the androgyny

In my opinion if Placebo and Hole had offspring, what you would get is the three-piece girl band The Androgyny. These girls are one of my favourite Brisbane bands. In the past I’ve had the privilege of having them perform at some of my events. Not only do they put on one heck of a great live show with their stage presence, their group dynamic is bloody amazing and undisputed making them the perfect girl band. Their music is often hypnotizing and will often leave you craving for more.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it is only a matter of time before these girls make it big. Emily Jane and Lullaby are two tracks of their Debut EP I Don’t Desire Your Empire due out later this year. Have a listen below.

Emily Jane.

Lullaby.

The girls are currently trying to get their name out there, by taking part in Tripple J Unearthed. So click here to not only show your support by rating and reviewing their tracks, but download the above tracks for FREE!

The Androgyny will also be providing a track for my short film The Sun’s End, that will go into production within the next few months so be sure to keep an eye out for these girls because there are some great things to come!

So do yourself a favour join their official Facebook page to keep up to date on all things The Androgyny, you won’t be dissapointed!
- The Qit

Combine passion and desire, with the relentless voices in her head, plug her heart into an amp and give her a guitar… Introducing The Androgyny; the 3 piece, all girl, alternative rock band you have been waiting for!
Formed by Tessa Richards (Vocals/Guitar) and Emma Mallory (Bass) in 2011 the band are now joined by Laura Maccormac (Drums). With similarities to acts such as Veruca Salt, Bush, The cure, Joy division and Magic Dirt, the band have created an original, haunting and addictive blend of sweet and sour pop and alternative rock. With songs that are written and played by women, The Androgyny are one of the few rock bands, that are empowering young women today, through their music.

The Androgyny hit the road this July to promote their third single and debut film clip – “I’m Not Your Heroine” taken from their 2012 EP, “I Don’t Desire Your Empire”.

This track, is a crowd favourite, capturing the unique mix of passion and pain that this band is renowned for.
Also joining them as far as Sydney, will be talented Brisbane local band; Dead Wolves.
http://www.facebook.com/theandrogyny
Tour Dates
Thursday July 4
Macquarie Hotel, Port Macquarie
with Dead Wolves and Decadence of Cain
Friday July 5
Yours and Owls, Wollongong
with Dead Wolves
Sunday July 7
Value Bar n Venue, Sydney
with Dead Wolves and Violet G
Saturday July 13
The Reverence, Footscray
With The Divine Fluxus, cotangent and The Heroines
Thursday July 18
The Vineyard, St Kilda
with Waco Social and 100 Acres
Friday July 19
The Music Man, Bendigo
with over 30 bands on 3 stages
Saturday July 20
The Cavern Club, Adelaide
With special guests
Friday July 26
Beetle Bar, Brisbane
with bands including Death By Dance and Galapogos, Burlesque by Esther Belle, and more to be announced!
http://www.facebook.com/theandrogyny
- Music Life Media

“The all-female emerging Brisbane trio, The Androgyny, is set to perform their sweet and sour blend of alternative rock on Wednesday, 24 November 2011 at 299’s Hot Gossip in Fortitude Valley. Alongside The Molotov and Locavore, this performance will be their next installment after recently supporting Stone Parade (SYD) last month at The Step Inn. Come check out The Androgyny and the other local talents as a delectable mid-week treat to yourself. Doors open at 8:00pm and entry is free. How could you say no? For further information contact; Michael Kerr michael@music-fix.com” - Rave Magazine

“The all-female emerging Brisbane trio, The Androgyny, is set to perform their sweet and sour blend of alternative rock on Wednesday, 24 November 2011 at 299’s Hot Gossip in Fortitude Valley. Alongside The Molotov and Locavore, this performance will be their next installment after recently supporting Stone Parade (SYD) last month at The Step Inn. Come check out The Androgyny and the other local talents as a delectable mid-week treat to yourself. Doors open at 8:00pm and entry is free. How could you say no? For further information contact; Michael Kerr michael@music-fix.com” - Rave Magazine

“The all-female emerging Brisbane trio, The Androgyny, is set to perform their sweet and sour blend of alternative rock on Wednesday, 24 November 2011 at 299’s Hot Gossip in Fortitude Valley. Alongside The Molotov and Locavore, this performance will be their next installment after recently supporting Stone Parade (SYD) last month at The Step Inn. Come check out The Androgyny and the other local talents as a delectable mid-week treat to yourself. Doors open at 8:00pm and entry is free. How could you say no? For further information contact; Michael Kerr michael@music-fix.com” - Rave Magazine

Since it was released 30 years ago, Cyndi Lauper’s biggest hit song has gained global recognition as a feminist anthem.
But it ignited Tessa Richards’ musical quest that has taken shape with her rock band, The Androgyny.
“When you look at Cyndi Lauper and ‘Girls Just Want to Have Fun’ it was a huge song for me growing up,” she recalls.
“The disappointment that hit me when I realised it was written by a man was massive. It was not a good day.”
The Androgyny singer and guitarist is as much dedicated to promoting women in music as she is writing a catchy alternative rock tune.
Formed two years ago, the all-girl act – Richards, Emma Mallory (bass) and Laura Maccormac (drums) – takes musical cues from bands like Placebo, Bush, The Cure and Joy Division.
But Richards is inspired more by the ‘riot girl’ attitude of 1990s bands like L7, Bikini Kill, Nitocris and Babes in Toyland and the lyrics of PJ Harvey and Hole’s Courtney Love.
“People love to compare us to other bands like Veruca Salt and Magic Dirt, which also have female vocalists,” said Richards, who grew up at Mt Nebo.
“I think for me personally, The Androgyny is more inspired by the lack of women in rock bands, rather than female-fronted bands that I listened to over the years.
“Despite all the hope that came with the 90s for me as a young woman wanting to get into the music industry, I’ve had trouble finding girl bands that I can really get into, and who are taking the whole riot girl movement to the next level.
“I really feel there’s a massive need for more female representation in the music industry because it’s so male dominated.
“The Androgyny is about reigniting the passion and the drive of young women, and hopefully inspiring more girls to get involved in the music scene.”
Richards’ beliefs are evident in ‘I’m Not Your Heroine’, the new single from The Androgyny’s debut EP, I Don’t Desire Your Empire.
The Androgyny has also just finished recording another EP, which is due out later this year.
The recording of the CD was a homecoming of sorts for Richards, with the band laying down tracks at The White Room Studios at Mt Nebo with producer Neil Coombe.
The band will road test their new songs when they embark on their most extensive tour of Australia to date, visiting capital cities and regional towns in Queensland, Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia.
The Androgyny will launch I’m Not Your Heroine at the Beetle Bar on 28 July.
Visit www.facebook.com/theandrogyny and www.theandrogyny.bandcamp.com - The Westerner

Veruca Salt and Hole screamed through the golden grunge-rush of the 1990s and Queenslander Tessa Richards, who was a teenager at the time, was convinced chick rock was only going to get bigger.

Voices with edge such as Gwen Stefani and Alanis Morissette inspired Richards to develop a strong voice of her own and she was determined to eventually get her own band together.

A decade later and Richards feels disheartened that girl rock bands seem a rarity.

"I have days when I wonder if it's worth it, but then I think that someone's got to do it," the 28-year-old says, lamenting that Australia these days lacks female rock bands or even bands led by women.
But The Androgyny frontwoman is reluctant to sell the group as a "girl band" to get the exposure.

"Do I exploit the fact that we're all girls to enhance our success or do we try and get angry?" Richards says.

"I get questioned sometimes about whether I hate being called a girl band. I'm proud of it. I guess we get used to it - sometimes we get special consideration because we're women."

She suggests that perhaps women might be shying away from rock music as it doesn't have the polished, glam look of pop.

"The reality is we're lugging heavy equipment from the car on to the stage, so you're not going to be looking glamorous on stage."

The Androgyny is Richards on vocals and guitar, Emma Mallory on bass and Laura Maccormac on drums.

Richards and Mallory formed the Brisbane group after meeting while they were working at a strip club.

Having a muso dad helped Richards learn the basics of performing and writing, and she laughs at memories of attempted piano lessons.

"I did piano but I was always kind of frustrated," she says.

"I tend to rebel against anything I'm meant to be doing."

The Androgyny's debut EP, I Don't Desire Your Empire, was released last year and the band are touring to promote the third single off the album, I'm Not Your Heroine.
"It encompasses what we are really well in one song," Richards says.

Once the tour is done, the band will get back to work on the next E - Illawarra Mercury

Veruca Salt and Hole screamed through the golden grunge-rush of the 1990s and Queenslander Tessa Richards, who was a teenager at the time, was convinced chick rock was only going to get bigger.

Voices with edge such as Gwen Stefani and Alanis Morissette inspired Richards to develop a strong voice of her own and she was determined to eventually get her own band together.

A decade later and Richards feels disheartened that girl rock bands seem a rarity.

"I have days when I wonder if it's worth it, but then I think that someone's got to do it," the 28-year-old says, lamenting that Australia these days lacks female rock bands or even bands led by women.
But The Androgyny frontwoman is reluctant to sell the group as a "girl band" to get the exposure.

"Do I exploit the fact that we're all girls to enhance our success or do we try and get angry?" Richards says.

"I get questioned sometimes about whether I hate being called a girl band. I'm proud of it. I guess we get used to it - sometimes we get special consideration because we're women."

She suggests that perhaps women might be shying away from rock music as it doesn't have the polished, glam look of pop.

"The reality is we're lugging heavy equipment from the car on to the stage, so you're not going to be looking glamorous on stage."

The Androgyny is Richards on vocals and guitar, Emma Mallory on bass and Laura Maccormac on drums.

Richards and Mallory formed the Brisbane group after meeting while they were working at a strip club.

Having a muso dad helped Richards learn the basics of performing and writing, and she laughs at memories of attempted piano lessons.

"I did piano but I was always kind of frustrated," she says.

"I tend to rebel against anything I'm meant to be doing."

The Androgyny's debut EP, I Don't Desire Your Empire, was released last year and the band are touring to promote the third single off the album, I'm Not Your Heroine.
"It encompasses what we are really well in one song," Richards says.

Once the tour is done, the band will get back to work on the next E - Illawarra Mercury

The Androgyny make some seriously sweet noise, fuck it roars and I love nothing more than turning their music up to full volume, getting in my car and just chasing down my thoughts on the safety of a night drenched highway. The Androgyny play a mean collision of heartache rock n roll and riot grrrl screams with every note on their debut EP “I Don’t Desire Your Empire” being a direct hit to your heart. You can’t help but fall under the spell of their hypnotic noise rock and sticky as fuck pop skills. These choruses imprint themselves on your brain and they stay with you long after you press stop on the stereo. Each song feels conceptually linked on “I Don’t Desire Your Empire” with the song “Not Your Heroin” feeling like the centre piece. Singer and main songwriter of the band Tessa Richards delivers intense passion all throughout the EP and her rawness lyrically matches the intense hum of the music. Over the course of writing this review I’ve had “Not Your Heroin” on repeat because it is such a classic rock n roll track, fuck it is cathartic. It has a firm middle finger to all the lameness that comes with relationship breakdowns and it just makes me want to scream “fuck you” to so many of my ex-lovers. The other star of this EP is of course bassist Emma Mallory who provides the Kim Deal coolness in the bottom end, really driving the drama of the songs home. My favourite track is “Make Her Tremble,” fuck it is so beautiful. The way it twists and turns and sails into a balls to the wall rock moment reminds me of a gothic Sleater-Kinney.

My excitement for this band makes it hard to sit down to write an objective review because quite simply I’m in love with every inch of the noise made by The Androgyny. There is nothing fake or forced in the sound of this band and I believe every second of it. Being a hopeless romantic I find that this music appeals to that side of me that consistently exists in the realm of the unrequited whilst at the same time it gives me the cathartic chill needed to escape the broken hearts and helps give me the space for a brand new start. The Androgyny make great music and it is only going to get better from here. When I listen to the band I can hear strength, the same kind of strength that an artist like PJ Harvey displays. The Androgyny deserves every bit of success that they get. Go and buy a copy of this EP and chase away the demons of all your ex-lovers. I can’t wait to witness this music live because I have a sneaking suspicion that it will totally dominate.

So what the fuck are you waiting for, do it. As their bio clearly states this is the all-girl three piece rock band you have waiting for. Hallelujah is all I can say, fucking finally.

10 cassette tapes out of 10

By: Dan Newton - heavy and weird

SMART SEX
Don’t be fooled by the name, alt rock three-piece The Androgyny are very much defined by their chromosomal calibration. Guitarist/vocalist Tessa Richards explains some of the finer points of the finer sex to Tom Hersey.
"You look at something like Cyndi Lauper’s Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, and that song wasn’t even written by her, it was written by a man and stuff like that is exactly what I want to change.”

Fellow members of the loud-farting, butt-crack-hair-growing gender, take a second to consider Tessa Richards’ sentiment, because it’s probably foreign to you. There’s no shortage of material in the pop cultural pantheon that explores masculinity; from Hemingway to Henry Rollins, the dudebro experience has been delineated by countless dudebros prior. But what if that wasn’t the case? The Androgyny were born out of a situation where there weren’t a lot of people making music from positions which they could relate to

“After the nineties I had so much hope for women in rock’n’roll,” Richards says. “But, if anything, I feel like the number of girls in alternative bands has died down. And we want to inspire women, and also show everyone what women in bands are capable of.”

Richards says that’s the point of latest single, I’m Not Your Heroine. It captures a riot grrrl influence colliding with an obvious appreciation for the last thirty years of alternative rock. “It’s really important for us to empower women through our music, and that song is a real statement that sums up what we’re about.” It’s the latest single from EP, I Don’t Desire Your Empire, which dropped late last year. Currently, the band’s touring both the single and the record, after line-up troubles put the brakes on late-2012.

“The EP was getting a great response and we really wanted to get out and tour it. Unfortunately, we had two line-up changes around the drums, and that put a stop to us being able to promote I Don’t Desire Your Empire,” Richards recalls. “Then we met Laura, our new drummer, and since then the momentum’s definitely back.”

With their all-girl line-up secured, Richards says that The Androgyny are doing everything in their power to capitalise on the momentum that’s starting to build. Along with their current tour, they’re already getting set up for what’s coming next. “We’ve already been in the studio and we’ve recorded our next EP,” she reveals. “We recorded in January/February this year and it should be ready around the end of the year. We’re really excited about it, we think it could take us to a whole new level.”

In regards to the band’s feminine perspective on music, it has to be asked: how can a band defined by their gender refer to themselves as The Androgyny?

“In order to be in a band you have to be physically and mentally androgynous,” she offers. “I think you need to have a lot of traits that are quite stereotypically male to want to be in a band. I mean, the reality of the situation is we’re lugging heavy equipment, we’re travelling, it’s hot and sweaty. When you start out you might have these aspirations of looking beautiful onstage – with beautiful make-up and all glamorous – but the reality is that you’re playing music and your make-up’s going to run.

“I’ve always been so frustrated by the lack of women in bands, and then sometimes I think about it when it’s late at night and we’re lugging equipment to cars and there’s a long drive ahead of us; it’s not comfortable, it’s hard work. Maybe women are just smarter than men, they know better than this.”

Tom Hersey
Time Off (Jul 24, 2013) - Time Off