Perth rockers Legs Electric on their new EP 'Two Sides'

Legs Electric summon the spirit of the golden days of heavy rock – overcharging ’70s blues-based riffs with a full-power vocal attack and a live show worthy of Sunset Strip. In just a few years, the Legs Electric ladies have chiselled their name in stone as one of the most electrifying, must-see bands in their home city of Perth. Taking the sonic boom of their live show and capturing it like a storm in a bottle, Legs Electric have channelled everything they have into their new EP, Two Sides. We chat to drummer Kylie Soanes on all things Legs Electric.
Thanks so much for chatting to Forte. Congratulations on the upcoming release of Two Sides EP. Can you tell us a bit about the recording process? We know you worked with some pretty talented music legends (Ken Watt and Joel Quartermain).
We loved working with both Joel and Kenny. Both are great friends of ours and that always helps with feeling comfortable in the studio. We recorded ‘Wanna Riot’ and ‘Strange Addiction’ with Joel at Wasteland Studios in Perth. It’s the studio Eskimo Joe owned. We went through a lot of pre-production with Joel and created all these new ways to play the two tracks and experimented with the melodies and that was something we had never done before. Laura and Abby were the guitarist /bassist on those tracks, which is the older line up of Legs Electric – “the originals.”
I’ve known Kenny for over 15 years and he has always been a great mentor for me so recording with has always been so much fun! Kenny is all about just let it happen, relax and go with it. I have recorded with Kenny previously but this was the first time Elana and Erin have worked with him. Kenny loves to experiment with sounds and that’s exactly what we did you can hear it in our track ‘Kingdom’. We used this Led Zeppelin reverb sound (Redd47) on one of the guitar tracks which sounded so cool. ‘Shine Right Through’,’ Kingdom’ and ‘Dark Paradise’ was recorded with our new line up so this is why the EP is called Two Sides. It’s two sides of Legs Electric – the old line up and the new.
The EP’s first single, ‘Dark Paradise’, is referred to as ‘Legs Electric in perfect summary: huge guitars, huge drums, huge vocals and huge hooks’. What’s the story behind this particular song?
‘Dark Paradise’ was actually based on a riff my sister Abby had mucked around with a few years ago and Laura grabbed it and made it sound heavier. It was after we went to Black Sabbath when they played with Rival Sons so that show had a big influence on us. A ‘Dark Paradise’ refers to being stuck in something toxic.

At the insistence of fans, you also included your debut single ‘I Wanna Riot’ on the EP. Have you felt your music has changed since creating this track?
The new line up of Legs are all singers therefore, the newer songs have a lot of harmonies in them and we are also experimenting a lot with guitar sounds and fuzz. We have even written some pop influenced tracks not many maybe just one.
We’ve seen a lot of new music come out of Perth in recent times and you’ve cemented yourselves as one of the most electrifying, must-see bands in your home town. How have you found the Perth music scene during your time as a band?
The Perth music scene is forever developing. The one thing I love about Perth compared to other states of Australia is that we have such a diverse music scene, every band is different from the next. There are also more women out there kicking some serious ass in the music industry and that’s great to see. I grew up around the Hyde Park Hotel punk rock days – my first ever show was on that beer stained, sticky carpet on the floor. I loved it – I miss that place so much. But there are other venues like one of my newer favourite skate shop and now live music venue The Hell Hole that are giving us a bit of variety in a venue.
You’re touring across Australia in support of Two Sides throughout July. What are you most looking forward to about getting on the road?
We have never played Adelaide before so that is always exciting, new place, new venues. Frankie’s is always such a good time and we can’t wait to hit the country town Wollongong up again and of course rock ‘n’ roll city, Melbourne. It will just be great to be on the road – it’s been a while.
Are you a band that prefers to be live on stage over time in a studio? If so, what’s the most important thing for you when you’re on stage performing?
We love being on stage nothing beats it. The most important thing about being on stage is having fun, interacting with the crowd and giving each show 2000000%, putting on that show for your audience so they won’t forget you in a hurry.
Thanks so much for chatting. Again, congrats on the new EP!! To finish off, if Legs Electric was a cocktail (or spirit), what would it be?
Whiskey on the rocks!
When & Where: Last Chance Rock N’ Roll Bar, Melbourne – July 28 & Whole Lotta Love, Melbourne – July 29.
Release: Two Sides EP out July 13 via Firestarter Distribution