Causing Heart Attacks

Young, talented and hairy. Tight jeans and screams. Raw, flowing and hypnotic like a stream broken by the rocks of indignant youth. Meet The Medics.

Formed in Cairns in 2007, The Medics have been cutting riffs and banging drums fearlessly for the last four years. After moving to Brisbane, they gained their first taste of fame and recognition after being discovered by the Triple J Unearthed competition. Their debut single 'Beggars' garnered them a Queensland Music Award. With this The Medics have secured themselves a blip on the musical map. Now it's just a matter of taking over.

I just love music. It’s good to get some money from what we’ve played, but I’d do it for nothing. It’s a good feeling,” drummer Jhindu Laurie says of the group’s burgeoning fame. "Every band craves world domination, but really we just want to be somewhere where we’re making sweet albums and getting recognised for playing it."

The Medics’ particular brand of indie is reminiscent of some of their favourite bands — the thick atmospheric guitar of The Mars Volta, car crash vocals of At The Drive In and fleeting moments of Sigur Rós serenity. If you think that mix of sounds is unusual, you’re not alone. But each of the four friends brings their individual influences to the music. "We all write. Usually someone out of the four of us brings the body of the song, like the lyrics and chords, the skeleton of the song, and then we put everything else in to fill it out. It's a different style, but that makes it better. When the song comes out the sound has become all four of us."

Their latest single, 'Joseph', epitomises this clash of styles, switching from floating vocals and melodic piano to crashing drums, guitar and shouting - and to powerful effect. Their self-described sound is ‘epic atmospheric rock’, and the single lives up to the hype.

The Medics play the Woodford Folk Festival, which takes place at Woodfordia, December 27-31, January 1. woodfordfolkfestival.com