A new Tonix for your ears

I first heard of Tonix when I met the band at the Adelaide Royal Show and saw that Archie was playing a Sax and immediately started chewing his ear off about the band Morphine! Since then I have seen many live shows and most recent an epic gig they put on at the Adelaide Unibar in which I finally had the chance to purchase the infamous Tonix bucket hat! 

Caught up with Archie again recently and delved into all that's happening in Tonix world...

Tonix has been around for a little while now, how did the band form?

Tonix was spawned when Henry and I began busking as a saxophone duo. When we realised that we both had such a strong drive to play for audiences, we decided to take things more seriously and form Tonix. Henry had been given a synthesiser and we found that the first time we ever combined his synths and my saxophone, writing music came easily. Adding Sammi on vocals was a game changer and now including real drums has also really solidified who we are and how we sound. 

From listening to Tonix you have quite a classical sound mixed with an electronic edge - What has influenced Tonix to arrive at this point?

Henry, Sammi and I are hugely diverse music fans, and so what shines through in the music is often subtle nuances from a bunch of different artists. We all have a strong love for M83 and Coldplay - and that is where the super emotional, nostalgic electronic with huge drums and vocals soaring on top comes from. A lot of the heavier, instrumental music with aggressive saxophone and big synth is derived from bands like The Comet Is Coming, and even rappers like Baker Boy. The heavier energy is channelled from hip hop and even rock - nothing beats good Rage Against The Machine. 

I feel that Tonix is carving its own genre and niche in a very crowded electronica world - In your words what makes you different from the rest?

It would be naive to say that what we're doing is totally new - but there are certainly many elements that we see as genre bending alongside live factors that we try to utilise to push for uniqueness. One key thing to note is that the electronic world isn't actually very crowded in South Australia, and so even just our use of so many synthesiser sounds sets us apart for punters so used to seeing bass and guitars. We certainly pride ourselves on our live energy - be it emotionally with some super powerful drops or by getting crowds moshing and dancing with some of the heavier songs. It isn't everyday you hear saxophone combined with synthesiser but it makes for a truly unforgettable sound. 

What would Tonix like to accomplish in the next five years? 

From the day Tonix was formed Henry and I have always looked forward so ambitiously. Sammi is no different. Together, we really want to develop the band so that each and every record we put out is an artistic venture and product that can be genuinely enjoyed by more and more people around the world. Fundamentally though, our love of music is rooted in our love for performing, so in the next five years, the dream is to play as many big shows as we can - as supports, as headliners, on tour, on festival lineups... 

Tonix play VINTAGE VIBES FESTIVAL Saturday Jan 27th at Tomich Wines, Adelaide Hills.