What's cooking with the Hoodlum Shouts

The Hoodlum Shouts first appeared on Write.Click.Cook.Listen with their song "History's End" on a mix about Roux. Within days I received a message from the band about how they loved roux and haute cuisine and were influenced by Careme. My mouth dropped. Not only were they a band that was making good music but they seemed to know their cooking as well. A perfect fit for this blog. Recently I had the chance to correspond (via email) with Sam Leyshon (vox and harmonica), Josh Leyshon (drums), Luke Robert (bass) and Mike Caruana (guitar & vox) to find out what is cooking with them.

The Hoodlum Shouts (who actually took their name from a line in one of their first songs called "Hoodlum Settlers") released their debut EP, Horses and Human Hands, in late August and early September. The EP, a six song affair that includes the aforementioned "Hoodlum Settlers" and "History's End" has a wide open feel to it. It reminded me of a person who is walking through rural terrain with no other human in sight. I asked the band if this feeling was something that they were going for while writing and recording the EP:

Definitely, that was the idea. We come from a little city (well, large town) surrounded by a sparse, dry landscape and we wanted that record to sound like where it came from.

Another track off the EP that caught my attention was "Tony Mudgee." When bands name songs after people, especially ones that I've never heard of, it intrigues me. I listened to the song lyrics a number of times and couldn't get a sense of who the track was about. So I brought it up with the band:

Tony Mudge was actually a teacher of mine. There is a country town in Australia called Mudgee where I'm sure they like country music. We put the two together as a bit of a joke.

The band went on a short tour after releasing the EP (and they will return to the road early next year). They realize the importance of enjoying themselves while putting on a good show as they suggested that live gigs are where "all the hard work pays off." In between performances the Hoodlum Shouts are writing new material in hopes of having a new album sometime soon. They don't anticipate much of a departure from the EP because they feel like "that's still the vibe" they want. Rightfully so as the the EP has been reviewed favorablly by a number of sources (this one, that one) and earned the band a spot performing at Triple J's Trackside Festival. If you don't own Horses and Human Hands yet purchase it here.

After talking music, the Hoodlum Shouts and I ended our correspondence with a question about what's cooking (in the more conventional use of the word). Turns out, it's a recipe for a Japanese dish called Okonomiyaki that two of the band memebers used to serve up for the staff at the restaurant they worked at. Unfortunately, for now, the dish remains a secret. When I get the recipe, I'll let you know.

Here's another track off their EP:
Hoodlum Shouts-Tony Mudgee

And one inspired by working on the cook's line in the restaurant:
Hoodlum Shouts-Working on the Line

And the one from our Roux mix:
Hoodlum Shouts-History's End

Look for more "What's cooking" entries to come your way over the next few months.