Coué Method

While much of the rock-playing mainstream are blow-drying their fringes, applying eyeliner and choreographing their rock-chic in the mirror, there are some musicians who prefer, and have always preferred, to focus on the substance of their music rather than its surface. 

Back in ’93, before Ipods, Australian Idol, Big Brother and yes – way before the word ‘emo’ became a noun, five blokes put together a band that sent a polite ‘fuck you’ to the Australian music mainstream. The band was One Inch Punch, later known as Mid Youth Crisis (MYC). Their music was fast, muscular and sincere. Now, after a ten-year absence, three of its founding members, Steve Milligan, Heath McAnally and Adrian Lombardi, have re-banded as Coué Method.

In this new incarnation for the three, much of their earlier work has been retained; Milligan’s vocals are powerful and melodic, the lyrics weave through dilemmas that are personal as much as they are political, and Lombardi and McAnally’s guitars sweep between the dissonant and uplifting.

There are fresh nuances too. With Ben Reichman (bass) and Sam Johnson (drums), the rhythm of the outfit drives like an escapee with the jacks giving chase. Regarding lyrics, Milligan himself attests, ‘I don’t feel hemmed in by political correctness anymore. I just say whatever I feel.’ Certainly, there is an accompanying sense of freedom that permeates the melodies. Society’s glaring imperfections are denounced, it’s direction questioned, but not without conceding one’s own inescapable flaws. The other end of the spectrum reveals love, hope and a faith in oneself to prevail.

The sonic landscape of Coué Method’s new record, …to mock a vapid world, owes much of its shaping to Johnson, who took the job of drummer after mixing. ‘It was a role I had been itching to get back into after a few years out of the beat game. I knew and loved the material, so it was a very simple transition.’ Less metallic are the guitar tones in favour of more traditional and spacious sounds, but still provide a barrage that is unashamedly punk rock.

Originally, the Coué Method is the name given to a psychotherapeutic approach toward self-improvement. Wikipedia tells us Émile Coué’s unique discovery was that willpower is the biggest obstacle in any cure. A fitting name, then, for many musicians, these not the least, who overcome personal challenges everyday to continue what they love doing best.

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Album – “To Mock A Vapid World” out now on Resist Records

myspace.com/couemethod