‘Fox And The Hound’ – Temperamental As Anything

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A slow, ominous burn from local Darwin punk and heavy rock outfit Temperamental seeps menacingly out of the speakers with their new drop ‘Fox and the Hound‘, out now on all the usual streaming services.

Topical is an understatement for this track. Issues of consent are dominating the news cycle at this time, and the problems are not constrained by status – indeed, this societal fish rots from the head. ‘Fox and the Hound‘ is inspired by the need for people to be reminded to keep their fucking hands to themselves unless invited, and to watch the fuck out for those who will protect the victims of harassment. No means no, and the venerable hound will hold the vulnerable fox inviolate from the inveterate abuser.

The metaphors abound in this track, made all the more poignant by the moody riff and tones that bark ‘beware‘. Yes, a fox is generally considered to be a wily creature – herein the fox is feminine. The answer to rape culture in this country has been up til now about educating the victim to be less, well, victimy – don’t walk there at night, don’t wear that dress, don’t get drunk and put yourself in a vulnerable situation.

That attitude needs to change and the momentum has finally arrived – the time has come to educate the perps not to perp – this song captures that and adds to it that not only will the community no longer tolerate the entitled attitude of some men, it will also deal with them swiftly – extrajudicially if needs be. While the notion of ‘Culpam poena premit comes‘ is the way things should be (google it), we need to nip it in the bud before it gets to that point, so teach you sons not to be assholes. ‘Still not asking for it’ shouldn’t need to be a thing.

Yes, the subject matter is heavy, and (I am informed) stems from a recent personal experience of one of the band members sticking up for a relative. Inspiration is where you find it, and with ‘Fox and the Hound‘ that inspiration has produced a winner for this genre in the local scene. It is a not a flash bit of musical virtuosity – that would muddy the message. It is not about the band having rock star moments – the song is designed to hit you in the feels with its lyrical and rhythmic repetitiveness, and in the bowels with the low end grumble to put you firmly in the picture.

The fact that it is essentially home recorded, mixed and mastered (drummer Todd Naumann doing the heavy lifting) is a wonderful thing for the local scene – without this level of commitment from local bands, our scene would not be half of what it is. The knowledge and experienced gained from self-produced works is the beacon on the hill for the young’uns waiting in the wings for their turn. The striking and memorable artwork is by Rifkinash from the freelance site Fivver (well worth checking out for any sort of web, mobile etc graphic design – have a look here: https://www.fiverr.com/

Temperamental are launching ‘Fox and the Hound‘ at the Happy Yess on Friday March 26th – general admission $10.00. Info here: https://www.facebook.com/events/216598596827259

In the meantime, have a listen here:

Temperamental are:

Callan Power – Bass, Lead Vocals

Darren Schmitt – Guitar, Back-up Vocals

Patrick Wooley – Guitar

Todd Naumann – Drums