The Immaculate Crows are a genre-bending musical collective based in Brisbane, Australia, performing songs written and arranged by Bruce Neilsen. Listen to any two songs by this band and you will quickly discover that Bruce doesn’t believe in boxes: their tracks range from alternative rock and indie pop, to folk, country, blues, and jazz, and this eclectic exploration extends into the subject matter, as well.

I had the opportunity to speak with Bruce about his history as a musician, the formation of The Immaculate Crows, finding fellow creative minds, and much more!

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Mostly Music: First and foremost, can you tell me the story of The Immaculate Crows’ formation? And how did y’all decide on the band name? (Which I love, by the way.)

Bruce Neilsen: I had unsuccessfully tried to join a couple of cover bands and had been writing poetry for a few years. I started writing my first songs and decided to start my own band. Around November 1981, I met [drummer] Chris Allen at a mutual friend’s home who also hadn’t been in a band. I then advertised for other players and found Mark Kassulke [guitarist]. My flatmate Frank Mueller initially helped on vocals, and I advertised for a bass player. Brad Milham had been in a cover band and was an outstanding player. We had no songs ready and just jammed for Brad’s audition. He liked my playing, and we both liked The Yardbirds, so that was enough for him to join. Another flatmate Hamish McKie joined on vocals.

We started off doing a few covers like “I Wanna Be Sedated” by the Ramones, “25th Floor” by Patti Smith, etc., then Mark and I started writing songs. Hamish left and was replaced by David Page, who was Indigeneous and had been a teenage pop star and the first Australian to get a contract with Tamla-Motown. We did a 4 track recording of two of my songs, “In the City” and “Dingo,” in a little hall in June 1982, followed by a two track recording of “Dingo” and another song of mine called “Psychedelic Girl” in a studio. A copy was given to our local community radio station, 4ZZZ, and got heavy airplay for a considerable period of time. However, none of these songs were released commercially. David left, Hamish came back, then Mark also left and was replaced by Mark Hocknell. Chris Allen left, and in our hurry to replace him, we picked someone who was a very limited player. 4ZZZ was talking about us supporting big bands like Midnight Oil, but I knew we were no longer up for it and was very unhappy with the new drummer. I left and formed two other bands and eventually reunited with The Immaculate Crows before we broke up around May 1985.

I ceased playing live and was pretty disillusioned with band politics. I was pretty frustrated, too, as I had become both a pretty good guitarist and songwriter. I settled down with Carolyn and we married, got a house, and had two boys. I repressed my creative urges until 2019, when I finally digitalised my old eighties songs and released them on streaming sites. I also reunited with Mark Hocknell, who had been recording guitar instrumentals on Garage Band. He brought his gear over and we had a brief but fruitful partnership where I wrote and arranged all songs and he recorded the initial tracks. We both played guitar and bass parts. Carolyn and I bought some recording gear as Mark couldn’t record vocals, and Carolyn started recording vocalists and doing final mixdowns. All songs are mastered by Furkan Gulus. Mark left in 2021, and since then, Carolyn has done all production.

The Immaculate Crows is basically a loose collective of musicians that sing and play on songs written and arranged by me and produced by Carolyn. Different listeners and reviewers have said individual songs have reminded them of artists ranging from Fleetwood Mac to The Stone Roses and The Smiths. The music is hard to categorise and has both retro and modern elements. Genres vary from punk and psychedelic, to alternative country, alt-rock and indie pop. Subject matter varies from youth suicide, domestic violence, to poverty, cancel culture, and even quirky love songs. 

It is a bit vague now, but I think I came up with the name The Immaculate Crows as ‘immaculate’ implies perfection, and crows are intelligent birds that also can be quite sinister and cowardly. The name was a bit tongue-in-cheek, really, and deliberately silly also. 

MM: Wow! That’s quite a history. I admire you for persevering, because with so much turmoil within the band, it would have been easy to call it quits for good.

So what was it that drove you to start creating? Were you inspired by a particular band/artist? Or was music another outlet that just fitted in with writing poetry? 

BN: I liked music much more than poetry and like many others absolutely loved everything about The Beatles, particularly their sense of humor and music. My older brother turned me onto a lot of musicians, including Jimi Hendrix, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Bob Dylan, and Jefferson Airplane.

MM: As a musical collective, how do you find the other musicians to sing/play on songs? Take me through the basic recording process. 

BN: I have found all my singers except for Nicky Steel, who is a relative, through placing advertisements or checking out posts on our local Brisbane Musicians Wanted online mag. I send a message with music links and after some to and from messages and phone calls, get them over to record. I have also found musicians performing at shopping centres and cafés. Lol.

[As far as the recording process], once I have mapped out the chord progression for a song, I get keys, bass, and drum tracks down first, followed by guitar. I do a vocal guide track and send the MP3 with lyrics off to the prospective singer/muso and arrange a time for them to record.

MM: Hand in hand with that, what is your songwriting process? I know you draw inspiration from everything around us, but do you have anything in particular you do when inspired?

BN: I am only inspired to write songs when I have a goal. Now that I am recording, I am becoming quite driven again. I am inspired by actual events and sometimes by a chord progression. It varies.

MM: How many instruments can you play, and how much of what we hear is recorded by you? Are you self-taught?

BN: When I had a brief partnership with ex-band member Mark Hocknell, which started in 2019 and ended in February 2021, we had an arrangement where I wrote, arranged, and played on all songs that he co-produced with my wife Carolyn. Fifteen songs came out of this arrangement, of which you can hear eleven on the first album, And Then There Were Two, and the other four on the second album, Zombie World. Mark produced all drum tracks and played bass on four of them. I played bass on the others. Mark played rhythm and lead guitar on thirteen of the songs he co-produced with Carolyn, and I played rhythm, lead, and some acoustic guitar on the all fifteen songs. Mark also used keyboard plug-ins on a couple, and any harmonica you hear is me.

Bass and drums were played by Roo Friend on “Bird in the Sky,” and I played all guitars and plug-ins. When Mark left, Carolyn took over full production, except for mastering, which has always been done by Furkan Gulus. We have been using Toontracks to produce keys, drums, and most bass tracks. On Zombie World, I played bass on five songs, of which Mark played a little bit in one section. I briefly used another guitarist, Wayne Harvey, who added extra rhythm to the choruses on “No Turning Back” and played virtually all the guitar on “Van Gogh” (except for the fingerstyle intro which also ends the song, and the wah wah solo in the fadeout).

I am using two other musos currently who you will hear on future songs. Colleen South plays ukelele and piano accordion, and Sam Ryan plays trumpet. I put all music credits on Bandcamp.

My first instrument was harmonica, and I had classical guitar lessons for around 2 years many years ago. Apart from that, I am pretty much self-taught. I practiced a lot when I was younger but am not so fanatical now. I purchased a banjo recently and am able to play it to some degree already. I occasionally use a mini midi for extra effects.

MM: I love the vast array of musical instruments and styles you utilize. I imagine being a musician with that willingness to try most anything means it never gets boring! 

Y’all released the track “Torn in Two” back in December. What is the story behind that song?

BN: I wrote “Torn In Two” in 1983 for my second band, Insurrection. I don’t remember any specific inspiration for it, but I wanted the guitar to stand out and be different. I used to play some pretty intense guitar on it but trimmed the solo right down for the recent recording. None of the singers that sang it did it justice until now. Brandon Webb sings on the recording and I love his voice.

MM: What are the plans for The Immaculate Crows in 2024? 

BN: There will be a lot more variety, which will drive genre purists crazy! I have just released a country folk song on Bandcamp called “My Sister And Me.” It will be on Spotify, etc., around 6 February. Also coming up is a song sitting between jazz and blues called “Same Old Blues,” a jazz-oriented ballad called “I Get You,” and an alternative song about stalking and obsession called “Waiting.” These all have trumpet on them. I also have a type of indie pop ballad called “Without You,” which has a catchy chorus. I hope to have a third album out by the end of the year, which will cover a lot of genres. I don’t believe in being a musical snob and listen to a lot of different stuff. I just hope my listeners don’t mind.

MM: I’m sure your listeners enjoy the musical journey you carry them on! With your listeners in mind, is there anything you’d like to say to them, both those who are long-term and the newer fans who have recently found The Immaculate Crows?

BN: Thanks for listening! Check out what is there already and stay tuned as there is plenty more coming.

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A huge thank-you to Bruce for his time and his patience. As you can see, The Immaculate Crows have no plans to slow down! It sounds like they’re going to have quite a busy 2024. Follow them on their various socials to ensure you don’t miss anything!

• Spotify
• Facebook
• Instagram
• Bandcamp
• X/Twitter
• YouTube
• Apple Music
• Amazon Music

And check out The Immaculate Crows’ latest release, “My Sister and Me.”