Snare

ORIGINS: Lower Blue Mountains, NSW

GENRE: Indie Rock

YEARS ACTIVE: 1999-2002

 

MEMBERS:

• Daniel Holdsworth - Vocals, Guitar
• Scott Best - Bass, Backing Vocals
  
• Michael Kayzer - Drums (2001-2002)
  
• Lachy Donaldson - Drums (2000)
  
• Chris Toland (1999-2000) - Keyboards, Backing Vocals
  

RELEASES: 

 

• Never See the Sun (2000)
• 1. Time
• 2. Long Road
• 3. The Other Side 

• See You Somewhere (2001)
• 1. Drive On
• 2. Asphalt
• 3. Can't Stop Thinkin' About Ya
• 4. Older Life
• 5. The Other Side
  

SUMMARY: Beginning as a side project for Daniel Holdsworth while his previous band Watching Ember was finishing up, Snare grew from a solo recording project to become an incredibly solid and commanding indie-rock band in the Blue Mountains and Penrith scenes.

 

SHOWS: 

• Daily Planet, Penrith - 14th July, 2000
  
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 3rd August, 2000 
• Lewers Gallery, Emu Plains - 7th September, 2000
  
• Zound, Warrimoo Hall, Warrimoo - 9th September, 2000
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 21st September, 2000
  
• Lewers Gallery, Emu Plains - 7th October, 2000
• Daily Planet, Penrith - 20th October, 2000 
• Bushfire Benefit, Glenbrook Park, Glenbrook - Unknown date, 2000
  
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 18th January, 2001
• Gearin Hotel, Katoomba - 20th March, 2001
  
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 10th May, 2001
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 15th November, 2001
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 9th February, 2002
• O'Donoghue's, Emu Plains - 24th August, 2002
  

ORAL HISTORY:

DANIEL: Snare started because I was at uni doing music at UWS and recording some songs in the studio down there and wanted to play them live. Lachy was a mate from school. He was a heavy metal drummer but said he wanted to play in a pop-rock band for something different. Plus he worked at Kelts Bar as a bouncer, so could hook us up with gigs. We also had Chris Tolland, who I went to uni with, and Scott Best, who I went to Blaxland High with. 

Daniel Holdsworth (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

SCOTT: After my first real band Kayzus split, I needed to get out and play with a band that was more my style, and play with musicians who I could relate to more, and I ran into Danny a few times and we discussed it and I was just really eager to get into a good solid band where I could combine my style with someone else's creatively.

Scott Best (Bass), Obzine Issue 14, September 2000

DANIEL: Back then I was going to see bands like You Am I, Custard, Jebediah, all those kind of bands. Down at the Hopetoun and the Annandale. The Snare sound developed from that whole mid-late '90s thing of buying records at op shops, getting into '60s and '70s bands. Back then I was obsessed with The Who and Pete Townsend. We were all wearing flares and colourful frilly shirts, haha.

Daniel Holdsworth (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

CHRIS: Danny is a great muso and song writer. I got involved with Snare at UWS Kingswood in 1999 doing a Bachelor of Music with Danny. I was listening to Supergrass, Cake, and the album Moon Safari by the French band Air. Danny and I were mad Beatles fans. We knew every Beatles song. 

Chris Toland, Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

SCOTT: I'm very happy with how Never See the Sun came out, especially the live tracks because they were a full band effort and we captured a very similar sound as Danny had on the first recordings. I am looking forward to full album where we can just do everything we've want to as a band.

Scott Best (Bass), Obzine Issue 14, September 2000

Review from Obzine Issue 12, July 2000

DANIEL: I remember our first gig was supporting Even at Kelts - and they were one of my favourite bands at the time. Looking back, it's ridiculous that we had that opportunity. Cam Smith from Kelts is a legend and was so good at supporting young bands. We never would've got that kind of exposure if we had lived in the city.

Daniel Holdsworth (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

REVIEW: This was the launch of their CD, Never See the Sun, and they also had T-shirts for sale. Now these guys just have to be seen. They are a four piece, incorporating drums, bass, keyboard and guitar. Frontman Danny has all the Tim Rogers moves down pat, combined with a John Farnham style of singing. He is the main songwriter for the band, and a damn fine songwriter at that. Stand out songs include 'Clone', 'Long Road' and 'The Other Side'. The cover of Little River Band's 'Playing to Win' was an interesting touch as well.

Review of Kelts Bar show by David Schleter, Obzine Issue 14, September 2000

CHRIS: I played keyboard on the song 'Never See the Sun' - it was the name of the EP and we closed sets with it. Danny is a top bloke and I should have stuck with Snare longer than I did!

Chris Tolland, Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

 

Advertisement from 2000

 

LACHY: I was mainly in metal bands before Snare and played on the See You Somewhere demo cassette.

Lachlan Donaldson (Drums), Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

 

REVIEW: Snare gave an awesome performance. Their use of a keyboard diversified their sound a bit and added more variety to the night, and as soon as they launched into their set the crowd was roped in by a barrage of good, solid, catchy pop-rock songs. Good singing, standout melodies, and bombastically brilliant (and slightly odd) drumming mark Snare as a band to look out for in the near future. Tailing their set off with a cool cover of Little River Band's 'Playing to Win' and then ending on one of their own songs, during which they went off like the the proverbial frog in a sock, Snare definitely left an impression on me, and I dare say several others. 

Review of Planet Rock show by Luke Bartolo, Obzine Issue 13, August 2000

 

On the cover of Obzine Issue 14, September 2000

 

REVIEW: Snare were the older bands for the night, playing their Aus-pop indie rock in true form. I found myself singing along to all their songs, it helps when you're doing the light and you know the songs! Danny put on a performance as usual, strutting his feet around and throw his head around, it's good to see someone so enthusiastic on stage. The crowd had all pulled up chairs to the front of the hall to watch as they sat in awe. I don't think they did their cool version of 'Playing to Win' that night, but I do remember 'Long Road, 'Time' and 'The Other Side' (all from their debut EP Never See the Sun) really going off.

Review of Warrimoo All Ages show, Obzine Issue 15, October 2000

 

DANIEL: The best thing I ever did with Snare was after the 2000 Christmas bushfires - I organised a benefit gig in Glenbrook Park and we had a bunch of local bands play across two stages, and got Big Heavy Stuff and Doc Neeson and Friends to play. I had a mate that worked at Sydney Convention Centre at the time and we got the staging and production tech for free. I was doing a radio show on Air FM at the time and I think one of the presenters came to record some of the show too.

Daniel Holdsworth (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

Warrimoo Hall, September 2000

DANIEL: Snare lasted a few years and then after a few lineup changes we became The Saturns in 2002, who toured nationally for a while before I started playing in The Maple Tree with Aidan Roberts. Then he and I went on tour with Tubular Bells for Two.

Daniel Holdsworth (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

RELATED BANDS: Watching Ember, Kayzus, The Saturns, The Maple Tree, Tubular Bells for Two, Anon, Elysium, Lycanthia, Lota Lane, 1000 Slimey Things