INTERVIEW
HATC | 01/04/2025
In an exclusive interview with the genre-defying Australian band Chase Atlantic, we dive deep into the creative minds behind their distinctive sound. Known for blending alternative R&B, pop, and electronic elements, the trio has captivated audiences worldwide with their emotionally charged lyrics and boundary-pushing music. As they continue to evolve and experiment with their musical identity, we caught up with the band to discuss their journey, artistic influences, and what fans can expect from their upcoming projects. Join us as we explore the innovative world of Chase Atlantic and the driving force behind their success.
A: All right, let's start at the beginning because I want to talk about you guys originally doing covers on YouTube. I think there's this beauty to YouTube. Growing up, watching hours of YouTube was the done thing. Everyone watched YouTube. I mean, people still do, but, I certainly don't do it as often, but I feel like it's a really good way to build a dedicated fan base, but in a way where they can get to know you more. I don't know if that was something that you thought about when you started.
Clinton: YouTube was wild in the beginning—it gave us this space where we could create music, put it out into the world instantly, and see people connect with it in real time. For the first time, we weren’t just dreaming about music—we were living it, building something that brought people together. And along the way, we made lifelong friends who’ve stuck with us from those early uploads to packed-out venues. It was more than just views—it was about belonging.
Christian:
I totally agree. I mean, I don't think we were intentionally doing covers on YouTube, because it was where it was supposed to be. It was more due to the fact that we didn't know how to put singles up online;, it was just what we were all doing. So, we kind of had a bit of a following on Twitter, and then before me, Mitchell and Clinton, Clinton started by doing saxophone covers. It wasn't something to build a fan base;, more so, he could send to his parents, and his wider family could send it around. Then he started getting into producing a lot;, Mitchell started singing on those videos, and then a couple of those videos were getting millions of views.
Mitchell: It was kind of like a foot in the door towards where we are now.
A: In terms of how your music's progressed over the years collectively, how has it progressed for you personally? How did you want it to progress? And how has it differed as you've been able to make different albums?
Clinton: Pain. Hope. The in-between. Music’s always been this vessel for things we didn’t know how to say out loud. It lets us dissect all the parts of ourselves we don’t always understand or want to confront. We don’t write to escape—it’s more like writing to survive. There’s honesty in every beat, even when it’s hidden beneath synths and distortion.
Mitchell: I think maturity has a lot to do with it. At the beginning, we weren't really songwriters. I mean, no one's a songwriter at the beginning, but I feel like people who write songs normally have a passion for poetry or some kind of attachment to intertwining words with melodies or rhythms, you know? I mean, it was interesting for us as producers as well, going from that kind of introverted mindset and coming out of our shell to write music as well as produce it and touch on subjects that we weren't necessarily going to be accepted by the mainstream.
Also, having this expansive resonance with our audience, I think we're grateful that over the years, we've been able to be more and more vulnerable, and people have been more accepting of that. And that's something we can attest to. Just trying to test the waters. Putting our most truthful foot forward and just delivering. As well as changing the sound of our production and figuring out how to add new elements and starting to care more and more as we grew bigger and became more successful.
Christian: We also opened the dialogue in a lot of ways for each other; maybe something that we weren't comfortable with or that Mitchell wasn't comfortable in saying to us, he could write about, and we'd hear it, and that's how we’d learn. So, it's a bit of an open dialogue when you get into that booth.
A: Let's talk about your fourth album;, it comes with this sense of accomplishment. Because I think it's hard enough, as said earlier, to do one album and release it and go through all the pathways, let alone to be able to continue. I imagine for you, releasing your fourth album, you must have felt incredibly proud of yourselves?.
Clinton: It honestly feels like we’ve survived something. The industry’s not easy—creatively, mentally, or physically—and to still be here, making the music we want to make, is wild. Album four wasn’t about chasing a sound. It was about owning where we are now. It’s raw. It’s grown. It’s a little more unhinged in all the right ways.
Christian: Absolutely. I mean, from the first album we did, we were all living together. So the first one, you have your whole life to write; the second one, you've got a short period, and you've got to kind of follow up using this whole life experience into the second, and I still think we did a fantastic job with ‘PHASES’ and the fact that we came up with a narrative for it. I thought it was really smart. And then during lockdown and COVID, we didn't have a lot to write about because we were in the same situations every day, like literally The Truman Show. So, what we were able to write about and the concept of that within beauty and death stuff, I think, was a lightbulb moment for us. Then we had two and a half years/three years where we would go into the studio, we'd spend a couple days there, and we'd get a couple ideas down and not really follow through with it. Then we got close with an idea, until Mitchell's laptop got left in the rain. It felt like for two and a half years that the universe was against us and making a record. And finally, last year, it was like the stars had aligned again; we had all this stuff ready to go, and we turned back into Chase Atlantic again.
Mitchell: It's definitely been a long time in the making. We're very grateful to all sit down together and get it out. Because I think over those three years, it was important for us to pick up the ideas that we're going to implement into this album and have that life experience that we could, you know, sing and write about.
A: Touring is extremely expensive. A lot of artists just aren't in the position to tour. You've all been able to tour Europe; I mean, you sold out Hammersmith Apollo three nights in a row. It’s quite an accomplishment!
Clinton: London was insane. That crowd gave us everything—we felt every word echoing back like it meant something. Touring in general... it’s humbling. The fact that people in countries we’ve never even lived in scream our lyrics like they lived them—it’s surreal. It makes the late nights, the breakdowns, the creative burnouts—all of it worth it. We never take that kind of connection for granted.
Christian: I mean, we sold out the tour in an hour. I mean, that was–my god. That was huge. We’ve always been very big on investing back into the show, just to fund the next tour. You never kind of reach a threshold where you're like, “Oh, we've plateaued here.” It's all about giving the fans the best show possible; this new setup really stepped it up for us.
Mitchell: Obviously, going to Europe, you can play these amazing shows. Going over there and being able to tick those achievements off the bucket list is a huge one for me personally, and it's very hard to make personal goals when you've invested your whole life into making music with your friends. So for me, those shows are going to be incredible. And then we'll see what the rest of the year holds for Chase Atlantic.
