Ground Control Touring

TNSW has the kind of raw energy that can berate authority and blow your haircut off in equal measure. Since their formation in 2011, the Melbourne foursome has evolved from brute force basement punk to hardcore fusion, their sound both expanding and refining over the course of four electrifying albums. Their latest offering GODSPEED pulls from an even broader church of influences – from baggy Madchester grooves to piano balladry – and features some of their heaviest and most experimental material to date.

TNSW have always had a knack for balancing harsh reality with comic relief. Over the years they’ve honed their blend of undeniable artistry and self-effacing humour to runaway success across several disciplines, from their cult mockumentary series These New South Whales to their hit podcast What A Great Punk. As a music project, Jamie Timony (vocals), Todd Andrews (guitar), Will Shepherd (bass) and Frank Sweet (drums) formed with humour at the forefront.

Since then, they’ve developed into a serious post-punk force. They’ve sold out headline shows from Sydney to London, UK, and shared stages with Shame, Soft Play, and Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes. A reissue of their debut You Work For Us (2017) hit #6 on the ARIA Australian Vinyl Charts and #1 on the ARIA Indie Charts, while their follow-up, I Just Do What God Tells Me To Do (2019) was nominated for the Australian Music Prize. Their third album TNSW (2022), retained their dry sensibilities but put any notion of parody to bed. It debuted at #9 on the ARIA Album Charts, #4 on the ARIA Vinyl Charts, and was nominated for ‘Best Hard Rock / Heavy Metal Album’ at the 2023 ARIA Awards.

Meanwhile, they landed a historic deal with Comedy Central in 2018 that made them the first ever Australian band to develop their own TV series and license it to a cable television network. Executive produced by Roger O’Donnell of The Cure, Jeffrey Walker (Modern Family) and Laura Waters (We Can Be Heroes, Summer Heights High), it featured cameos from The Cure, Jimmy Barnes, Dune Rats, Daniel Johns, Phoebe Tonkin and more. They returned in late 2020 with another comedy series – TNSW Tonight! – in which the band lands their own talk show but, naturally, subvert the format with a string of awkward and stunted interviews that spawned viral moments aplenty on YouTube and TikTok.

Produced by Ben Greenberg (Depeche Mode, Drab Majesty, Show Me The Body), GODSPEED trades the band’s usual modes of dread and anxiety for a newfound self-assurance. It tackles familiar themes of personal autonomy, distrust of authority, and broken social structures – but from a fighting stance this time. “It’s switched into a more empowered state,” Timony says of the album’s sound overall. “It’s time to do what you can to take back your own sense of power.”

Building on the maturity of TNSW with connections to the raw determination of You Work For Us, GODSPEED is a refinement rather than a reinvention, fine-tuning their strengths while laying the brickwork for new paths to explore in the future. “It does feel like the first three albums combined,” says Timony. As a band in conversation with a continually shifting hellscape, whatever comes next is anyone’s guess, but right now TNSW is firing on all cylinders. Whether it’s as a band, podcasters, or on-screen personalities, TNSW have always established their own lane and succeeded on their own terms.