ROOT! is an Australian rock group from Melbourne formed in 2007. Their music combines alt-country, blues and indie rock with elements of spoken word, satire, social commentary and post-modernism. ROOT! appear onstage in cowboy hats and affect a stereotypical country image, but their music frequently takes excursions into other genres, including the use of samples and hip-hop beats. Their singer, DC Root, favours lengthy, largely spoken lyrics with a darkly satirical humour. While humour is central to the appreciation of the group’s philosophy, their music is played with authenticity and serious intent. They are not a “spoof” country act. Debuting virtually unannounced at the closing party for Melbourne’s Spanish Club on June 17, 2007, the band quickly attracted considerable public and media interest, manifesting itself in large crowds at their handful of subsequent appearances, the immediate construction of a fan-based website “The ROOT! Compendium” and articles in both the daily Melbourne newspapers – an unprecedented reaction for a seemingly unknown band. They were also adopted as a cause celebre by famed comedian Tony Martin, who began referring to the group regularly on his national radio program Get This, describing them as “the hottest band in this country.” The reason for much of the interest centred on DC Root, allegedly the former lead singer of TISM. The group itself refuses to confirm this rumour, perhaps wishing to be appreciated in their own right. There are clear similarities in DC Root’s vocal stylings and the idiosyncratic nature of the lyrics, which explains ROOT!’s attraction to followers of the former group. Although the members of ROOT! uniformly adopt the psuedonym surname “Root” they perform as themselves, using their real first names. And unlike TISM, ROOT! appears to be pursuing a much more intimate, musically-based appeal, without the attendant visual extravaganzas and hardcore image.
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Members
- Henri Root – guitar, vocals
- Steve Root – keyboards, vocals
- Barnaby Root – drums, vocals
- DC Root – vocals, samples
History
Completely eschewing any reference to his heavily-rumoured past, DC Root claims apocryphally in the band’s bio: “One morning I woke up and I was a country singer. You can’t be a proper country singer until your looks have gone. I checked in the mirror, and that confirmed it.” This can be dismissed as DC Root's usual truth-bending. More substantial information exists about his musical colleagues, however: Henri “Root”, guitarist, saxophonist and composer, studied jazz improvisation at the Victorian College of the Arts. He spent his earlier youth as an itinerant musician in Europe, playing guitar in Barcelona underground punk band The Rottenmeyers and also in his native Germany as a member of the experimental Bremen collective Planckspanke. Upon returning to his adopted Australia, he had all but turned his back on music, and was working as a carpenter when his chance encounter with DC – reportedly he was consigned to build a set of shelves – led to their songwriting collaboration. After writing songs in seclusion for two years, the pair recorded a series of demos – featuring DC on vocals, drums and samples and Henri on guitars, which led to the formation of a fully realised group, which they called ROOT!. To flesh out the group, Henri called upon his network of former College Of The Arts associates. Through this connection they found Steve “Root” – a classically-trained piano prodigy who had played with, among others, Eric Burdon, Thelma Houston, Glen Shorrock and the underrated local band Tarmac Adam. Now largely working as a television theme composer, Steve was so entranced by songs such as "Spring Me Out Of Caroline Springs, Caroline" and "Shazza And Michelle" that he agreed to adopt the collective surname and contribute superbly authentic honky-tonk piano and organ bass to the tracks. In turn, Steve Root recommended his opinion of the best drummer on the local scene, the man called Barnaby. Winner of a national drumming title at the tender age of 19, he had spent subsequent time living and playing in New Orleans before returning locally to play jazz and blues with a host of artists including Jeff Lang, Bob Sedergreen, Paul Williamson, and Kerri Simpson. The line-up secured, they made their debut appearance at the closing party of Melbourne’s Spanish Club on Sunday June 17, 2007. Although barely announced, word that an alleged member of TISM was unveiling a new project led to a large, expectant crowd assembling. From here, word of mouth spread, leading to heavy traffic on the band’s nascent My Space page, the creation of a fan website entitled The ROOT! Compendium, and growing demand for an album. ROOT! appeared at a handful of other performances over the next few months, whilst re-recording tracks for their debut album. The title Root Supposed He Was Out Of The Question and the artwork, featuring an anachronistic cartoon cowboy known as “Root” were released, though the album remains a work in progress.
Musical style and influences
DC Root and Henri Root claim that their initial common musical ground was the Flying Burrito Brothers and Mark E. Smith. This, like much of DC Root’s discourse, could be viewed as a red herring, however, there are similarities in some of ROOT!s traditional country flourishes to some of the up tempo tracks on The Gilded Palace Of Sin, and certainly elements of Smith’s caustic lyrical approach can be seen in DC Root’s onstage monologues, however DC Root is clearly a more conventional singer and his lyrical style is more literal, linear, conversational. DC Root often employs poetic, literary imagery and then undercuts it with self-effacing references, ie “my crappy re-invention” or his love for the commonplace: “There’s this silence, now she’s left me. Just mozzies on the man-made river” Judging by some of the international “friends” on ROOT!'s My Space site, DC Root would appear to have an affection for classic British pop, such as XTC, The Auteurs, Super Furry Animals and Robyn Hitchcock. Comparisons are possible between all of these and DC Root’s use of humour and the glorification of the joys and absurdities of everyday life. However there are few antecedents of DC Root’s style in Australia, especially given his determination to ground his stories in local reference. Paul Kelly is the most famous and celebrated practitioner of this style, although his stories are generally more heroic and conventionally emotional. Musically, the sound of ROOT! is initially easy to categorize under the label “alt-country” – that is, a modern, “alternative” approach to traditional country music. However, whilst the elements of country are there – the classic walking basslines, twanging tremolo guitar, shuffling drums, swirling organ and and rootsy piano fills, there are indications in the band’s live performance of other elements – straightforward pop, psych-rock, and the contemporary drum grooves of hip hop. Also, in a live context, songs like "Pauline Hansen Says There’s Christian Muslims Too" and "Henri Lee" are almost garage-punk in their rudimentary intensity.
