Like most bands, last year was a frustrating year for the Cosmic Psychos.
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The central Victorian rockers - made up frontman Ross Knight, drummer Dean Muller and guitarist John "Mad Macka" McKeering - had recorded an album and were ready to tour Europe at the start of 2020 when the pandemic took hold.
Muller said he is more eager than ever to reunite with his mates and make a racket.
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The Cosmic Psycho's 11th album - Mountain of Piss - was released on Friday but the band won't perform together until a gig at Castlemaine's Theatre Royal in August.
"Rock and roll has died in the bum a bit, and there's not much you can do apart from keep your hand in a little a bit," he said.
"We're mates, we love each other's company. I'm hanging out to get back together and make a racket and have a laugh."
Muller said the band's recording sessions and gigs were often a whirlwind of actions.
"Mad Macca's in Brisbane, working for the government, I'm in Bendigo and Ross in in Redesdale. We don't live close, so when get together, we've got to make hay," he said.
"We're pretty lazy. Generally Ross writes songs in his shed, I write one per album, that's my average - a bit like Ringo Starr.
"We book recording or rehearsal time - not that we like rehearsing - and get together and songs are there. We know each other so well and just rattle through."
The band formed in 1982 but Knight is the only original member. Mad Macca joined in 2006 while Muller joined a year before in 2005.
"I knew Ross through his sister Melissa, for ages before I joined band," he said. "When Ross went off road for a while, he got bored and started writing songs. Then we started a side project called Dung and brought a couple of albums out."
Cosmic Psychos have a strong legacy in the music world - particularly in the Seattle grunge scene. But the band reads nothing into their legacy.
"We didn't invent anything," Muller said. "We gave it a slant. We gave it a bit of central Victoria rural Australian feel. We're just another little twig on the tree.
"The whole thing fools me, you can't really analyse it. It's organic, it is what it is. One thing about Ross Knight is there is no pretense. He's a top bloke but he is what he is, he grew up on the farm, he is still a farmer and earth-moving contractor."
In the post-COVID world, Muller said the way live gigs with the energy that the Cosmic Psychos like to create will be vastly different.
"People won't be allowed to be doing moshing or anything like that," he said. "I doubt you'll see mosh pits like you used to. The whole COVID thing changed everything.
"We have only played a couple gigs since COVID started really. It was weird, really strange. Everyone was so polite. We're supposed to tour around Australia next month, I hope we do."
The age and longevity of the band hasn't diminished their enthusiasm but Muller admits they're not as fast as they used to be.
"When we walk on stage to play with a younger band, the young fans think what's my grandfather doing on stage. Then you see the look on their faces (when we play)," Muller said.
"We played gig in Birmingham the last time we were on tour and they were such a dreary mob. We walked on stage and they laughed. Then we ripped into it and you saw their faces change immediately.
"We have slowed down. There was more touring and pressure when record companies are interested and want make money (from you). We don't have that anymore, we just do our own thing. Why worry about it when you're pushing 60?"
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