Pendulum swings with Hornet sting

For anyone who doesn’t know, who is Pendulum?

Pendulum is an electronic music group that began its life in the early 2000s in Perth.

Initially there were three of us. Rob Swire, Gareth McGrillen and myself, aka El Hornet.

We started out in a small bedroom studio and after releasing a few singles in the UK, we relocated there in 2003.

Are you tackling the tour solo?

I am absolutely solo on this run of shows. No tour manager, no lighting guy, just me and hopefully a whole bunch of new friends at the gigs.

Where are you originally from and has that influenced your music at all?

I lived in Moora in the Wheatbelt when I was young, then moved to the northern suburbs of Perth. My family also had a farm in Bencubbin in the north-eastern Wheatbelt so I spent a fair bit of time out there. I think I was quite fortunate to grow up in Perth because it had an amazing rave scene, and specifically the drum and bass scene was very solid.

What are some of your greatest music achievements?

Initially we set ourselves goals as our career was progressing. Release a single on a label we respected, play a show at a particular club or in a particularly country, that kind of thing. The rise of Pendulum seemed to happen so quickly that we blew our goals out of the water on our first record. We've played huge shows like Glastonbury Festival and sold out Wembley Area twice in six months. We’ve played live or DJ-ed in something like 65 countries now. I think our finest achievement is mainly just the way our three albums were received. Hearing stories of how that music impacted people, that feels like the biggest achievement.

What can people expect attending your show for in Albany?

It will be a good window into the world of Pendulum really. I’m going play exactly the same way I would do in London or LA or Ibiza. A solid mix of Pendulum music, some of the best new Drum and Bass and other styles of electronic music from around the world. No gimmicks, real DJ-ing.

Have you toured regionally before?

This is actually the first time I’ve ever done a regional tour. I’ve been wanting to do this for years but as we live in the UK, it’s been hard to make it work. At some stage I want to go off the beaten track and do DJ sets in small country towns. I have this mad vision of towing a sound system around and thrashing out a set at footy clubs or at local pubs.

How have Pendulum had such a long, successful music career?

That is something I wonder myself at times. I think that when it came to making records, playing DJ gigs or playing live, we always gave it 100 per cent. We’ve faced huge challenges personally and professionally in our career and I honestly think that if we’d grown up anywhere other than West Oz we might have crumbled under that pressure.

Tickets to see Pendulum on July 30 can be purchased at Oztix.com.