The Triple J Unearthed competition has launched the careers of a huge range of Australian bands over the years, but the honour of the first ever Unearthed victory belongs to the one-and-only Grinspoon. 17 years later, the Lismore four-piece are on the verge of releasing Black Rabbits, their seventh studio album. But even after all the this time, bass player Joe Hansen still gets goosebumps. “Yeah definitely,” he told us from his home in Coffs Harbor. “I always have the – it’s not really anxiety, but something like that. We’re always wondering how it’s gonna be received, with a sort of nervous excitement. But mostly I’m just really looking forward to it.” Not that Hansen has anything to worry about – the new album features some of the more melodic and intimate songwriting of the band’s career, even if it’s missing some of the chunky riffs that you traditionally associate with the band. “Yeah, a lot of my mates like the heavier side of Grinspoon, so they ask ‘Where’s the riffs?’, cos they like paying me out.” The new album was produced in LA by Dave Schiffman (Weezer, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, The Bronx) and according to Hansen, Schiffman’s calm hand helped keep them relaxed. “It was a lot of fun. He [Schiffman] reminds me of Larry David from Curb Your Enthusiasm – he’s a bit neurotic and uptight. But at the same time, he’s a really cool dude, who just likes getting the job done.” “There were just no major stresses, and he was helping everyone communicate diplomatically. He just had a way about him where got to the best result, where everyone was happy.” Not only are Grinspoon still doing their thing nearly two decades after their Unearthed win, they’ve still got the same lineup, a true rarity. According to Hansen, it’s about putting the music first. And also not living near each other. “We all live in different towns – that helps. I guess we’re all just really stubborn. We’ve all been kicked out or sacked somewhere along the way, but then, at the next rehearsal, everyone turns up anyway. You can’t really sack anyone if they just keep showing up.” “For us, we were just pretty determined to do whatever it takes in terms of travel and driving and taking every gig we could. I’ve seen a lot of bands break up because of personality clashes, and you’ve gotta realise, and it’s a bit cliched, but it’s about the music.” “If you’ve got something good going on, it’s important to not let petty differences get between you. We’ve been pretty pragmatic – sure we get the shits, but you just think to yourself, ‘I don’t want this to blow up, this is really good here.'” And did Hansen think they would still be together after all this time? “Probably not. We were just happy to release one record, that was just awesome. And we kept having the opportunity to keep putting records out, and we really weren’t thinking of anything beyond the next case of beer, the next rider. If we got a case of beer at a gig, we were stoked.”

Black Rabbits is in stores September 28.

By Liam McGinniss