There’s a new band name on the bill for this Sunday’s gig at the Black Box Theatre (7 July), however you may recognise the band members from much-loved Sunshine Coast garage band Ballpoint.

After farewelling bassist Naomi, the band has reconvened as a two-piece and will debut under the new name GUTPUNCH, supporting Swab (Naarm), Knee (Meanjin), Not Telling (Meanjin) and fellow two-piece Flogg (Naamba).

We caught up with Josh to find out the story behind the rebrand and what it’s been like to navigate the Sunshine Coast’s post-covid music landscape as a young band.

BAD HABIT: Gutpunch has formed from of the ashes of Ballpoint right? Can you tell us about Ballpoint and the history, style, highlights, lowlights etc?

GUTPUNCH: So Ballpoint started in 2018, when we were in music class. We had a really great start and felt a sense of music community on the coast with lots of other young bands at the time. We played school shows here and there and recorded our first two singles in the school studio.

Our first ‘big’ show would have been the bushfire bash fundraiser at Scrapyard in February of 2020, which was an insane night of music and local bands coming together to raise money. This show felt electric and really sparked our excitement in the scene. It also served as a great last hoorah, as the next year was filled with cancelled gigs and disappointments through the height of Covid.

Naomi joined in 2021 when we met her and her band Hide Your Bag. We had a super fun couple years of shows together playing in Meanjin and the Naamba area under Ballpoint. We also released our EP Buzz with Naomi and had a blast recording our music.

We felt the scene on the coast in particular start to die out for us over time and that sense of community start to fade. It’s particularly hard in Noosa to play anything more than just backyard and DIY shows (which were just as fun) but as things get in the way, we’ve had a bit of time off over the last year, and Naomi had moved on to other projects. But we still love her. A favourite show of ours with Naomi was definitely at the bar/venue in Noosa, ‘Ole’ where we played to a super electric crowd!  

BH: What’s the deal with Gutpunch? What sort of noise can we expect? What was the concept behind the change and what’s the new line up like?

GP: With Gutpunch, we’re aiming for a more raw version of what we were doing in Ballpoint! We loved what we created and all our memories and friends of Ballpoint but we’re trying to go back to our roots and play what we enjoy and just have a lot of fun with it. And we thought a new name would be a fun new start and then there’s no expectations.

BH: I wanted to talk about the Sunshine Coast and what influence the place has on you as a band and as people. The beach is like paradise but the cost of living hits particularly hard here and the older generation has come to dominate so many aspects of life. How does that affect you and the ‘culture’ of the coast?

GP: The Sunny Coast is has its pros, and it’s great growing up so close to the beach, but there’s definitely cons too. There’s a certain crowd that if you don’t match, it’s hard to fit in. In terms of anything for the youth, there’s a serious lack of anything to do and it can be hard to connect. 

Like most places, the cost of living has hit hard here, which makes life difficult and there’s definitely the sense that we’ve been given a not-so-bright future. Perhaps a reason for the seeming emergence of young, dope and angry bands!

The area has definitely had its influence on our music, I guess there was a surfpunk sort of sound we tried going for at one point that didn’t quite work for us. But there seems to be a super fun new buzz on the coast of live music and of people showing up to shows again, and it feels so great! Yeah!

BH: Can we expect some new recordings? What are your thoughts on digital vs physical media. Is it some sort of performative nostalgia to release stuff on ancient media?

GP: We’re in the midst of recording our first album as Gutpunch called Tummyache. It’s mostly new Gutpunch tracks with a few Ballpoint classics we still love to play! Zade’s a legend and is doing the recording and mixing of the album, which we’re hoping to release on tapes soon.

We think physical media is really fun and there’s something special about physically handing someone something you’ve worked hard on.

We both have record players and bonded over records in high school, going to record shops like Bad Habit and Wax Espresso, playing along to them at early practices, and we now each have pretty decent collections.

BH: You guys are playing your first show as Gutpunch with Swab! How did this come about? Are you excited? What are some recent bands/releases you are getting gassed up over?

GP: We’re super stoked to be playing with Swab, their Melbourne sewer show in particular stands out to us and looks dope!

Antivision with Bad Habit are putting on some super exciting shows and are really sparking our excitement for live music on the Coast right now. Cherokee from Antivision hit us up to play the show and we’re so stoked as it was the perfect time to debut our new ‘style’ – and what a loaded show!

We’re soo pumped to play with Not Telling, Knee and Flogg, what a sick lineup. Particularly excited to see Flogg, I’ve been hearing some sick stuff and also being a two-piece like us!

BH: Any last words? You’ve got a gun to your head, the trigger is about to be pulled…What are your last words???

GP: Last words!? Ummmm love your friends and fight for your rights.

Sunday 7 July
Black Box Theatre Naamba
SWAB (Narrm/Melb)
KNEE (Meanjin/Bris)
NOT TELLING (Meanjin/Bris)
GUTPUNCH (Gubbi Gubbi/SC)
FLOGG (Namba)
1pm to 6pm - ALL AGES
Tickets $15 - BOOK HERE

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