Getting to Know Jagwar Ma

Sydney band Jagwar Ma are having a pretty big 2013: They’ve been on a bunch of best album lists, played Glastonbury and Noel Gallagher said the universe would implode if we didn’t all play them to our kids or some shit.

They also managed the tricky task of breaking overseas at the same time as at home. We thought it was kind of weird that we were discovering a local band with the rest of the world, and felt like we should probably pick up our getting-to-know-you game. So we did the obvious thing, we went on the Internet and looked up a bunch of Oprah approved conversation starters. Then we gave lead vocalist and guitarist Gabriel Winterfield a call. We were best friends in record time.

NOISEY: So all these questions come from Oprah’s website, they’re suggestions for conversation starters.
Gabriel: Ha, so these are the things that are important to Oprah?

Yeah. This is how the Big O makes friends. Who was your favourite celebrity as a child?
Celebrities. Of course it’s celebrities. I don’t know, Power Rangers. Do they count?

Yeah I think that counts.
I don’t think as a kid I really had an idea of what a celebrity was, but they were a pretty big deal. It was either them or Transformers or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Considering the others aren’t humans we’ll go with the Power Rangers, particularly the green one. He was the special one that only came in for a few episodes.

I’m happy with that. What was most memorable about your high school years?
Quite a lot. To be honest it wasn’t that long ago. The most memorable thing now, probably because it’s more relevant to my life, would be all the music stuff. I started my first band Ghostwave in high school. They were my high school friends and we’re all still close now.

Oh that’s nice and wholesome. What is your greatest accomplishment?
Starting my own TV show, and my own magazine, that I’m on the front cover of every month.

Wait, what?
I don’t have a magazine, or a TV show. I was thinking about Oprah.

Oh man I thought I totally fucked up my research.
(Laughs) Nah you know how she has that magazine and she’s on the cover every single month?

Yeah and once Ellen was on the cover and it was a really big deal that she shared the spotlight.
Yeah because it had been her every month, just her face. Crazy, so fucking crazy. Nah I don’t have a greatest accomplishment. If I had kids I’d probably say my kids, but I don’t have any kids. But that seems like it would be a nice thing to say (laughs).

You can have a pending accomplishment. This one is good, what is your mission?
My mission? Oh man, I don’t know. I don’t have a mission, to tie it into the band we just want to make really good music that we think is good; and always challenge ourselves and put our best forward and I don’t know, give 110 percent.

Yeah I don’t think normal people have missions. Only Oprah knows what that means. This is easier, if you were invisible, where would you go?
That’s so creepy. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere where I’d have to be invisible to get in. You know those people who always say they’d take invisibility if they could have a superpower? It’s always the weirdo.

Totally, what are you not able to do now because of your visibility? It’s just saying you want to watch people in the shower.
Yeah, something weird.

If you could take three things to a desert island what would they be?
Oh I love this, these are so cheesy, it’s kind of like Adult Match Maker.

Yeah there are some good ones coming up.
Good, I’m looking forward to them. Are we assuming that survival things aren’t needed?

Lets say you have food, water and shelter.
Okay if that’s the case, the Internet is everything so that and an unlimited download amount. If you’ve got that you’re sweet. And maybe a few musical instruments as well.

You should include a phone or a laptop for the Internet?
Oh yeah, (laughs) like not to just know the place has the Internet.

Get ready for this, when was the last time you cried?
Can it be from something that was really funny?

Yeah it can be from anything.
The other day we were watching this YouTube video of this tenor doing a vocal break, it’s only 20 seconds but it’s so funny. It just gets funnier and funnier the more you watch it, so that was probably the last time I cried.

That’s actually a great answer to an awful question. At what dinner would it be appropriate to ask that?
Yeah I know, it’s pretty personal, you really could be opening up a whole can of worms. Someone could be like, “My grandma passed away last week, thanks for asking”.

But look, she knows to bring it in: what do you prefer, strength training or cardio?
(Laughs) What about just all of the above? I love all of the workouts. All of the ones, I go to Crunch in LA. No I don’t, I don’t go to Crunch.

What’s Crunch?
It’s the gym in LA where all the celebrities go.

So I’ll just put you down for all exercise.
As long as it’s at Crunch, yes.

What animal would you be?
A pterodactyl.

So we’re assuming you’re living millions of years ago.
Well we might as well blow this thing wide open.

Finally, what do you want to be remembered for?
I guess it would be nice to have a few albums that are considered really good works of art. I think that would be very cool. I’m not particularly into those best of lists, but at the same time it would be kind of cool to be on one. Not in the top 10, they’ve already been decided on with the Beatles and stuff. Maybe in the hundreds.

That’s all the questions, I officially know you well enough to have a comfortable dinner party.
Cool, so if we go out for dinner it won’t be awkward.

Unless you have food allergies or phobias. That wasn’t covered.
Nah I don’t have any allergies.

Cool.
Perfect.

Looks like Jagwar Ma have sold out all their upcoming tour dates. But you can comfort yourself with their new album Howlin, out now through Future Classic.