LEGS ELECTRIC

Legs Electric have for half-a-decade now been one of Australia’s finest hard rock bands – ultra-energetic and always ready to deliver, the quartet have wowed both national audiences and international rock’n’rollers with whom they’ve shared the stage.

It all comes down to good old-fashioned hard work and the fact that each member’s upbringing was soundtracked by a sonic diet of classic rock from the likes of Deep Purple, Rolling Stones, Grand Funk Railroad, Jimi Hendrix, Fleetwood Mac, Neil Young, KISS and more.

Ama Quinsee’s powerhouse vocals originated from “singing the house down with my loud pipes, putting on my own concerts in the lounge room but still it wasn’t until my late teens that I took my shower-singing ways onto the stage and dabbled in various arts such as drama, musical theatre and finally arriving at this destination… singing in a rock’n’roll band!”

Ama took to the cover band scene early in her music career, leading to her original-based rock’n’roll future with Legs Electric. “Those seductive power vocals by the likes of Chrissy Amphlett, Suze De March and Pat Benatar, they were always in the setlist and really influenced my style.”

The primal drum energy of Kylie Soanes emanates from having a rock’n’roll obsessed Dad and her own preoccupation with Keith Moon. “Then when I was 10 years old Hanson were young kids playing music and I wanted to be better than Zac Hanson,” she laughs. “A bit embarrassing now but hey, I was 10! I started drumming at 11 years of age.”

Erin Gooden’s tight basslines spring from a lifelong fascination with the creation of sound, picking up bass early on then playing trumpet in the WA Youth Jazz . She returned to bass upon entering the rock scene. “Music grounds me in my daily life,” she says, “the ability to express yourself through an instrument is second to none.”

The epic, soaring guitar solos of Elana Haynes have their roots in her primal urge to be involved in music. “I needed to be a part of it,” she explains. “I’ve always enjoyed coming up with little melodies and riffs that can either be developed into a song or just a fleeting comical jingle.”

There’s rock and blues sensibilities inside Legs Electric, along with some pop/melodic nous. The classic rock is in there too, but it’s authentic and never merely nostalgic.

“Add one dash of Deep Purple hard rock, two ounces of Baby Animals attitude and garnish with some Fleetwood Mac harmonies,” says Ama. “Shaken, not stirred.”

“The key would be even though we draw influences from music that we love, we try and incorporate some of their personal flair into our sound therefore giving it an original sound,” says Kylie.

After a year proving themselves on stages around Perth, the band issued their first release, Legs Electric Maximum Rock ‘N’ Roll EP in 2014. “They were the first five songs we had written as a band,” Kylie recalls. “We catalogued them in the order of how we had written them, so that’s kinda cool.”

In 2017, Legs Electric released a second EP called Two Sides. “We recorded two singles with Joel Quartermain (Eskimo Joe) with our former members (ex-guitarist Laura McCormack and former drummer Abby Soanes, still very much part of the Legs family) and two singles with Kenny Watt which was a rad way to introduce to you our new members, Elana and Erin,” says Ama.

“A band is like a relationship,” continues Kylie. “So whoever you bring in has to gel with you personality-wise. Being an all-female act, they have to be able to work with your musicianship and we’re lucky to have had, and now found, some amazing musicians to share the journey with.”

In 2019 they released Tuesday Girl, produced by Simon Hallett. “It was a song we wrote as the new band and a new direction of sound,” says Ama. “However, we find our musical make-up is always changing and evolving.”

That evolution can easily be observed when you compare the debut EP’s opening track, Illicit Love, to the more recent Tuesday Girl single. While the former is very Zeppelin/Purple-influenced and a nod to the classic rock gods, the latter is more of a throwback to 90’s influences such as Hole and Veruca Salt, with a touch of Leg’s classic rock sound. “That song is for the ladies who aren’t afraid to stand up and say what they think,” says Ama.

Meanwhile, the Legs Electric live show is where all the proof you need is served – overdriven energy in spades, whether they’re playing to three people or 3,000. Each show is played as if it’s their last.

“We feel energy and excitement the moment we step on stage because we know we have a show to deliver and that we do well as a team,” says Erin. “Melting makeup, epic hair flicks and rocking out moments are what we live for and the audience reaction is the best response to what we feel up on stage.”

Along the way, Legs Electric have played some super-impressive support slots for the likes of Shihad, British India, Dallas Frasca, Ali Barter, Cherie Currie, Sebastian Bach, Uriah Heep, Ace Frehley, Blues Pills, The Datsuns, The Bellrays, The Baby Animals, The Superjesus and Wolfmother. They had a date with KISS last November before the tour was cancelled and are still very keen to tick that box one day soon.

“The relationships that we make from working with international bands is super important,” says Kylie. “They have all been where we want to be. Some bands that we have played with from the US we are still friends with today and they act as mentors and believe in what we want to achieve and that’s really nice considering they have hit the big time and still want to chat with a band from Perth, WA.”

2020 brings a new decade and a new vision for Legs Electric. “We want to take our music to the masses, rock some festivals and keep the future of girl rock alive!” Ama exclaims. “Our creative direction is in a constant state of change and we have definitely evolved from our classic beginnings and now entering our Boho-Rock phase as we continue to write our new album.”

The band are in the process of completing that full-length debut album. The rollercoaster will only become a bigger ride from there.

“We want to play overseas.” Kylie states. “Take Legs to Europe and the USA and just see what happens. Life is one big risk and a musical adventure!”