Are you feeling teased yet? An interview with Scarlett McKahey

Many have said rock and roll is a man’s business. In my humble opinion, those people should pull their heads out of their arse. Look at Janis Joplin, Stevie Nicks, Debbie Harry, Joan Jett and Chrissie Hynde, to name a few. Look at bands like The Runaways. Now look at Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers. It doesn’t take much to see that their idea of a “man’s business” is rather stupid, lacking any credible evidence.

The band trace their origins to the great city of Canberra. Known for places like Telstra Tower, Questacon and both the old and new Parliament House, including the relics and politicians inside them. It is also home to Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers.

In writing this article, I spent time trying and failing, to pin down their sound. The best I could land on was a mix of punk, indie rock and alt pop. Scarlett says she draws from Arctic Monkeys and The Strokes, while other members pull from bands like Fontaines D.C., LCD Soundsystem and a host of others.

So, can it really be argued as a man’s scene when Teen Jesus are standing centre stage? Clearly not. Scarlett McKahey described the band’s genre, humorously, as “angry tattooed lesbians with guitars.”

We had the opportunity to ask her about her experiences in an industry that has historically been rather cold and unwelcoming to people who don’t fit in. She pointed out that a lot of the attention comes from people you would least expect, referring to many times that Uber drivers are typically shocked to hear that there are no men in the band and see Teen Jesus as nothing more than a glorified cover band, incapable of forming original work and reserved to play only weddings, often asking what their “real jobs are?”

That is far from the case. Their hit songs such as I Used To Be Fun, AHHHH!, BALCONY and Girl Sports are undeniable proof this band is extremely capable of originality and addictive sound. The band’s EP, “Pretty Good for a Girl Band,” was specifically titled to reclaim the negative stereotype often attached to that phrase with Scarlett herself noting the complexity and irony that the phrase and album doesn’t fully encompass the band’s diverse identities.

We asked Scarlett how anyone following in their footsteps might deal with these sorts of people.

Her advice was clear. Be assertive, and while that may be hard, she said it’s an important skill to have, mentioning also that you’ll have to work twice as hard… but that the experience is meant to be fun and that you should aim to enjoy it. She does believe the industry has changed for the better but old habits die hard. She still faces assumptions that the band is small or insignificant based solely on the lack of men but that view is getting much harder to hold. The band continues to release strong work, touring both nationally and internationally, even winning the 2024 ARIA Music Award for Breakthrough Artist, alongside touring with Pearl Jam and Foo Fighters. 

So what can we expect from Teen Jesus in 2026? A full plate.

The band has just released a delux edition of their album "Glory," featuring new songs and stripped-back versions of previous releases. Scarlett explained their new track Bath Water focuses on personal growth and confidence, reflecting the shift from writing as teenagers to writing as adults or as she put it poetically we’re “hot & confident” now.

Scarlett did let us know that more songs are on the horizon but those details were for their eyes only… and Luka and I did not have that level of clearance. I doubt even ASIO knows what Teen Jesus are working on. They’re certainly living up to the “teasers” in their name and I tip my hat to them for it.

But the world seems to be their oyster. They are planning both a Europe and US tour later on in the year to back up their stellar success from previous tours. We asked for Scarlett’s feelings on what it’s like traveling overseas for gigs, and she summed it up as, “you forget how big the world is” — that the feeling of people recognising you no matter where you are is certainly eye-opening.

So where does Teen Jesus want to see themselves?

Scarlett  would love for the band to one day play at great festivals such as Coachella and Glastonbury, with goals to support big artists such as Arctic Monkeys and The Strokes. Something more close to home, Scarlett told us she’d love to return to the Enmore Theatre, which we certainly know would be a solid event and give us locals something to look forward to. 

She also highlighted the importance of these international shows. She said the pressure to perform well is there, saying that they don’t play there often, and that putting on a cracking gig is critical to make people want to see them in the future. Word of mouth is one great way of free advertisement and certainly does its duty if selling tickets, but it can quite easily swing the other way after a poor show. 

An interesting question I know would be burning at the hearts of all readers and interested listeners of the band was, are Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers a Christian band? 

And the answer with no pause for thought from Scarlett was, absolutely not! They may be sacrilegious but they’re certainly not a Christian band and if you’re offended or angered by such blasphemy, I will remind the reader of such teachings from Jesus Christ “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7. So, let that be the end of that.

The last question of course. Should you catch Teen Jesus at their next show near you?

Of course you should! And don’t be stupid and ignorant about it either. This band chugs and chugs like a diesel locomotive at every show. So I say, put your thoughts and opinions aside for the great unioniser, music! And go get teased by the greatest teasers of them all, Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers!