Photo credit: Kane Hibberd

New Zealand’s Bakers Eddy today drop their new single ‘Hi-Vis Baby’ ahead of the release of their debut album Love Boredom Bicycles out 25th March 2022. An ode to singer Ciarann Babbington’s bike riding lifestyle, ‘Hi-Vis Baby’ is a tightly-wound, sharply written, highspeed blast of nostalgia-laced indie rock.

Speaking on the new single, singer Ciarann said: “The song’s just about riding my bike. Unfortunately it’s not metaphorical, I just really like riding my bike and I hate it when dickheads in 4×4’s [“If you’re in a four wheel drive, You can fuck off”] cut you off and run you off the road. The words were originally supposed to be placeholders but after we demo’d the song I started listening to it while riding and it felt badass so we kept them in.”

The band went on to say: “We really tried to pull some nostalgic energy into the song, particularly in the chorus. We were influenced by bands like Joy Division and Pixies who are masters at weird melancholic gut-turning nostalgia – but we added a really chaotic surfy beat. We also channelled the Beach Boys with the backing vocals, which I had to record on my hands and knees to hit, it’s so high.”

‘Hi-Vis Baby’ is another taste of band’s upcoming debut album Love Boredom Bicycles. Produced by Holy Holy’s Oscar Dawson, Bakers Eddy capture the exuberant spirit of youth, with good times coursing through its veins. Everything sounds effortless for singer Ciarann Babbington and his bandmates: twin brothers, guitarist Alex and bassist Ian Spagnolo, and drummer Jamie Gordon. Living together in sharehouse in Melbourne, Bakers Eddy’s music is bursting with youthful energy, swagger, a bucket load of hooks and an irresistibly charming sense of humour.

Having been a band since they were 12-year-old kids in Wellington, and now 12 years later all living together having moved to Melbourne, they couldn’t be tighter friends. It’s a closeness they like to bring with them into the studio. Literally. “We’re all in the same room when we’re recording. Like when Jamie’s recording drums, we squeeze in tight around him, in this giant room we’re all in nice and tight and I’m running around Jamie, and just like causing havoc and then we make a point to yell random shit,” says Ciarann. “For this record music came second and bullshit came first,” jokes Ian.

It was all about creating an environment where energy and spirits are high. “Even when we were recording guitar and bass,” says Alex, “we’d all be standing up and hopping along and shit like that, not just sitting there, trying to get everything perfect.” For the band it was about vibe over everything. “We made a point of making it sound more like the demos, cos when the demos were recorded at home we were often having a bit of a party,” says Ciarann. “It’s like, let’s be loud and have some fun.”