Stonefield Interview

Stonefield Interview

The four Findlay sisters have stepped out of their rehearsal shed in the Victorian hills with a sound that quite simply rocks! Zappa and Zeppelin inspired, 70s soulful rock 'n roll and stellar song writing are the reasons these four very talented girls have everyone sitting up and taking notice.

Amy, the eldest is on drums and lead vocals. Hannah's on guitar, Sarah plays keys and backing vocals and Holly is the killer bass player/screamer. Stonefield may be a young band but these girls can play and their live show is blowing crowds away.

They've supported the likes of Ash Grunwald, Cat Empire, Children Collide, Tex Perkins, and British India since forming the band in 2006, but 2010 has been their biggest year yet.

In 2010 they won triple j's Unearthed High competition, which led to two songs 'Through The Clover' and 'Foreign Lover' being played on high rotation on the j's. An invitation to play at One Movement in Perth saw the band play in front of thousands of industry folk and fans and has led to a spot on the 2011 Glastonbury and The Great Escape line ups.

Stonefield's debut release 'Through The Clover' is a five track EP featuring the breakthrough song 'Through The Clover' and follow up single 'Foreign Lover'. The 'Through The Clover' EP was launched on November 4, 2010 and has been online and in stores since November 12 through Shock Records. To round off 2010 the band will bring in the New Year with The Temper Trap, NERD, Gyroscope and more at the Pyramid Rock Festival.

2010 has been a breakthrough year for Stonefield with a recent nomination for a J Award. With a schedule of shows, festivals, writing and recording 2011 is looking even bigger.

Interview with Amy Findlay

Question: Describe your music:

Amy Findlay: Rock, inspired by bands of the 70's - we love Led Zeppelin.


Question: How did it feel to hear your song played all over the airwaves?

Amy Findlay: Crazy! It's so strange to hear particularly my voice on the radio but all very exciting at the same time.


Question: Did you have any pre-conceived ideas about the music industry?

Amy Findlay: We did not expect everything that has happened for us so far to be such a smooth ride. We expected to come across people who are in the industry for the wrong reasons, however we haven't seemed to yet.


Question: Do you write your own songs? What's your inspiration?

Amy Findlay: Yes, we do write our own songs. We're inspired by every day things that happen in our lives - movies, books, people and their stories; anything!


Question: What music/artists do you listen to when you are not playing your own?

Amy Findlay: Led Zeppelin, Tame Impala, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Jezebels, Frank Zappa.. the list goes on. We listen to a lot of rock, but other styles too.


Question: What's next? Tour/Album/Single?

Amy Findlay: We have a lot of gigs coming up, including some interstate shows. There's quite a few festivals coming up that we're on the lineup for which is always fun. We're writing for probably another EP before the album and of course we have Glastonbury to look forward to! We're heading over to the UK in May and can't wait.


Question: Was there a moment you contemplated throwing in the towel?

Amy Findlay: Never seriously. The only time we have said it is if we were threatening each other to concentrate in band practice, but we all know that's a joke.


Question: Do you prefer performing live or recording?

Amy Findlay: They are both a lot of fun, but nothing beats the rush of performing live.


Question: What/who was your inspiration to go into the music industry?

Amy Findlay: Just our passion for music inspired us to go into the industry. We all love it and want to make it a career, so luckily we have had the opportunities to make that more of a reality.


Question: What is the biggest challenge you have faced along the way to your musical success?

Amy Findlay: Coming to terms with the change of lifestyle. We have gone from being normal school kids who have to attend school every single day, to having to take a lot of time off and get used to doing interviews and playing a lot more shows than we were used to.


Question: What's a typical day like?

Amy Findlay: It really depends… It could involve a few interviews during the day and a gig in the night, or school all day and band practice when we get home.


Question: What has been your favourite part of becoming a music artist?

Amy Findlay: Playing to bigger audiences, seeing a lot of other music and meeting some amazing people.


Question: If you could collaborate with another artist, who would it be?

Amy Findlay: Jimmy Page!


Question: Do you have a website fans can visit?

Amy Findlay: Not an actual website, but plenty of other fun things!
www.myspace.com/stonefieldtheband
www.facebook.com/stonefieldband
www.twitter.com/stonefieldband
www.youtube.com/stonefieldband


Question: Can you tell us 5 things required for a happy healthy & enjoyable life?

Amy Findlay: Balance, laughter, music, love and most importantly: don't take life too seriously.


Question: What is the story behind the bands name?

Amy Findlay: We live on a farm that was covered in stone when we first came here. Our dad then built our house out of that stone.


Interview by Brooke Hunter



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