For a band with members just entering their late teens, Ballarat's Leftfield Luxury are going places fast.

The four-piece, who came together at Ballarat High School, have secured a slot at November's Spilt Milk Festival in their hometown, and winning the ABC's JJJ Unearthed competition sees them touring with Ruby Fields and Baker Boy to play the Push All-Ages Tour at the Palais in Hepburn this weekend.

Bass player Colby Cross spoke about Leftfield Luxury's increasing fame with Caleb Cluff.

How did you meet?

We originally started in year 9 for our VET course, Seth and I, with another mate Hunter who did drums; and then we decided to get Caleb on board for a second guitar to broaden the sound. And then Hunter went his own way and we got Connor on board - so technically we all met at school.

But Seth and I are in year 12 now, so we're almost finished, and Connor finished two years ago. Caleb's in year 11.

Ballarat High is really supportive of musicians. Bands like Hunting Grounds have come from there. There's plenty of support at the school, especially through that VET program. You need a band to go through that program. There's a really strong group of teachers there; they are so passionate about what they do. They play as well, they know what's going on.

Tell me about your success - playing Spilt Milk and Unearthed.

It's pretty mad; it's all happened within the last few months. We were noticed by Unearthed, we got a couple of reviews on JJJ, then we got a message asking if we wanted to play Spilt Milk, as part of the local lineup. Then we won the Unearthed competition not that long ago; we're getting messages asking if we want to play Melbourne. It's just been crazy.

It's hard when you're underage, to play some venues. You have to leave afterwards, or have your parents with you. It's much harder than it might used to have been. We're always asked for IDs, being told to leave straight after a gig, which is hard when you're a fan of the band you're supporting; you don't want to have to leave.

What music has inspired you?

Seth and I met through a mixed love of bands and music we liked; we grew of each other's music tastes, doing covers: Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam, Silverchair, even Metallica.

A lot of our influences were coming from our parents and what they grew up with. Mum and dad had a lot of 80s rock like Cold Chisel, stuff like that. But now were growing on our own, listening to a lot of newer stuff - Idylls, Pist Idiots, Bad Dreams - more new age rock, garage rock, strong lyrically, driving basslines and punchy drums. we supported The Chats a while back; they are smashing it at the moment.

Then we had an opportunity to write a song with Ray Thistlethwaite (of Thirsty Merc) and that opened a whole new chapter of writing original songs instead of doing covers, which was massive. For a lot of bands it's hard: it's harder for people to listen to, because they don't know the songs.

You have to be comfortable showing an original work. It takes a while to get the grasp of it. We've been writing for two-and-a-half years and the songs were playing are only a year old because they're better. The way that we're writing is growing with us.

So school teaches us music theory; how chord progressions work, keys, which notes go with which. So that helps building riffs; you know when a flat is out of place or similar.

Why did you choose to play bass?

I chose the bass because it was an easier pathway to get into music; understanding the root notes and being able to carry the line. It just appealed to me. I've learned guitar as well, and playing the bass helped that. I just feel it's more relaxed. You only play half of what the guitarist does. I love locking into the drums and just carrying a thumping song.

How do you see your future in what is a tough industry?

A lot more people are independent these days, rather than being run by record labels. Everyone just supports each other a lot. People watch each other a lot, and they learn from each other.

It's nerve-wracking, becoming successful. We're just trying to figure out a good set. I would love to keep going with this, just see where it goes. I'm not sure how long it will go for, but we're going to keep putting the effort in.