Meraki Minds
How did Meraki Minds begin?
All of the band members were students at Ballarat High School and met through their amazing music program. At first Paula and Peggy were looking to do nothing more ambitious than to pass our Cert IV in music performance as seventeen-year-old music enthusiasts. Once we banded together with our guitarists Sam and Pete, our drummer Josh was the missing piece in what became a very fun loving passion project. The very first time we tried settling into our sound was when a student asked to record us, and this person genuinely enjoyed our music and said we had something he believed in. Similarly our music community and peers encouraged us to keep going.
Tell us a little about your creative journey
Our first show was at Suttons House of Music on Sturt Street as part of school assessment. From there we’ve performed at local venues, Council events such Begonia Festival and Backyard Bites and soon found ourselves performing at The Espy in St Kilda and the Workers Club in Brunswick, which was surreal and exciting experience for us. The highlight of course so far was Spilt Milk at Vic Park in 2019 and this month we are performing at the Loch Hart Festival with an amazing line up. We’ve also recorded an EP, filmed a couple of music clips, a living room session and are heading back into the studio to record a full album this year!
How would you describe your music?
Our music is melodic, high tempo and uplifting Indie pop. We think our music is mainly a collection of sophisticated jangly pop anthems - it’s something weird, whacky and eclectic,”
What are you working on right now?
At the moment we’re putting a lot of time into rehearsing and preparing for the Loch Hart festival and future events and breaking in a new guitarist, Jacob Pearson, who is playing alongside Sam Bailey our lead guitarist. We have a script and a plan for a single and a music video too. We are hoping that we can finally be more ambitious this year.
What is your connection to Ballarat?
We all grew up in and around Ballarat, and spent a lot of our awkward, soul searching teenage years here. This was very much the basis for a lot of our songs and introspective lyrical themes.
How would you describe the creative community in Ballarat?
Genuine and appreciative. Ballarat has a deep appreciation for the arts, and a lot of culture that needs to be nurtured. There's definitely a timeless and calm atmosphere here, and it will always be our roots and where we came from.
Can you give us 3 words to sum up your inspiration?
Finesse, growth and connection.
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