Former Silverchair drummer Ben Gillies has shared a new solo single, ‘On the Stereo’.
Recorded with Konstantin Kersting, whose recent production credits include songs from Tones And I, Spacey Jane, Budjerah and Sycco, the new song is an effervescent synth-pop cut, warm keyboards foregrounding Gillies’ smooth vocals.
“We all have experiences that we only need to think about to feel joy or a spark of excitement that can make us smile. For me, it’s listening to music on the stereo,” Gillies explained in a statement. “As a child I’d sit in front of the stereo, taking in whatever song was playing, and I kept doing it throughout my teens and into adulthood.
“We tend not to listen to music on the stereo any more – it’s in our headphones, on our devices – but there is really nothing like that completely immersive experience of listening to music coming through speakers at home. ‘On the Stereo’ is a song about listening to music that also, I hope, captures what a magical experience it is.”
‘On the Stereo’ arrives alongside a Jamil Hassan-directed video. Watch that below:
‘On the Stereo’ is Gillies’ first new music this year. He released a handful of singles in 2020 and 2021, culminating in an EP called ‘The Relative Relatives’. Back in 2012, he released an album titled ‘Diamond Days’ under the name Bento. It’s not clear if ‘On the Stereo’ is a standalone or part of a bigger project from Gillies.
Gillies isn’t the only Silverchair member to have shared solo work of late. Back in April, former frontman Daniel Johns released second solo album ‘FutureNever’.
“While there’s a lot of Daniel Johns at his best here, this isn’t ‘The Best Of Daniel Johns’,” wrote NME‘s Andrew Trendell in a four-star review of the record. “There is, however, a vulnerability, curiosity and adventure that makes ‘FutureNever’ unmistakably Johns. That kid who once asked you to wait for tomorrow is living in it today.”