Have you ever wondered what the heavy-metal equivalent of a
fairy tale might be? I mean, the relatively wholesome version, not the Motley
Crue version.
Brisbane boy Lochlan Watt found out recently, when he was
selected as part of a national search for a new host for national radio station
Triple J. Watt beat out thousands of contestants to become the new voice of The
Racket, the Tuesday night heavy metal show.
“Started off, just had to submit a 5 minute demo recording
of me talking about one of my favourite albums,” says Watt of the experience,
which could be amongst the most fun job applications ever. I mean, honestly.
That question has never appeared on a McDonald’s application, and more’s the
pity.
The process continued with a series of interviews and recording exercises
before finally being notified that he had been shortlisted to just five
candidates. From there, things moved quickly, with Watt notified of his success
three days after his final interview and with weeks before it was to be
officially announced.
Until his appointment was officially announced, Watt was
forced to keep mum on the news but that didn’t prevent him kicking off the party.
“I was down in Sydney when I first found out and we just
went to the bottle-o and got a six pack and kept smoking weed,” said Watt,
followed by “one long, continuous party for a month.”
Watt is replacing former Racket host Andrew Haug, who helmed
the microphone for ten years, and there has been some inevitable wariness from
older listeners about this brash, young host. However, the worldly and
heavily-tattooed Watt is philosophical about it all.
“At first there were quite a few naysayers. After a few
shows they seemed to shut their mouths and realised that I actually know what I
was talking about,” says Watt of the public hesitation, “Still have a few
people who seem like they’re going to stick up for Andrew Hoag and fuck this
new guy off forever, but it doesn’t really bother me too much.”
The new host, despite his daunting
new role, is finding a home at the Triple J family and looks forward to a
promising and entertaining career.
“Triple J’s been really good to
me, really helpful and everyone’s been quick to lend a hand,” says Watt
brightly. “The whole environment just seems quite supportive and encouraging.
(Short.Fast.Loud. host) Stu Harvey’s had a lot of good advice for me.”
“It feels like it’s where I need
to be.”
Lochlan Watt hosts The Racket heavy metal radio show on
Triple J, 10pm Tuesday nights. You can also see him on tour with his band,
Nuclear Summer.
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