Dick Diver — named after a character from F. Scott Fitzgerald's “Tender Is The Night,” so quit giggling — are one of Australia's most exciting pop exports. This week, the Melbourne-based quartet embarks on a much-anticipated American tour (stopping at Brooklyn's Baby's All Right on July 7). I chatted with the group about recording in strange places and easily misconstrued monikers.Your most recent album, “Melbourne, Florida” was recorded in a sheep-shearing shed. What is it about such an unconventional locale that makes the band more comfortable than recording in a traditional studio?It's so nice getting away! We're all friends as well as in a band together, so it's a great holiday. It's one of my favorite things to do actually: Go away, turn off your phone, eat good food, get pissed, and record music. And you can tell everyone not to contact you because you're really busy working being an artist. Aside from his chops, that's one of the reasons we like recording with Mikey Young so much: we all get along. New York is full of Australians. Full! Some days it seems like 84.5% of the city have become Australian. What's something great about Australia that New Yorkers might not know? What's something awful?Minimum wage, maternity leave, public health system — all good things. Treatment of indigenous people, policies on climate change, asylum seekers, gay marriage — we're not so good on that. What are some other Aussie bands that fans of Dick Diver might do well to familiarize themselves with? I'm amazed at how aware people in the US are of current Australian music. There are a whole bunch of great record labels, so I'd start there: RIP Society, Aarght, Bedroom Suck Records, Chapter Music. Bands that spring to mind are Ausmuteants, Holy Balm, Blank Realm, Destiny 3000, the Necks, Totally Mild, Warumpi Band, the UV Race, the Clits, Mum Smokes, Kes, Boomgates, Coloured Stone, Heirophants, the Cannanes, Paul Kelly, Total Control, Royal Headache, and the Bed Wettin' Bad Boys.Are you excited to be touring in the US? Have you been here many times? How did the fine state of Florida work its way into your album title?Yes, so excited! There was a recent technical issue with the USA visa processing system, which has affected a bunch of people and made for a super stressful past couple of weeks for us. Tour was in the balance for a while, but that's just made us even more stoked to be here. Florida just seemed the best of a bunch. I like it because it suggests miscommunication, appearance, surprise, all things I'm interested in. And because I think it sounds good. How sick of you of explaining the non-pornographic, literary genesis of your band name by now? Ha! It's always a little suss. Usually a square colleague or family friend will ask 'Oh, so what's the name of your band??' We got a very nice email from Dave Berman (Silver Jews) once, empathizing with our awkward band name. The video for "Year in Pictures" features the band playing a not-terribly-successful game of golf. Can you tell me a bit about the shoot and the story behind that video? I had a misspent youth where I actually played a lot of golf, but I think this is the first time Steph [Hughes, Dick Diver's drummer], has swung a club. Bit of a reverse pivot but otherwise a total natural. But basically we wanted to do a video and we asked our friends Linden and Julia if they had any ideas. They thought the happy/sad vibe of “Year In Pictures” would work well with a game of golf. You can learn a lot about yourself and life playing golf, you know...
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