Interview with Mish (vocals) from Torizon
We journalists got our hands full in times of change and isolation and because I offered my ears and hands to my own Corona Crisis Project, I got more work than usually. Mish of Brisbane’s Rock band TORIZON kindly asked if we could do and interview and of course I could not say no...
Reflections of Darkness [RoD]: First of all: what brought you guys into music?
Mish: Personally, music was my therapy through a traumatic childhood. Listening to music was a cathartic coping mechanism for me. When I was a little older, I decided to create my own music to help others in the same way. Music gave us all an identity in our individual adolescent lives and an outlet to creatively express ourselves. It was a combination of high functioning anxiety and a desire to belong. As a band we want to a musical meeting place where people of all walks of life can connect, share their lives and be a part of a unified community.
RoD: What are your favourite bands and main influences?
Mish: MASTODON, EVANESCENCE, TOOL, BREAKING BENJAMIN, LACUNA COIL, FLYLEAF, BARONESS
RoD: What do you think is the difference between the job as a musician in Australia and the rest of the world?
Mish: I think one of the main differences is that we are on a big island. Unlike musicians in Europe, the distance between venues can be massive with some shows being anywhere between 1 to 12 hours travel just in one state! It means we have to travel more, work harder to deliver a solid product and live shows to win over fans and survive in a very competitive industry, especially for original musicians. That being said, as an Australian musician we have a great support network within our own music community.
RoD: How did Corona affect your daily life?
Mish: All of us have been self-isolating and only leaving our homes for essentials. Damien, our bass player, has been in quarantine for over three weeks as he is unwell. 3/4 of us have lost our income for the foreseeable future which has significantly affected our daily lives on a personal level. I’ve been working from home which is a nice silver lining (counting all the little things). The most challenging part was my father in law being in palliative care 14 hours away. We weren’t able to visit him due to the hospital being in lockdown; he passed away early this morning. In saying that, we understand that it was for the greater good with the objective being keeping the most vulnerable safe by locking down the facility.
On a band level, we have had to figure out how to operate as a band without seeing each other in person. So, we have been catching up on video chats, utilising online tools to keep the momentum going whilst adapting to the ever-changing rules. All of us have decided to utilise this newly acquired free time for songwriting and delving into music theory. Most of all, we miss practising at TORIZON HQ (our own rehearsal and recording studio) and performing live. But all in due time when things return to normal.
RoD: how do you deal with the pandemic business-wise?
Mish: 75% of the band has lost their income for the foreseeable future which means we are no longer in a position to engage the PR services and band development program we wanted to - both would have benefited our upcoming music significantly. Therefore, we have been studying up on how to do our own PR and social media management. Our very first international tour is very likely to be postponed; our single launch national tour has been cancelled and 95% of our support shows have also been postponed / cancelled. At this stage we have put all live gatherings on hold as per the new restrictions. We are working on building a high visual and audio quality live streamed show ensuring that we abide by the rules in place. We are also writing more music than ever to release new singles as often as we can. Online tools and video chats have been great. We all have our own home studios so we can easily track ideas, finish songs and upload them on to google-drive for the band to review / learn / finish. I want to give a big thank you to everyone in the music industry offering free consultations, coverage and services to keep us going.
RoD: how was living in Australia before Corona and how is it now?
Mish: Before, shops and pharmacies were open and well stocked. Working from an office or job sites 5/6 days per week. Visiting our friends and family often. Hitting the gym to exercise. Blocking time out during the week for practising our instruments, writing music and doing band-admin. Rehearsing every week. Not freaking out about distancing ourselves from others out in public. Taking the train to work. Complaining about not having enough time for my to do list. Having job security. Tunnel-visioned by goals and not living in the moment as much. Ability to do band photoshoots and filming music videos.
Now, we are staying home unless it is for work, buying food or medication or medical appointments. All non-essential businesses have shut down, supermarket shelves are bare, medication is running low... pretty similar to everywhere else. Video calling our friends and family instead of seeing them in person. Working in sweatpants. Meditating twice a day and exercising daily at home. Lots of newly acquired time to learn new skills, dedicate to music or other hobbies. Being hyper aware when we’re out in public to maintain my distance from others. Thinking about what we are buying and whether we need it. Losing our income and not knowing when we can work again. Appreciating the little things in life. Navigating through our photoshoots and filming process to ensure we aren’t breaking any COVID-19 related rules. A general air of anxiety and uncertainty and oh so much hand sanitizer!
RoD: How is your government handling the situation?
Mish: Overall I think our government is handling the situation ok. All non-essential businesses have shut down. We are encouraged to work from home where we can. Our Prime Minister implemented a staged lockdown approach; of which we are in stage 3 lockdown. Flights are no longer available. The schools and universities are still open which in our opinion is not the best strategy for a hyper contagious virus. We feel that a nationwide lockdown will be more beneficial in flattening the curve and containing the virus until a vaccine is available. Public gatherings went from a max of 500 people to 50-100 people to no more than two people within a period of three weeks. There are fines and jail time for people caught in breach of these restrictions. There is also a pandemic relief government assistance for people who need it but payments will not be available till next month. We should also freeze rent and mortgage payments for all.
RoD: On to something completely different: prejudices! Do you guys have any wild stories about poisonous or just very dangerous animals?
Mish: Yes! I’ll give you two as a bonus. Our bass player, Damien, showed up with a bandaged arm at his first band practise. He didn’t think it was that big a deal because he was cleaning his shed earlier and might have sustained an insect bite; but he made an appointment to see a doctor that evening just in case. He ended up in the hospital with a nasty infection from a white tail spider bite which took a few weeks to heal. He would have to get the wound cleaned and pumped full of antibiotics every few days at the hospital. It was pretty intense considering it started off in a very nonchalant way. I went to a “feed the wildlife by hand” zoo in a small country town a few years ago. I fed little joeys, wallaby’s, kangaroos, emus etc. and remember having such a good time connecting with the native wildlife. As I was making my way through a big pasture, I saw two emus hanging out. I went to take the dry food pack out of my jacket to feed them. These emus came really close to my face in a threatening manner and before I knew it, they were chasing me. I ran as fast as I could but the emus were neck and neck with me and eventually, I tripped over a tree root and ended up in the foetal position. When I looked up, I saw that the emus were tearing up the dry food which had fallen out of my jacket. Turns out I had accidentally wandered out of the zoo boundaries and tried to hand feed two wild emus!
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