Amyl and The Sniffers | Artist
Amyl and The Sniffers is an Australian pub rock-punk band formed 2016 in Melbourne by Amy "Amyl" Taylor (vocals), Dec Martens (guitar), Bryce Wilson (drums) and Calum Newton (bass). Fergus Romer took over on bass in 2017. Their sound has been compared to 1970s punk rock groups such as Iggy Pop and the Stooges and the Damned. Front-woman Taylor has cited a number of varying influences including Minor Threat, Ceremony, AC/DC and Sleaford Mods. One Allmusic review described their pub-rock sound as "Proof that music doesn't have to be complex to be good. Amyl and the Sniffers debut is banger after banger with great hooks, fantastic vocals and pulsating riffs". The band was formed by housemates Amy Taylor, Bryce Wilson, Declan Mehrtens, and Calum Newton in Balaclava, Melbourne. The four wrote, recorded, and released their first EP, Giddy Up, in a span of 12 hours. Newton left the band to pursue a solo career and was replaced by Gus Romer in early 2017. In 2018, the band went into the studio to record their debut album with English producer and former Add N to (X) drummer Ross Orton. The result was Amyl and the Sniffers, released in May 2019. It received positive reviews, including a 7.2 from Pitchfork and 4 out of 5 stars from NME and AllMusic. In light of the album's release, Happy Mag placed the band at No. 9 on their list of "The 15 Australian female artists changing the game right now", praising Taylor for being "one of hardest rocking people on the face of the planet." The band hit the big time with a US headline tour in July and August 2024, in addition to supporting Foo Fighters on their US shows. They have gone on to release two further studio albums and been nominated for nine ARIA Awards, winning three, including for Best Group in 2022. Standout albums include Amyl and the Sniffers (2019), Comfort to Me (2021), Cartoon Darkness (2024), and the compilation Big Attraction & Giddy Up (2018). The band takes its name from the Australian slang for the drug amyl nitrite, also known as poppers. Taylor compared their music to the drug in an interview with Paul Glynn of the BBC: "In Australia we call poppers Amyl. So you sniff it, it lasts for 30 seconds and then you have a headache – and that's what we're like!" Amy Taylor grew up in Australia's "counterculture capital" Mullumbimby NSW. Her father was a crane-driver and bottle-shop worker who built their house out of repurposed rocks, and the family lived out of one bedroom.
Artist Website: amylandthesniffers.com
Featured Albums: Amyl and the Sniffers
Related Artists: Amy Taylor
