They say all good things must come to an end. I’ve always hated that saying but unfortunately for Gypsy & The Cat, it really is true. The band announced last month that their upcoming third release, Virtual Islands, would be their last and if you’ve followed the Australian duo – comprised of Xavier Bacash and Lionel Towers – since the beginning some six years ago, you’re probably just as gutted to see them split as we are. Fortunately, they’ve left us with one hell of a catalog to get lost in for years to come.
In celebration of the release of Virtual Islands, out August 5, I had the honor of asking the band a few questions on the past six years, the new record and what we can expect from them in the future.
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This is the last GATC record. I know you guys cited that you’ve done all you set out to achieve but was there anything else that came into play that ultimately played a part in this decision?
We have both grown musically in our journey together over the past decade and decided it was time to explore different musical avenues and see where that takes us as individuals.
The new record is fantastic! Besides a recent trip to Japan, what else influenced you and fueled the sound of Virtual Islands?
Musically, we were influenced by a range of different genres, from a lot of old American prison recordings from the 1920’s to music used in children’s television programs in the 70’s, to Bowie, to Erik Satie, and even dance music from the late 90’s and early 2000’s.
Let’s go deep into the entire GATC catalog – which song would you say means the most to both of you and why?
“Life,” which appears on the new record. We feel this is probably our greatest work both musically and topically – in terms of production and chords and melody, all this coupled with the message of “Life” creates such an emotion that we think most hits home out of our entire catalog.
Was there ever a moment during your journey as a band where you had to take a step back and try to process what was really happening?
This moment probably happened a few times for both of us throughout the years. It’s hard to pinpoint one time exactly.
It’s bittersweet to see you guys split as you’ve played such an important role in my own personal journey as a music writer. What word would you say overall describes the past six years?
Epic.
Xavier, you mentioned a solo project in the works. Anything you can tell us about that?
I am aiming to have the first single out in November under an alias yet to be revealed 😉
Any last words you want to leave fans with?
A big thank you to all the fans who have been part of our career so far! Anyone who’s been to a show, bought a record, streamed a song, liked our social media pages, we appreciate everything you have done for us, and we hope you can also join us on our future musical endeavors!
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