QUEENSLAND'S GERMAN CONNECTIONS - PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

Queensland rocks World Expo 2000 Brisbane band miles from nowhere ( m f n ) was a surprise hit of the Australian Pavilion and asked to perform at the Expo closing ceremony in front of a broadcast audience of over 45 million; they managed to shift a few CDs of their new album as well during that time, and Matthew Tesch caught up with the boys to revisit the heady days (and nights) in Hannover.

So, what the bloody hell happened for a bunch of Brissie musos who came out of inner-city venues like The (Sly) Fox at South Brisbane, and Dooley’s (now Tempo) in Fortitude Valley, who turned left towards Hannover when contemporaries like Powderfinger and Regurgitator turned right into mainstream stardom? There are clues in the way Dan and Chris fluidly intersperse in each other’s sentences, which makes transcribing the interview particularly tricky: “musically, our style was ... very toned, very organic” and characterised by a “deliberate independence” of approach, they concluded. Critics agreed – or at least were at a loss for words. “Their trademark vocal flair – powerful vocals and astonishing harmonies – combined with catchy melodies and a driving rhythm sets Miles From Nowhere apart from the crowd,” Australian website underfootrecords.com.au noted, rather tellingly leaving the ‘Music Type’ field completely blank.

It’s an old story, you know: two blokes grow up as best mates, go to school together, discover a shared love of live music and, a couple of years after coalescing as a band, find themselves on the other side of the planet, playing the biggest, most prolonged gig of their lives, to an audience of thousands which took them into their hearts and homes – literally. Twelve years after I photographed them on stage in Hannover, I’m having a beer with mfn founders Dan Carter and Chris Dillon at the Paddo Tavern in Brisbane on a crisp, sunny winter afternoon. “We didn’t realise how big it was going to be,” Chris said, recalling how someone from DFAT (the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) had seen mfn playing one night in Canberra, and invited them to perform at the Aussie pavilion. The year had begun with the band peforming the national anthem at the State of Origin rugby league match, playing at the launch event for new airline Virgin Blue, and releasing their third CD “Shimmering Blue” just before heading to Germany. Initially contracted for six or so weeks, as part of the rotating line-up of entertainment at the pavilion, the mfn boys finished up performing there for almost half of Expo’s total six-month run. “Each of us brought three boxes of CDs with us,” said Dan, “and we thought this would be three months’ worth … we sold out in three days flat – our music publisher Marty Ryan sold 156 in one hour! – and we had to restock with airfreighted pallets and locally-pressed German discs!”

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