Phil and The Blanks

‘GOOD LIFE’ feels like a natural evolution of the Phil and The Blanks sound while moving into a much more anthemic space. What drew you towards this bigger, more melodic style, and how did the song take shape during the writing and recording process?

‘GOOD LIFE’ has probably unearthed our dirty little secret. We are closet pop fans. Phil and The Blanks will always find a place for dirty riffs and big live drums, but all of our band are drawn towards the three-minute-long disposable kind of music. We all grew up on So Fresh compilations and reckon they need to be acknowledged for the heavy lifting they did in making and keeping music an important part of young Australians’ upbringing. Pop music was our gateway drug into discovering what other more exotic delights were on offer for curious little minds.

Also, there is a silly tendency for some music fans to wrongly label pop as low brow. It’s not. That is snooty nonsense usually trotted out by people who can’t write an earworm. We LOVE an earworm. If we can ruin your morning commute with one of our annoying melodies, our work is done.

Bella Amor brings a complementary vocal character to the track, with a swaggering anthemic pop-rock delivery that really helps sell the chorus. What made her the right person for this particular song, and how did the collaboration develop?

Bella is a Gold Coast legend and she has been doing some writing with our guitarist Oskar, who produces out of 4000 Studios in Fortitude Valley. They’d been getting on well and then Phil got involved and the three of them really hit it off. Skip ahead and hey presto! ‘GOOD LIFE’ emerged.

Truth is, we have been really keen to add a feminine tone to our project for a while and finally there was the perfect fit standing before us. When we plucked up the courage to ask her to get involved and she said yes, we were pretty stoked.

Bella has this amazing energy and a natural ability to see music in psychedelic colours, so once she started messing with the song it immediately launched into this beautifully bent but kinda anthemic pop monster we all fell in love with.

Then we had to persuade her record label to let her do a song with a bunch of bogan wankers in Lowes fishing shirts… and the rest is history!

There’s something deliberately nostalgic about ‘GOOD LIFE’, from its breezy groove to its huge pop-rock vocal. What is it about 90s and early-2000s music that continues to resonate with you, and were there any specific songs or artists you had in mind while making it?

We all have a natural love for the 0000s, so we have an in-built desire to splash about in a bunch of different puddles: Post Punk, Electronic Pop and Hip Hop, not to mention that big energy showmanship of those massive pop hits of the time.

This stuff will often find its way into what we make, but we are not slaves to it. Nostalgia can be a lazy headspace and a pathway to nowhere if you become too drunk on it.

We actually spend more of our time trying to explore and honour today’s most inspiring artists, looking at how they manage to do such cool shit while navigating such a fucked up music industry. At the moment we are loving Slimdan, Wet Leg and Oliver Tree (RIP).

The title ‘GOOD LIFE’ suggests something pretty straightforward, but the idea of living a good life can mean very different things to different people. What does that phrase mean to you, and what were you actually trying to capture lyrically?

‘GOOD LIFE’ is a sideways look at divining what’s really important in life, while also calling on everyone to add a couple of heaped teaspoons of gratitude to their morning brew.

We can spend our whole lives chasing cash and status, but most of the good shit on offer is right under our noses if we just look.

You don’t need money to shake your tushie and dance like an idiot. It’s free to get with your mates and start talking stupid shit that makes you laugh. It costs nothing to make someone smile and you can go out today dressed up in clothes that start a conversation.

Taking back your own access to happiness is the most revolutionary thing we can all do right now.

Phil and The Blanks have created this whole world around absurdity, humour and deliberately questionable decisions. With ‘GOOD LIFE’ feeling more sincere and uplifting, did you find yourselves approaching the writing differently, or does the band’s sense of humour still sit underneath the surface?

‘GOOD LIFE’ will probably be the most ‘preachy’ we’ll ever get, as none of us feel super comfortable in that mode due to being a little bit fucked.

We love what it does, but you should expect some more On-Brand-Daft-Shit in our next few releases.

We might even be releasing a song with our manager Uncle Steven, which is essentially his stream of consciousness in the form of a psychedelic rock trip that will blow your mind and your speakers.

Absurdity will always rear its big stupid head in our songs because the World Of Phil is just as important to us as our songs. We use our songs to attract people into our world where we can communicate with them, form deeper connections and introduce them to a whole range of poor decisions that will derail their life too.

The band has already shown that you can shift gears while keeping the Phil and The Blanks identity intact. Where does ‘GOOD LIFE’ fit into the bigger picture of what you’re trying to build, and what does it tell us about where the band could go next?

Who knows where this will go next?

We would dearly love to play more shows interstate, and that is happening. We have a NSW tour happening in November and VIC shows planned for early 2027.

We have been toying with the idea of an EP, but it would have to have a reason to exist. Same with albums. We love the idea of a body of work, but that would have to be something that works with our narrative.

We are really adamant that we don’t do shit just because that’s what the industry dictates. Albums these days seem to mainly be artist-curated playlists, and we would rather make a bold, and probably stupid, statement when making a Phil and The Blanks debut album.

It would probably have to be a concept album of some sort; maybe a rock opera or bedtime singalong audiobook for awkward kids.

We’ll get back to you on that one.