Gold Coast rock outfit Rollerball are about as old school as you could still get in the Australian music scene.
Despite forming in 1998 the band has only released four full-length albums – the last of which was Submarine in 2009 – yet still have a fanatically loyal fanbase that have been screaming for the band to play more shows.
“To be honest I hated that 90s grunge thing, and I was really living in the past and focussing on 70s rock.”
Dave Talon
Throughout their tenure, Rollerball have steadfastly stuck to their own beliefs and expectations, never bowing down to the music industry and their whims, preferring instead to be in control of their own musical destiny and the wonderful places that could take them.
Although never officially breaking up, Rollerball have undergone lengthy periods of inactivity, the most recent being since their reunion tour in 2019 that proved they could still rock out with the best of them.
Now, to celebrate 25 years as a band, Rollerball will take to the road for four more shows, starting at Mo’s Desert Clubhouse on April 28 before hitting Sydney the following day, Melbourne on May 6 and Brisbane on May 13.
Guitarist Dave Talon joined HEAVY to tell us more.
“We’ve been around for years, but we’re not as active as we used to be,” he began. “We still get out on special occasions and rock, and we’re finally doing a 25-anniversary little run of shows – there’s only four shows, we’re keeping it simple – and we just want to get with the fans again and spend a bit of time with them and celebrate rock and roll. We would have liked to have done more shows, but we just had a window to work with, and I guess we’re a little out of touch. Years ago you could book gigs in Australia six weeks beforehand, but it looks like you’ve gone the European direction now – I don’t know if that’s after the COVID break, or it was like that before – but things are booked miles ahead, so we’re happy to have what we have.”
In the full interview Dave talks about what to expect from the shows, surviving as a band on your own terms, the changing face of music and where Rollerball fit in, the early days of the band and where they fit in, playing stoner rock before it was popular, where their sound originated from, writing new material as opposed to enjoying your existing catalogue, the final physical copies of their albums and how to get your hands on them and more.
April 28: Gold Coast – Mo’s Desert Clubhouse https://www.mosdesertclubhouse.com/…/rollerball-a-1-4…
April 29: Sydney – The Vanguard https://moshtix.com.au/…/rollerball-a-1-4…/149503…
May 6: Melbourne – Bendigo Hotel https://rollerballmelb.eventbrite.com.au/
May 13: Brisbane – The Zoo https://oztix.com.au
