maddi scott — kcpcollective

MADDISON SCOTT

CONCRETE LAWN

^{She’s kind, she’s honest, she’s fervently and uncompromisingly herself, Maddi Scott of Concrete Lawn lives true to her words.

Making music from a young age she’s been able to experiment so much with sound and watched that form who she became as a person. Using music as a second language she communicates so much untethered energy and her onstage presence is hypnotizing, something I can attest to as I’ve seen her perform enough times.

Her approach to creating music is unsurprisingly the antithesis of careful and calculated, instead she opts to create in the moment, unthinkingly and organically, trusting herself that she has a lot to say. And that she does, her views on the punk scene, on what music means to her and the complexities that lie beneath the meaning of everything if you choose to look for them, are poignant and apparent when you listen to what she writes and how she lives.

Forever curious to the beauties of life, Maddi is someone who will never stop creating. Her muse? The exquisite and absurd human experience.}

^{How old were you when you started going to shows, do you remember what it felt like?

Like 15? The first few shows I saw were some camp metal-core bands like In Hearts Wake and Parkway Drive. I have no recollection of what it felt like — I remember the shows were always obnoxiously loud tho (r.i.p. ears)

Do you remember the first song or band that influenced your love of music?

Probably skrillex and lmfao haha!! Just vividly remember walking to school in year 5 or 6 with these massive skullcandy headphones on obsessively rotating between the two artists (my fondness for skrillex shall live on….for lmfao, they have not aged too well sorry party rockers!!!)

How would you define punk to someone who thought it was just noise?

Contentious to say but I think it is just noise — punk is married to noise. The intricacies of punk are constant feedback and people unashamedly playing instruments they don't know how to play correctly which makes it uniquely one the greatest genres accessible to anyone curious.

How do you think the Aus music scene has evolved in the last 10 years?

I was 12 listening to trash ten years ago so I can’t really determine the progress in the Aus music scene. From what I’ve seen since attending shows, the scene is quite stagnant and elitist — There's an endless cycle of bands who get constant clout and recognition for their music which leaves other talented artists under this dim light and stripped of a voice. Needless to say, I do hold optimism in the fact that the Aus music scene will eventually move beyond this dichotomy of elitism and hidden talent and Syd in particular won’t forever remain an aging scene.

If you weren’t making punk music, what kind of music would you be making?

I'm involved in two other fun projects; Dionysus and Gift Exchange. To put a genre to both, Dionysus is a sexy Death-rock band and I'm still perplexed with the genre of Gift exchange — maybe an alternative Witch house band?? Lol idk. I think all three bands are extremely different in sound, however, all three bear a resemblance in attitude which I enjoy very much.

Why do you think people fuck with Concrete Lawn, what’s the magic?

Haha Bold. To be frank, I don’t know how people view us as a band. In the past, people have somewhat fetishised the idea of how young we were as a punk band. Thankfully now, we’re viewed in a different light that recognises our musicianship before anything. I think it's safe to say that people gravitate towards our band because we don’t feel the need to perpetuate this lie that punk by definition is inherent to violence and intimidation. We always want to ensure that the spaces we play our accessible and safe.

What’s the universe you’ve created through your music, accidentally or otherwise?

White lodge in twin peaks.

Do you have a ritual or process when you approach writing music, or is it more primal/instinctive?

None of my lyrics are meticulously crafted, I usually write under pressure at practice or before we’re about to play.

Lastly, can you send me something that distills your meaning in life? It can be lyrics, a drawing, a tune, anything x}

^{I write this listening to fascinator (alt-mix) ) - I love HTRK.}