Penis goes crazy for Australian sunshine

I’ve just come off the back of a bad interview, so please excuse me, sighed Dannielle Moore, the exceedingly polite lead singer of (exceedingly impolitely-named) Crazy Penis, when the Star called for a chat.

What was wrong with the last interview?

Me, she giggled. I sounded really monotone. I think I’d been asked that many questions that I had to take myself outside and get pumped up again.

The fresh air seemed to have done her good, as Moore was in a playful mood when discussing her band’s upcoming Australian tour. The group have been frequent visitors to our shores in recent years -” so much so that casual listeners could be forgiven for thinking they were locals.

Australians have really nurtured us and nurtured our sound. It’s where we found our feet really, with Australians having adopted us, Moore said.

The band’s Australian jaunts have all been in the height of summer. The Star had to ask: do you really love us, or are you just using us for our great weather?

No, not at all! Well, a little bit…OK, maybe 50 percent. It’s the weather. The food. And the good-looking guys. It’s all a big melting pot.

Moore is the perfect front woman, delivering the band’s blend of low-slung disco house with a delectable insouciance. She’s always keen to frock up when performing too, but said her reputation as a clotheshorse was unplanned.

I’ve always been a tomboy. I used to have a bit of a pot belly, so I lived in jeans. It was only when I lost some weight that I started wearing dresses. It’s a later-in-life thing as well, I like putting on make-up and dresses now. It’s funny though, today for the first time ever I went to a fashion show and saw the new ranges from designers like Alexander McQueen, and I’ve been able to pick some clothes out of their ranges, she said, barely able to contain her glee.

As a self-confessed tomboy, Moore said she could see the good and bad sides of her role as the only woman in a five-piece band.

I love the guys -” I don’t have to compete with any other girl-bitchiness. They look after me, they’re very nurturing of me, and I get to look after them and mother them.

But the worst things are that they stink. They have this natural smell about them…they’ve not got the best hygiene. And the make noises, like animals. They turn their socks inside out. They hi-five each other. I don’t like that.

With the release of their fifth album Stop Space Return, Moore has been more involved in behind-the-scenes aspects of the music than ever before.

It’s all about gaining confidence, whatever job you’re in. I always had my ideas, I just wasn’t confident enough to share them, she said.

It’s like when you dance in front of the mirror in your bedroom, trying out your dance moves -” it’s quite a while before you dance like that in a club. You know what you want to do, but you can’t quite get it out cos you feel embarrassed. But I think as time’s gone on, I’ve felt more comfortable. There’s still time yet, I’m still learning.

info: Crazy Penis play The Forum in Sydney on January 29, Billboard Melbourne on February 6, and Playground Weekender Festival on February 7.
Details: www.crazyp.co.uk