As ITM’s reviewer put it, “On the strength of new album 4, the Bamboos have confirmed their position as the best in the world at what they do.” What they do is make top-shelf funk and soul, which translates to the stage in a celebratory live show led by the gutsy voice of Kylie Auldist. As The Bamboos iron their signature suits to take 4 on the road, inthemix checks in with the group’s ringleader and chief songwriter Lance Ferguson.

It must be heartening to not only see good reviews of 4, but also get props from your peers?
As much as I’m proud of good feedback from DJs and people in the scene, I must say – at risk of sounding sentimental – the other guys in the bands are my harshest critics. They think this is the best album we’ve done as well – and for them to say that, which they haven’t really done before, is good actually. With most of the Bamboos albums, I tend to write all the songs myself. The process begins with me on my acoustic guitar in my home project studio. I demo the songs up to an almost finished state, then bring them to the band. At that point, the horn players will work out various voicings and we’ll decide on drum sounds, but essentially I present the band with quite finished songs.

When you are at that early stage of writing the songs, are you conscious of taking a new direction from the previous album?
I do strive to make each album different. Sidestepper had more of a northern soul influence, and I wanted to move away from that a bit on this one. I kept the idea of solid song structures, but took it back to the early Bamboos albums when the drum sounds were rawer. Kylie will do her thing in the studio, and she did actually co-write a couple of the songs. I have a clear idea of what I want from the vocals, but as much as I say I bring these songs to the band, it’s their input that brings them alive.

I know how Kylie works, and often the case with her is that she’ll go off live but in the studio often I find she holds back a little bit. I have to try to create an environment where she’ll rev up and deliver a performance like she does live. Often that takes hassling her so much she gets angry with me and does a fiery take. Lyrics Born was all done over the internet, so I’d never actually worked with him before, but he strikes me as a guy who will rip it out on any vocal part.

Does the whole band try to channel that live energy in the studio, or do you see the two sides of The Bamboos as quite distinct?
When we play live, we do structure the set in a different way, doing a live mix where everything segways and drum solos are more extended. So I’m not trying to capture the live band on the record. I’m definitely looking at it as two distinct things. I think it has to be that way. People will come to hear our songs at the show presented in different ways.

Was it a balancing act on 4 to honour your influences but also keep the sound current?
Yeah, for me I’m not really interested in The Bamboos being a retro, ‘time machine’ band. We have to be progressive in some way, and there’s room for funk and soul music drawing on old styles to still be progressive. It comes through in different subtle ways. Our drum mixing, for example, is quite upfront, which is more of a hip hop influence coming through. Also the obvious hip hop influence of actually using MCs on tracks, and the live show being put together sort of like a DJ set. These are the things that make The Bamboos different from something you might hear actually from 1969. There are enough bands around who are totally into recreating an authentic old-school sound.

When’s the best time to tour – is it on an album launch tour, is it between albums when you’re trying things out?
I think both have their pros and cons. Going out like this as we’re about to now, you do feel some pressure to really go out and promote an album. Then it’s also a great feeling to see it go well. Between albums when you just want to go out and do shows, it is good to know you don’t have to sell records. Then you can pull some old songs out of the repertoire. However, the sheer thrill of pulling out new songs and it going well is a great feeling.

On the topic of the live show, I wanted to ask you about playing in sweltering heat at Days Like This in Sydney decked out in suits. Do you ever regret dressing so well?
That particular gig was like playing on a frying pan – midday sun and black asphalt. I probably questioned the suits idea that day. We’ve talked about getting a Bamboos summer uniform. The suit thing is interesting. It would seem really weird now to do a Bamboos show now in jeans and t-shirts!

4 is out now on Tru Thoughts through Fuse Music. The Bamboos album tour dates:

Friday 7 May – Manning Bar, Sydney
Saturday 8 May – The Corner, Melbourne
Friday 14 May – The Beach Hotel, Byron Bay
Saturday 15 May – West End Carnivale, Brisbane