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Respectfully Yours With JOE TALBOT From IDLES · HEAVY Music Interviews

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: I'm Joe and I'm in Idols.
• 0:04
  Speaker 2: Beautiful Joy, thanks for joining us to start today.
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Thanks thanks for having me my absolute pleasure.
• 0:11
  Speaker 3: So Idols return to our shores early next year for
• 0:14
  Speaker 3: a run of shows, starting in Auckland on January sixteenth.
• 0:16
  Speaker 3: We're hitting Brisbane on the eighteenth, Melbourne the twenty first,
• 0:19
  Speaker 3: and finishing in Sydney on the twenty second. Mate, Like,
• 0:22
  Speaker 3: I know you guys are a busy band, So how
• 0:24
  Speaker 3: far out from international chores do you let yourself get
• 0:27
  Speaker 3: excited they don't start focused on it?
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: Do you do it from now or do you wait
• 0:30
  Speaker 2: till they get closer.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: I don't really get excited until I'm on stage, you know.
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: I think that's that's the balance of it. You need
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: to find balance in that sort of thing.
• 0:41
  Speaker 4: And right, it's it's a lot when you're doing I
• 0:47
  Speaker 4: don't know, like one hundred shows a year.
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: You got a.
• 0:53
  Speaker 4: If you're getting excited about shows all the time, it
• 0:56
  Speaker 4: could be you'd be a nervous wreck. It's also like
• 1:03
  Speaker 4: it's about being present, you know, it's about being present.
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: You've got to you've got to reserve your energy for
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: the stage.
• 1:18
  Speaker 4: What means yeah, just making sure you you're ready for it,
• 1:25
  Speaker 4: I don't know. And also normal life, thanks very much,
• 1:30
  Speaker 4: also normal life.
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: You know, Like I don't know.
• 1:36
  Speaker 4: I think like getting excited about shows is a weird
• 1:39
  Speaker 4: concept just because we treat them all the same, you know,
• 1:45
  Speaker 4: like every show is the same to us. We give everything.
• 1:48
  Speaker 4: I give one hundred percent every day to every show.
• 1:52
  Speaker 3: You You're out of here last in November twenty twenty two.
• 1:54
  Speaker 3: So what's changed with the band in between Vizards?
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: Uh? An album?
• 2:11
  Speaker 4: I don't know a lot of the things, personal life stuff.
• 2:15
  Speaker 4: But with the same band, we're still in love. We
• 2:22
  Speaker 4: still love playing life, we still love writing music, we
• 2:26
  Speaker 4: still hate the Tories, still hate the monarchy, and uh,
• 2:32
  Speaker 4: we still love Palestine.
• 2:37
  Speaker 3: I actually went to the Brisbane show with that tour
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  Speaker 3: with a with a mate is a massive fan of
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: you guys, but I honestly hadn't heard one song of
• 2:44
  Speaker 3: yours before that show. But I still rated as one
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  Speaker 3: of the best live shows I saw that year, mate,
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  Speaker 3: So that's that shows how good you are live, I
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: guess for somebody who'd never heard you before to walk
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  Speaker 3: out with that sort of feeling, Yeah.
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  Speaker 4: We're very good live, Yeah very good. I mean, oh god,
• 3:05
  Speaker 4: I've been locked out for an hour. Yeah, yeah, man,
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  Speaker 4: We're great. We give everything we have to life, and
• 3:17
  Speaker 4: you know, we spent the last fifteen years figuring out
• 3:24
  Speaker 4: how to conserve that energy, not conserve, preserve that energy
• 3:34
  Speaker 4: in a record.
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  Speaker 1: So it's been a beautiful journey and we're very grateful.
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  Speaker 3: How much planning and practice goes into your live shows
• 3:44
  Speaker 3: made or are they more sort of spontaneous.
• 3:48
  Speaker 4: They're always spontaneous in terms of personal performances, do you
• 3:53
  Speaker 4: know what I mean?
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  Speaker 1: But we know the songs inside and out.
• 3:58
  Speaker 4: Bowen makes the sett list and he really cares about
• 4:01
  Speaker 4: the set lists, and you can you know we've been
• 4:03
  Speaker 4: working on like the narrative and ebbs and flows, and
• 4:08
  Speaker 4: the light show is important to us. It's all orchestrated
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  Speaker 4: with care and attention. But as far as our performances
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  Speaker 4: go completely.
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  Speaker 1: No, no.
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  Speaker 4: I think that's the key is to kind of just
• 4:25
  Speaker 4: be present and to present. To be present, you've got
• 4:28
  Speaker 4: to unthink, you know, I'm just not not have anything
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  Speaker 4: else in your head, just to let go.
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: It's a beautiful feeling.
• 4:37
  Speaker 2: Would now.
• 4:38
  Speaker 3: I did a review on your live Constant Made, and
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  Speaker 3: one thing that really impressed me about you guys, was
• 4:42
  Speaker 3: the fact that the fact that your your commanding stage presence.
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  Speaker 3: I guess by the way you sort of had the
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  Speaker 3: crowd in the palm of your hands. Mate, Like, I'll
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  Speaker 3: read you out what I wrote and then ask you
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  Speaker 3: the question, but I put you get the feeling that
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  Speaker 3: had you been in a mischievous mind, Talbert could have
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  Speaker 3: easily persuaded the crowd to wage war on whoever or
• 5:02
  Speaker 3: whatever they were directed to. But Tonight Show was Sorry,
• 5:06
  Speaker 3: but to Night Show was not about control. It was
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  Speaker 3: about respect and that was given in equal parts by
• 5:11
  Speaker 3: the band and their disciples. So like, the question is, bro, like,
• 5:15
  Speaker 3: can you actually feel on stage? Can you feel how
• 5:18
  Speaker 3: much you've got the crowd in your control?
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  Speaker 2: I guess like hanging off your words?
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  Speaker 4: Uh not really. I mean you can tell when they're
• 5:33
  Speaker 4: enjoying it, but I don't know, I don't. I think
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  Speaker 4: the key to it is to not think too much
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  Speaker 4: about whether you've got the control or not.
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  Speaker 1: You know, you just don't give don't.
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  Speaker 4: Give it the time, just keep moving forward and keep
• 5:51
  Speaker 4: just being present with the song and enjoying that moment.
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  Speaker 1: Right.
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  Speaker 3: You know, I can say I've seen other bands in
• 5:59
  Speaker 3: that same place and they could turn the crowd like
• 6:02
  Speaker 3: to a negative sort of thing. But you actually, every
• 6:05
  Speaker 3: time you gave a speed like, even though they were
• 6:07
  Speaker 3: from the heart and they were passionate speeches, you still
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  Speaker 3: didn't incite that feeling of violence, I guess, which was
• 6:14
  Speaker 3: from my point of view, made it was.
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: It was admirable. It was really well done.
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: Thanks very much.
• 6:22
  Speaker 2: Does that like? Is that like? It's sort of just
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  Speaker 2: hard for me.
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  Speaker 3: Like, say, sitting there watching you and you look at
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  Speaker 3: the person next to you, and if you said, I
• 6:29
  Speaker 3: want you to turn to the guy next to you
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  Speaker 3: and punch him in the face, ninety nine percent of
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  Speaker 3: the crowd and actually do that, you know like it.
• 6:35
  Speaker 2: It's got to be an amazing, amazing feeling.
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  Speaker 1: What's amazing is being a part of it.
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  Speaker 4: I think the reason why you think that I have control,
• 6:48
  Speaker 4: I don't think I do. I think it's about the music.
• 6:55
  Speaker 4: But I think the reason why people feel connected is
• 7:01
  Speaker 4: because I feel connected because I let myself go first.
• 7:06
  Speaker 4: I show a sense of letting go because I started
• 7:12
  Speaker 4: this band to feel part of something much greater than myself.
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  Speaker 1: I've got no interest in being a fucking messiah. I
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: just got an interest in.
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  Speaker 4: Feeling a connection to people and feeling like I'm not alone,
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  Speaker 4: because I was very lonely and very scared, and I
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  Speaker 4: wanted to make that connection happen so that I could
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  Speaker 4: go out there and feel part of a community of
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  Speaker 4: people that know.
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  Speaker 1: A sense of.
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  Speaker 4: Love and empathy, so that I can go out there
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  Speaker 4: and just not feel completely deflated by a fascist government
• 7:56
  Speaker 4: and all the rest of it, you know. And it
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  Speaker 4: was a real time disillusionment, problems, addiction, grief and serious trauma,
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  Speaker 4: and our country was falling apart because of a right
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  Speaker 4: wing government that was just selling our public sectors off
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  Speaker 4: piece by piece and blaming the poor for it and
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  Speaker 4: brown people. And now where we are, where we are,
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  Speaker 4: and I get up with the same purpose, and whenever
• 8:29
  Speaker 4: I go on stage, I know that I am about
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  Speaker 4: to let go because I am in safe hands.
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  Speaker 1: And that's all I ever wanted. Very cool.
• 8:42
  Speaker 3: Now you're going to be bringing with your nation of
• 8:44
  Speaker 3: language from the US, So tell us a bit more
• 8:46
  Speaker 3: about them and why you chose them as during partners.
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  Speaker 1: I just like their music, I kind of yeah.
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  Speaker 4: I just always picked bands that I'm enjoying at the moment,
• 9:00
  Speaker 4: and I think they're fantastic I haven't seen any footas
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  Speaker 4: of them live or anything, but I mean, it's.
• 9:05
  Speaker 1: Just really beautiful music. I love it.
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  Speaker 4: It's great, it's really interesting, and I think, yeah, I
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  Speaker 4: think it'd be a good contrast to us as a
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  Speaker 4: live show.
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  Speaker 3: Your last album, Tank Hang That's hard to pronounce, came
• 9:21
  Speaker 3: out earlier this year, So how was a reception?
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  Speaker 2: I like, did the fans embrace it as much as
• 9:25
  Speaker 2: well you thought they would?
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I think more than I thought they would. It
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  Speaker 1: was great.
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  Speaker 4: I think it took us a while to understand how
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  Speaker 4: to perform the songs properly because they were new, kind
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  Speaker 4: of new kinds of songs for us, and with that
• 9:45
  Speaker 4: comes a sense of detachment and not being able to
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  Speaker 4: let go and just be present in the moment. So
• 9:50
  Speaker 4: it took us a while to kind of figure them
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  Speaker 4: out in order to just be ourselves on stage and
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  Speaker 4: let go. And when we did get to that point,
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  Speaker 4: it's magic. And the crowds have been great. I think
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  Speaker 4: the main difference is that we we know it's crowds
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  Speaker 4: dancing more now, and that's something we want to focus
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  Speaker 4: on mine, get people dancing more.
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  Speaker 3: I'd just say someone's coming along to one of your
• 10:15
  Speaker 3: Australian shows in a position like I was, where I
• 10:18
  Speaker 3: hadn't heard any of your music before. Like what three
• 10:21
  Speaker 3: songs from idols would you suggest they listen to you
• 10:23
  Speaker 3: get to know the band better before the live show.
• 10:31
  Speaker 1: That's a good one. I don't know. I don't know.
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  Speaker 1: Maybe uh.
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  Speaker 4: Hm, maybe sent four nine GOFO and Beat and ball
• 10:54
  Speaker 4: Room and rock Wiler so that they know Rockwiler because
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  Speaker 4: a lot of people don't, and that's what we always
• 11:01
  Speaker 4: end on. I wouldn't give them colosses because then it
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  Speaker 4: would ruin the start of the show if they didn't
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  Speaker 4: know us. It would be cool to see that with
• 11:07
  Speaker 4: that nying.
• 11:08
  Speaker 3: It very good man that Before I let you go, Joe,
• 11:11
  Speaker 3: I got a new segment I've introduced called photo bombs.
• 11:14
  Speaker 3: So basically, before I speak to you, I go through
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  Speaker 3: your social media and pick out a few photos that
• 11:18
  Speaker 3: I want to talk to you a little bit more about.
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  Speaker 2: So the first one I've got is this one, like
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  Speaker 2: what how cool is that? Like singing from the crowd
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  Speaker 2: like that? And it is a difficult thing to do.
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  Speaker 1: I never get in the crowd, my man, No, no,
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  Speaker 1: I don't like crowds.
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  Speaker 2: I found that on your face.
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: That's boeing is bowing.
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  Speaker 3: Sorry, how have you Has there ever been, like any
• 11:48
  Speaker 3: any bad experiences for people jumping out like that?
• 11:53
  Speaker 4: I mean, yeah, I've got in a few fights back
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  Speaker 4: in the early days when people thought we were some
• 11:56
  Speaker 4: sort of.
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  Speaker 1: I don't know, punchbag.
• 12:02
  Speaker 4: Uh, So I punch back, which is why I don't
• 12:06
  Speaker 4: get in the craft because like, someone sticks a finger
• 12:08
  Speaker 4: up my ass and I'll stick thumb through their eyeball.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, I'm from the same skill as you, my friend.
• 12:16
  Speaker 4: Honestly, honestly, I like, I love a bit of ass play.
• 12:20
  Speaker 4: I do, but not not not without consent, do you
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  Speaker 4: know what I mean?
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  Speaker 2: It's and needs the blue rication.
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  Speaker 4: Not that much for me, to be honest, I'm pretty
• 12:33
  Speaker 4: experienced in that in that department, so I don't need
• 12:36
  Speaker 4: a lot. Yeah, I just I don't know, Like I
• 12:39
  Speaker 4: love our audiences and that, but I get anxiety and
• 12:42
  Speaker 4: crowds and that, so I just stay out of it
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  Speaker 4: most of the time.
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  Speaker 1: I've been in the crowd for a long time. Nothing
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  Speaker 1: against ours. I just I'm not a crowd person, never
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: have been.
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  Speaker 3: And this is the other one I found, mate, Like,
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  Speaker 3: how how special are moments like that? Like when you
• 13:00
  Speaker 3: back looking at them, like just engaged with children, like
• 13:03
  Speaker 3: the next generation of music lovers.
• 13:06
  Speaker 4: Yeah, it's great. I think it's great. I think it's
• 13:08
  Speaker 4: cool that it's cool that we get to engage with
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  Speaker 4: our families, which I always love seeing parents bring their
• 13:17
  Speaker 4: kids and like, yeah, it's great. It's a beautiful thing that,
• 13:23
  Speaker 4: like we connect with children. I think I never expected
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  Speaker 4: that or thought of that as a thing that would happen,
• 13:32
  Speaker 4: so it's always cool. We've had a few interesting interactions
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  Speaker 4: with kids on stage and that like bring them up.
• 13:39
  Speaker 4: I like bringing kids up, see what they do. And
• 13:43
  Speaker 4: then I realized it's kind of like an insurance nightmare.
• 13:46
  Speaker 4: So it's still good.
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  Speaker 2: Very cool, all right, Joe, Well, thanks very much for
• 13:53
  Speaker 2: the time to night.
• 13:54
  Speaker 3: Idols will be in Australia next year from January sixteenth
• 13:57
  Speaker 3: in August before coming over to Australia for three shows. So,
• 14:01
  Speaker 3: like I said before, make one of the best live
• 14:02
  Speaker 3: shows I've ever seen.
• 14:03
  Speaker 2: So if you're on the.
• 14:04
  Speaker 3: Fence about going, get yourself a ticket because you won't
• 14:06
  Speaker 3: be disappointed.
• 14:08
  Speaker 1: Thank you very much. I appreciate you saying that.