“There was a rumour going around in high school that if you played Dark Side of the Moon in time with The Wizard of Oz it would sync up and all these great things would happen in time with the film.”
“For years I’d rush home from school, throw down my annoyingly heavy bag, and head straight for the family record player. My folks had this great Sony hi-fi system from the ’70s that’s still around today. At that time, I was obsessed with Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd and my piano teacher had shown me the chords to all of the songs on Side A. I’d put the headphones over my ears, turn on the amplifier, and place the needle onto the turntable for that first ‘pop’ as it made contact with the vinyl, followed by that warm crackle and hum that every record enthusiast loves.
I’d wait like that for the first psychedelic groove to drop a minute or so into the album and that was it. I was gone. Floating somewhere far away, no longer in the family lounge room. When you’re a teenager, being able to disappear, even for just a few moments, is the greatest thing in the world.
I’d drag the speakers from the lounge room to where the TV was, get the VHS ready with The Wizard of Oz, wait for the Lion’s third roar (that was apparently how you made the sync work) and drop the needle onto the vinyl. Still to this day I have no idea whether it was real or imagined, whether Pink Floyd even knew anything about it, but man it was wild. Especially when you flipped the record and ‘Money’ kicked in and the film turned to colour.
I love the process of putting on records. That little bit of extra effort, the effort that you don’t have to make when listening to music these days, is part of what makes it so special.
When we first started touring in the states I was around 27. I couldn’t believe how much and how cheap vinyl was in that country. I’d built up a decent collection by that stage—half from records I’d bought at some of my favourite record stores here in Melbourne Australia, half from my folks, aunties, and uncles.
A few weeks into those early overseas tours and my suitcase was 3 times heavier than when I left. It took me a year or so to realise that it was no good getting around with a bag full of vinyl so eventually I slowed down and just bought the records I really wanted. These were either classic records that I felt like I couldn’t go without (recordings like Crosby Still Nash and Young’s first album or Inspiration Information by Shuggie Otis) and new releases from some of my favourite artists like Morning Phase by Beck and Fanfare by Jonathan Wilson.
I never imagined that we’d release our own music on vinyl. One of my happiest moments as a recording artist was hearing back the test pressings of our first record. Such a humbling feeling hear our songs printed with all those beautiful imperfections that give vinyl that magical quality.”
—Gideon Preiss
Husky’s Punchbuzz arrives in stores on June 2, 2017—on vinyl.
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