The Paper Kites

I figured Aussie bands would be good for plenty of stories about driving long stretches gig to gig over their home continent. I was disappointed.

“Most Australian bands when they tour,” explains Paper Kites singer Sam Bentley, “would just fly between shows, because it’s just too far to drive.

“It’s actually probably more grueling in the States,” elaborates Bentley, who also plays guitar and sings for the Kites, who play the House of Blues on November 7. “There’s more shows for sure, but we’re driving every single day to a new city, so that’s really where we have to pass the time. There’s a little TV in the van, so it’s usually watching The Office or something fun. There’s been talk of working through Brooklyn 99 on the next run.”

Their new album On the Corner Where You Live, features a very ‘80s sound, with fat sax on the intro, swelling synths, and an aura of melancholy to recall the Cure. And while those sounds have come back into vogue, Bentley clarifies that the new direction wasn’t calculated.

“I think your music is just a product of the things that inspire you musically. We never sat down and said ‘Let’s make an ‘80s record,’ it was just that some of the music I was connecting with happened to come from that era… The Blue Nile was and is very important to me, The Cure, The Smiths, Roxy Music, Cocteau Twins, Peter Gabriel, Bruce Springsteen. I think what impresses me about them is that a lot of them are just these men pouring their hearts out in a sad but beautiful way.... It’s important to have some role models, particularly for male vocalists, pushing the idea that sensitivity and being vulnerable on stage isn’t something that should be thought of to be ‘soft’ or ‘weak tea’ or anything like that. Give me honesty or vulnerability any day over any sort of macho expectation.”

Asked about San Diego stories, Bentley allows, sadly, “We haven’t actually played in San Diego as much as we would have liked to. We’ve definitely had some of the best tacos of our lives there, though.”