Crocodylus
Birthed in a shack. High up in the mountains, manual labour to fuel the fire against the harsh elements, no signal. Complete isolation. There was a virus spreading its way through all civilisation see. Isolation was welcome.
Armed only with each other’s company, creative intuition, and a jury rigged recording setup; the three friends spend a week writing the skeletal foundation that would come to be ‘Muscle Memory’, the debut album from Sydney Northern Beaches garage rock band Crocodylus.
Fast forward a year later, The Grove Studios: under the production guidance of longtime friend, creative idol, and historical collaborator of Jake “Pencil” Voroshine as well as master button pusher, sound chaser, engineering extraordinaire Jack Nigro, the team got to work putting ‘Muscle Memory’ to tape.
The title ‘Muscle Memory’ derives from the sinking realisation that the 100 shows per year had eventually been smashed down to 0 and building it all back up to its former glory would be a hard slog. Hopefully they would have retained muscle memory deep in their bodies to aid them through the trying times ahead.
They needn’t worry. 2022 has seen Crocodylus perform two sold out runs along the east coast of Australia and this week, on the release of their new album they announce their ‘Muscle Memory’ Tour with shows through January and February 2023 in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Wollongong, Newcastle, Byron Bay and Gold Coast. Full dates are below.
There’s a flow throughout ‘Muscle Memory’. Earnest beginnings start to peel away piece by piece and by the time you’re in the guts of the record, you feel like you’re trapped in the belly of a hulking beast, a juggernaut; Monstro the whale, a kaiju. The depths ease away to a pastoral pastiche of gratitude and forlorn beauty. Ending in calm, simple goodbye.
From the first double A-side release of the jangle surf rock ‘YOU’ and psyched out / 60’s stomper ‘Unnecessary Pressure’, the garage pop of ‘Can’t Understand’, the full tilt ‘Home Invasion’, to the new focus single, the “leave it all behind” ‘My Perspective’, Crocodylus cover a lot of ground on their debut album. Their crop of new songs will only lift their live show and their reputation as one of the most exciting rock bands around right now.
Crocodylus’ DIY ethos has garnered them fervent fans around the globe from high-octane house gigs on their home turf to touring Europe with The Chats, and selling out headline shows all around Australia, as well making the trio a go-to for boutique festivals in their home country. They’ve toured regional Australia with Skegss, nationally with The Chats, tri-headlining with A. Swayze & The Ghosts and Voiid, as well as popping up for hometown shows supporting the likes of Ocean Alley, Dune Rats, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Hockey Dad, The Jungle Giants and more. Throw in some festival appearances across the country at Panama, NYE on The Hill, Bad Friday, Yours & Owls and Sounds of the Suburbs and a couple of sold out headline dates along the East Coast for good measure, and it’s no surprise these three high school friends, Josh Williams (bass/vocals), Stephen Sacco (guitar/vocals) and Mikel Salvador (drums/vocals), have managed to carve out a name for themselves.
