Tainted Youth

Tainted Youth’s new EP ‘Bradman House’ features a range of tracks that showcase your unique fusion of Pop and Electronic music. As a Brisbane-born duo now residing in the UK, how did your relocation influence the sound and themes across this project?

Ryan - It’s had a massive influence on our sound as musicians but also on our everyday lives. Living in London is very different to a small country town outside of Brisbane. I think it’s so important to get outside of your comfort zone and see different perspectives on things from all different people. At its core our music is about our human experiences, and the more experiences we have outside our comfort zone, the more we have to write about.

'Soldier' is one of the standout tracks on the EP. Can you share the story behind this song and what it means to you personally?

Ryan - ‘Soldier’ is a super personal song about the internal battle that a lot of us fight against mental health issues. We have both struggled with anxiety and depression in the past, so it’s a topic that we both felt inclined to explore in our music. The song is really there to let people know it’s okay to not be okay and there are other people going through the same battles as you and you're not alone even when you feel your loneliest.

‘Endless Summer’ has a nostalgic yet refreshing vibe. How did you capture the essence of summer in this track, and what do you hope listeners take away from it?

Kathleen - I think Ryan did an amazing job with the production on ‘Endless Summer’. I think the soundscape he made and the vocal production are the secret sauce that makes this track so reminiscent of summer. With this song, our goal is to give people a little serotonin boost by reminding them of summer and all the great vibes that go with it. 

Looking back at 'Fire In Me' and 'Wake Up,' how do these tracks set the stage for the new songs on 'Bradman House'? Do you see them as a continuation or a departure from your earlier work?

Kathleen - I think ‘Fire In Me’ and ‘Wake Up’ were both songs that explored topics that are personal to Ryan and I, which allowed us to continue with that theme in ‘Soldier’ and ‘Endless Summer’. All the tracks on the EP explore topics that we’ve experienced firsthand, which is why we chose to name it ‘Bradman House’, after the place where we wrote these songs.

Your live performances have gained significant recognition, especially at venues like Ministry of Sound. How do you translate the energy and emotion of your studio recordings into your live shows?

Kathleen - For me, translating energy into live performance is really about remembering how you were feeling when you wrote the song. When you’re performing songs you’ve written about personal experiences, you just channel the feeling or emotion that inspired you to write that song. 

With the release of 'Bradman House,' what do you hope to achieve in the coming months, and how do you see this EP shaping the future of Tainted Youth?
Ryan - We both see the release of ‘Bradman House’ as our introduction to the world as Artists as it’s our first EP. We hope people resonate with the music and themes we touch on and want to join us on this journey.