Song history written by TimelandIsWacky
“Just because I like you, it doesn’t mean I like you.” This contradictory phrase carries throughout the distorted two-chord title track of Willoughby’s Beach which ends the EP with a bang. In an interview for Mess+Noise, Eric revealed the inspiration for the song’s title. “Willoughby’s Beach is [a] small patch of sand by [the] banks of the Edward River in Deniliquin [Victoria].” This beach can be found at the Deniliquin Campgrounds. The song would be the b-side of “Black Tooth” and was released on Willoughby’s Beach on October 21st, 2011.
“Willoughby’s Beach” had its first reported performance on 2011-07-08 though its first confirmed performance was on 2011-10-17 at PBS Studios in Naarm (Melbourne). The song reappeared throughout 2011 and 2012 with a performance from 2012-05-09 being released as a live video edited by The Brianstorm Project. As the band moved away from garage rock, “Willoughby’s Beach” stayed in rotation though would largely be dropped following a performance at Glastonbury on 2015-06-27 (which appears in BOOTLEG HOLIDAY FROM HELL).
Since then the song has appeared periodically, usually for special occasions like the Bush Fire Benefit Marathon on 2020-02-21, “Garage Rock Night” on 2021-12-22, and the band’s appearance at the Play On the Plains Festival on 2024-03-09 (only a short drive away from the beach itself).