finished this song at Dave Catching’s studio Rancho de Luna, just walking around the desert into town thinking how peaceful and quiet it is there. For some reason I've always gained some sense of clarity every time I've been there.
11. “Kelly Heroes”
This song is comparing Ned Kelly and Paul Kelly, what some call our Aussie heroes. Maybe some not so much with Ned, but still, he has a lot of fans (I’m one). And [I admire] Paul Kelly’s legend status he’s created through poetry of the country—about the man-made structures that are parts of Australia—and his storytelling and respect for Aboriginal peoples and other people that are part of our country.
