The final session of Cairns Festival’s ‘Out On The Lawn’ series of concerts is going to be a special one this Saturday 28th September when the Al Boulton Band brings their own brand of disco fever to The Courthouse Gallery. I caught up with with ringleader Al Boulton (AKA ‘The Bolt’) for a quick Q/A and asked – What makes the Bolt’s disco inferno burn so brightly?
“Back around 1994, the Bolt bought a bunch of old disco records from an op shop. Saturday night fever soundtrack and KC & the Sunshine Band were a couple. Growing up in Townsville I was never exposed to this type of music, the records opened a window to another world. Disco music is fun and designed to make you dance! The Bolt always tried to imagine the kind of world this music came from. When it comes to writing disco music, I learned the formula from listening to heaps of disco. The Bolt once joined a disco covers band in Brisbane, we played gigs in Hong Kong and Bangkok. The Bolts disco dreams had begun to come true!”
Can you tell us about your latest (or upcoming) disco masterpiece?
“My current plan is to record a third album, I have some songs ready to record. I want to get back to my acid jazz roots, but of course there will be some disco. Some acid jazz is basically disco, very similar styles. Its probably gonna take 2 years to complete the album. My last approach was to only do singles, but then they don’t belong to an album that someone might listen to in its entirety. A true fan will listen to your whole album!”
How does your creative process work when writing songs?
“I have used different processes such as (A) hearing a chorus in a dream and managing to write down the lyrics and chords. My most common method is (B) writing a strong chorus (lyrics and chords), then I need to find chords for the verse. The verses are just spak filler- the story about the chorus. Funky basslines can be added later to the song. (C) is when I have a subject and I write pages of lyrics, sometimes using chat GPT. A strong chorus will emerge, from there I use method B, having plenty of spare lines for verses. Overall, I need a banging chorus before I can write a song.”
You’ve got some serious bass skills, who are your influences?
“Victor Wooten and Marcus Miller, I’ve attended both their workshops. Jaco Pastorius, Larry Graham, Bootsy Collins, Bernard Edwards (Chic), Jerry Barnes(Nile Rogers band), Stuart Zender (Jamiroquai), Louis Johnson, Andrew Levy(Brand New Heavies),Francis Hylton(Incognito). I play the same make and model bass as Francis. There’s probably hundreds of players I don’t know the name of that have influenced me!”
What can punters expect to see at your showcase gig at The Courthouse next weekend?
“A majestic disco bird with golden wings flying through time back to the 70’s in the spirit of fun. I have a great band that supports this vision.”
Al Boulton Band play The Courthouse Gallery this Sat night 28th Sept from 6pm. Entry is free!
Todd Macalpine
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