On the eve of their biggest show yet, we spoke to Chamber Lane frontman Connor Hanson ahead of their gig opening for The Smith Street Band (pictured with doggo).

Connor shares some great tips for younger bands wanting to get out there and make music.

Yelo: Where did Chamber Lane all start? 

Connor: We started out back in highschool in 2020. But really we began to make official strides in our first year out as young adults in 2021. We were all 18 at the time and super hungry to get things started.

Starting out is often one of the hardest parts because it’s kind of like… where do you start? You know! But the best advice we have under those circumstances is to completely ignore that question, and just ask yourself “when?” And the answer to that is simple, it’s “NOW!”

Yelo: Where did you first perform?

Connor: We started by going to open mic nights every Wednesday and Thursday. You’d play a three-song set to a handful of people, but it was about establishing ourselves and getting comfy in front of an audience and venue. After a while, that’s what got us in front of venues like Solbar and in turn also landed us our first opportunity at Eleven Dive Bar, which was a new punk bar at the time. 

Yelo: What goals did you set for yourself? 

Connor: Over the few years that we’ve been a band it was all about climbing the ranks and just playing as much as we could. Once you land your first gig, if you market yourself and really push it as part of your resume, more venues and offers will come. But they aren’t going to fall out of the sky, you have to chase it, and it’s not as hard as you’d imagine, send emails! Network! And post to social media! 

Set your goals for what’s right in front of you if that makes sense. Work on putting on great shows, writing great music and push yourself to do the things that are seen as a bit of a ‘chore’, such as networking and marketing. You’ll be surprised at what it will land you. We were always very appreciative of the opportunities coming our way but we were also constantly ready and preparing for what was next. We are still like that to this day. 

Yelo: What are some pivotal moments in that journey that served as a valuable lesson? 

Connor: I think something that stands out in particular, is going on tour. I think as humans we can get in our heads ‘tour’! That word packs such a heavy punch because you see your favourite bands doing it. It’s almost like we’ve built this idea in our heads that it’s something that you can only do once you’ve got hundreds of thousands of followers and loads of money.

We just decided one day that we were going to book one ourself, all organised by our bass player Josiah Niven. We took a weekend out and just sent it! And it went down a treat!

It was part of the whole “Stop Overthinking It” movement we were doing at the time and it was exactly that. If you want to take what you’re doing to the next step, there is honestly nothing stopping you. You just have to do it, rather than thinking about everything that could go wrong. 

Yelo: How did you score a gig with The Smith Street Band at Solbar?

Connor: We’d seen that there were no supports announced for the Sunshine Coast leg of the tour and so we sent them an email just letting them know we were free and super keen to play. And within a couple of days they sent us a follow up email and we booked it! We are absolutely stoked, they are one of our all-time favourite bands and have been for a long time.

And that’s all it takes, just keep an eye out and if you see a band that you love with an open slot, contact them, because at the end of the day you’re not going to hinder them with a short, sweet email!

I think another cool thing that excites us a lot is that it’s at Solbar. It’s a venue we have had so much love for over the years, and we have formed a relationship with that we are very proud of. It’s like a home for us and we have experienced some awesome gigs and incredible opportunities there having played with Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers there a couple months back. And we wrapped up our Stop Overthinking It tour there in late September.

It’s awesome to share yet another awesome experience at a place we hold so close to our hearts! 

Yelo: What advice would offer bands trying to get ahead?

Connor: Overall it’s down to dedication, a bit of elbow grease, and a love for what you do.

If you love what you do it’s obviously going to be incentive to want to do it all the time, so network and just take a bit of time out of your day to work on establishing yourself. They’re only really small steps, and our biggest piece of advice is to just DO IT! Because we are our own worst enemy and a lot of what’s holding you back is all built up in your head, we are big believers in just jumping into the action, you’re going to play shitty shows, and write some average songs, but if you jump into the deep end, you’ll learn to swim, and you’ll become excellent at it.

The only way you’ll truly get there is if you just get out there and tackle it all. We’ve still got a long way to go, but everything’s happening how we want it to and it will for you too.

If four goobers like us can get out there and do it, YOU CAN!