The Bamboos mark 25 years with the release of The Bamboos Best, a career-spanning collection curated by founder Lance Ferguson. Speaking with Noise11, Ferguson reflected on the challenges of selecting tracks, admitting he agonized over the balance between obvious singles and fan-favourite deep cuts. While he doesn’t consider the tracklist perfect, he believes it represents the band’s journey well.
Looking back, Ferguson never imagined The Bamboos would last a quarter of a century. In the early days, he was a working musician playing nightly gigs to make ends meet. The Bamboos began as a live band at Melbourne’s Night Cat, where month-long residencies gave them the discipline to develop their sound. Their rise coincided with the MySpace era, which opened international doors for independent musicians.
Often described as trailblazers of Australian funk and soul, Ferguson sees the band as part of a broader movement that returned to a rawer, stripped-back sound after the slick funk of the 1990s. Their music has always been tied to vinyl culture, and fittingly, the new compilation includes a gold vinyl edition, with the digital-only track Lucky (featuring Bobby Flynn) making its vinyl debut.
Collaboration has been central to The Bamboos’ success, with Ferguson recalling standout moments such as Daniel Merriweather self-producing his stunning vocal session for “I Never.” Other milestones included Kylie Auldist joining in 2006, cementing her role as lead singer, and the visibility brought by Tim Rogers on “I Got Burnt.”
The Bamboos have played everywhere from intimate clubs to major festivals, tailoring their sets to fit the stage while always delivering with confidence. A career highlight came with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, an overwhelming collaboration that Ferguson described as a “tsunami of sound.”
After 25 years, The Bamboos remain vital, inventive, and deeply rooted in Australia’s soul legacy.
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