Following the release of their single ‘Sleepin In’, we sat down with Brisbane Indie-rockers Allora to chat about the return of live music after restrictions.
Who is Allora?
ALANA: Allora is an RnB/Indie rock band, which we started last year at uni. I’m Alana and I’m on vocals and rhythm guitar, Issy plays bass, Aidan plays drums and Blake plays lead guitar.
How did Allora join Vermilion?
ALANA: We did a QUT showcase, and Kristina, who runs Vermilion asked us to be an act for Vermilion. We said yes and here we are!
From your personal experience, how has COVID impacted the music industry?
ISSY: It hit us hard. We lost gigs, and as a manager I lost gigs for artists. We lost so many opportunities.
ALANA: All our plans were put on hold.
ISSY: It’s been tough, but we’re getting there slowly.
ALANA: There is a much bigger stress on social media for artists which is really cool. People are supporting artists more through different avenues. When things go back to normal, I think it will be better than before, for local artists at least.
AIDAN: I was going to say quite the opposite, I think COVID has been terrible for the music industry purely for one reason – everyone has to sit down now at gigs. It just kills the vibe, cause if people are vibing with your music they are going to get up and dance.
ISSY: It’s hard to perform when no one’s dancing. It’s a bit of a shock honestly.
Has there been much change to recording music?
ALANA: When we were recording the last parts of our most recent single, it was really strange.
ISSY: We did have to push our next single back a little bit.
ALANA: I think it’s probably a good thing, I would prefer to have it pushed back a bit than to start recording in the middle of COVID.
How do you think COVID affected your latest single?
ISSY: Because we released it during COVID, we couldn’t have a single launch. We got played on the radio a couple of times and got added to some playlists, but in the live aspect we couldn’t perform it.
ALANA: We definitely rushed the release plan because everything was shutting down. That was a big stress for us. But it worked out, we got played on radio and made some really nice connections in the industry.
How does the current landscape look for emerging artists?
AIDAN: I feel it’s more about the people you know. You can be a great artist, but if you don’t know the people to book gigs and all of that, it is a bit tough out there.
ALANA: The Brisbane music scene is great, everyone is so friendly and so welcoming. I’ve made a lot of friends through uni and through going to gigs. As long as you’re getting yourself out there you’ve got a shot of being recognised, there’s always going to be someone who enjoys your music.
ISSY: I agree, it’s definitely the people you know. Even if it’s your friend’s friend’s friend, everything is a connection.
Allora’s next steps are to release another single, and to play as many shows as possible. Check out their Instagram @alloraaatheband for updates!
For our full interview with Allora, and to see us chat with photographer, Will Johnstone, The Zoo owner, Pixie Weyand, and member of Voiid, Antonia Hickey, keep an eye out on Vermilion Record’s socials!
By Karla Farmer