untold stories

Vacations im Interview: »The best thing is making art and traveling the world with my best friends«

Habt ihr auch Lust auf Urlaub? Mit über 10 Millionen monatlichen Hörer*innen auf Spotify, über 500 Millionen Streams auf Singles und Auftritten in bekannten US Fernsehsendungen haben Vacations aus Australien bereits beachtliche Meilensteine in ihrer Karriere erreicht. Ihre Songs erreichten vor allem durch TikTok und Feel-Good Playlisten eine breite, junge Hörer*innenschaft. In Deutschland scheint die Band trotzdem noch weniger bekannt zu sein. Dass der angenehme, catchy Sound so beliebt ist, ist jedoch kein Wunder. Zwischen Indie-Rock und Bedroom-Pop legen sich die vier Australier seicht dazwischen. Dabei ist der Name Vacations nämlich Programm: Musikalisch klingen sie nach warmen Sonnenstrahlen, sanften Wellen am Strand und endlosen freien Tagen. Assoziationen, die unmittelbar durch die Kopfhörer mitfließen. Im Januar veröffentlichte die Band ihr drittes Album No Place Like Home mit 10 neuen, eingängigen Tracks, die sich ganz unaufdringlich anschleichen und doch ihren Platz im Kopf finden. Zwar klingt das Album nicht überraschend anders als seine Vorgänger, so beweist die Band, dass das auch nicht immer der Fall sein muss, um erfolgreiche und qualitative Musik zu veröffentlichen. Ich habe Sänger und Bandgründer Campbell Burns dazu mit ein paar Fragen gelöchert.

Klicken Sie auf den unteren Button, um den Inhalt von Spotify zu laden.

Inhalt laden

Spotify immer entsperren

Campbell von Vacations im Interview

Dascha (untoldency): Hi Campbell! How would you introduce yourselves to someone who is not yet familiar with your band?

Campbell (Vacations): Australia’s greatest boy band.

Dascha (untoldency): How did you come together as a band?

Campbell (Vacations): Through house parties, tertiary education, and a Facebook ad.

Dascha (untoldency): You recently released your new album No Place Like Home. How would you describe the album in three words?

Campbell (Vacations): Nostalgic, bittersweet, transformative.

Dascha (untoldency): When did you start working on the album? What did the process feel like?

Campbell (Vacations): Late 2022, in December. The process felt therapeutic since we had all been through so much collectively. I was happy to be in the studio again and working towards something.

Dascha (untoldency): What does “home” mean to you?

Campbell (Vacations): Honestly, I’m not sure. I’ve only just stopped travelling after 14 months of almost constantly moving. I’m learning how to be still again in Los Angeles, my new home.

Dascha (untoldency): What feeling would you like your listeners to get from the album?

Campbell (Vacations): Anything, just as long as they feel strongly about it.

Dascha (untoldency): What themes inspired the album and how did you work them into it? Is it easy for you to put personal feelings into music?

Campbell (Vacations): Home, belonging, acceptance. There’s a lot more, but I try not to analyse my own work, I simply let it happen. I think it’s easy because it’s what I’ve been doing for the past ten years, it’s how I express myself. I don’t really know any other way how to do so.

Dascha (untoldency): Do you personally have a favorite song on the album? And if so, why?

Campbell (Vacations): Lost in Translation, it’s hardly a song. I think that’s why it’s interesting to me, because it’s so different to what I’d normally write. I’m not following a conventional pop structure like with most of our output.

Dascha (untoldency): What do you think has changed the most since the first album to this point? What is the biggest development you’ve made so far?

Campbell (Vacations): That we’re more sure of ourselves and our artistic direction. There’s a greater sense of collaboration as well as purpose. The production has stepped up a few notches too.

Dascha (untoldency): Some of your songs have gone pretty viral on TikTok and have been used for all sorts of random videos. What do you think of that? Do you think TikTok is destroying music culture or giving it new opportunities?

Campbell (Vacations): I think it’s wonderful that people are expressing their feelings about our music in their own unique way. People are discovering us and becoming fans, that’s great!  For your other question, it’s both. There’s no barrier for entry into music anymore, this is a good thing. Musicians are easily able to get themselves out there now, however, people are also reducing their artist practice to fit the mould of what’s trending or what’ll be perceived as successful.

Dascha (untoldency): You recently played at Jimmy Kimmel Live, that’s huge! How was that experience for you?

Campbell (Vacations): I blacked out on strumming the first chord, but it went well and it felt surreal to be on national US television later that same day.

Dascha (untoldency): Your Instagram bio says: “Australia’s greatest boy band”. Who would be the greatest non- Australian boy band?

Campbell (Vacations): Boy band adjacent, but SWV.

Dascha (untoldency): You moved to the US recently, right? How do you think this will influence your music and career in the future? How does it influence the feeling of “home“ for you?

Campbell (Vacations): I did! I live in Los Angeles now. Moving here has already been influential. You’re in a city with some of the best musicians, songwriters, producers, and so much more. The celling is limitless. I feel like I’m not restricted like I would be back home. Everyone here is incredibly supportive and there’s a strong community of people that simply want to make great art.

Dascha (untoldency): What is the best place in the world to play concerts?

Campbell (Vacations): New York City.

Dascha (untoldency): What’s the best thing about being in a band?

Campbell (Vacations): Making art and traveling the world with my best friends.

Dascha (untoldency): What is something you definitely want to do or achieve as a band in the future?

Campbell (Vacations): I think we’ve achieved so much already, anything from here on out is a bonus. I’d love to play more festivals though.

Dascha (untoldency): Our last interview question is always an untold story. A story, a fun fact or a little secret that you haven’t told publicly yet. Can you think of anything?

Campbell (Vacations): Due to acid reflux, I can’t really hiccup. So instead, I make this terradactyl noise that’s really frighting to people that aren’t used to it.

Dascha (untoldency): Thank you for your time!