Australian musicians played and recorded some of the earliest punk rock , led by The Saints who released their first single in 1976. Subgenres of punk music, such as local hardcore acts , still have a strong cult following throughout Australia .
94-790: JAB were an Australian punk rock band, which formed in Adelaide in 1976. The original line-up was Johnny Crash (a.k.a. Janis Friedenfelds) on drums and vocals, Ash Wednesday on bass guitar, synthesiser and tapes , and Bohdan X (a.k.a. Bodhan Kubiakowski) on guitar and vocals. Johnny Crash died on 24 January 2014. JAB's name is an initialism of its founding members' first names: Johnny Crash (a.k.a. Janis Friedenfelds) on drums and vocals, Ash Wednesday on bass guitar, synthesiser and tapes , Bohdan X (a.k.a. Bodhan Kubiakowski) on guitar and vocals, and Boris on guitar. They started in Adelaide in 1976 as an experimental group, "taking inspiration from
188-561: A compilation , Lethal Weapons . The album included tracks by the Boys Next Door, Teenage Radio Stars (featuring future Models members Sean Kelly and James Freud , and also La Femme members bassist Graham Schiavello and drummer Pete Kidd ), JAB (ex- experimental rockers from Adelaide , featuring Bohdan X and synthesizer player Ash Wednesday ), the Survivors and X-Ray-Z (former pub rockers from Adelaide). However
282-541: A close, post punk groups took up the gauntlet. These exciting new bands used the DIY spirit to launch a more introspective, even gloomy, but still vibrant sound." said Jason C. Reeher in his review of Post Punk. Many of the Brisbane bands absorbed the darker edge due to the post-punk fashion; however, several of these newer groups continued on the same snotty punk path that was distinctive to Brisbane. The assertion that “During
376-576: A fanatical following at inner city venues. Many art rock bands, like Melbourne 's Boys Next Door , formed by Nick Cave and Mick Harvey at their school in 1974, later attended gigs by the Saints and Radio Birdman, and would adopt elements of their sounds. In Adelaide , the first punk band was Black Chrome formed in 1974, followed by JAB in 1976. Black Chrome's music attacked Australian apathy, it's urban wasteland and it's non existent youth culture. JAB billed themselves as "Synthetic Shock Rock" and were
470-603: A geographically isolated city with social and political similarities to Brisbane – young musicians like Kim Salmon , Dave Faulkner and James Baker were also influenced by the Detroit bands, as well as New York proto-punk figures like Lou Reed and the New York Dolls . Salmon led the Cheap Nasties , and then The Scientists , before embarking on a solo career (and is regarded as a pioneer of grunge ). Baker
564-459: A large and often violent reaction", was how Hutson and Sawford described La Fetts. La Fetts' track, "SEQEB Scabs" (1985), was written by the group in protest against Bjelke-Petersen's government sacking over 1000 electrical industry workers for going on strike. Of other Punk bands of Brisbane's third generation were Aftermath, Dumb Show, Kicks, Pictish Blood, The Pits, Strange Glory, Toxic Garden Gnomes, Xero , The Differentials and studio band
658-533: A more quirky sort of pop, or New wave music ) were present on the local scene. Their contributions were seen as "colourful and imaginative". Zero changed their name in the 1980s to Xero and released an EP in 1982. The line-up included John Willsteed and Lindy Morrison , who both went on to the Go Betweens . Another youthful Brisbane punk band was the Young Identities. According to McFarlane,
752-778: A solo single in 1980, "Love by Numbers"/"Boring Instrumental", and became a touring member with the German band, Einstürzende Neubauten . Crash left Models in 1981 and went on to play with Sacred Cowboys (1982–85), Beasts of Bourbon (1983), the Slaughtermen (1984) and Tombstone Hands. Johnny Crash (Janis Friedenfelds) died on 24 January 2014. Punk rock in Australia Many of the pioneers, like The Saints, Sydney band Radio Birdman , and young Perth musician Kim Salmon , were highly influenced by proto-punk sounds from Detroit. A distinct Brisbane punk scene emerged in
846-547: A track, "Sunset Strip", released by the Numbers (later renamed the Riptides ), was a punk-like tune, which had regular 4ZZZ airplay. It was regarded by Stephen J. McParland as "punchy and energetic and featured a brilliant, English-flavoured 1960s-inspired pop sound." Venues that hosted punk gigs, largely booked and promoted by 4ZZZ, during this second phase include Exchange Hotel, Queens Hotel, The Curry Shop, Baroona Hall and
940-430: Is a catch-all for post-punk bands that appeared as new wave began to die out in 1983–84, and runs all the way into 1995, when alternative pop/rock is the mainstream." Although some of Brisbane bands continued with punk after 1984, they drastically changed and became absorbed as part of the alternative rock scene. The original attributes of nihilism, despair and hate from the punk's spirit were discarded and twisted into
1034-480: Is arguably one of the best to come out of Melbourne's late 1970s punk/new wave scene (which included Models and the Boys Next Door). It contains many fine examples of the band's confident, swaggering glam-infused punk-metal sound. Lead singer Chane Chane was a charismatic, hyperactive front man, a refreshing personality with a strong audience rapport. Guitarist Brett Walker was a real live flashy guitar hero for
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#17327977137361128-582: The Dead Kennedys in Brisbane in 1983. Meanwhile, the Vampire Lovers were the type of group, according to the Bucket full of Brains magazine, to "embody an enjoyably snotty early eighties zombie-punk-schlock vibe." It was claimed that "Through their intermittent break ups and infrequent gigs, has enjoyed special cult status throughout Australia". Buzzsaw Popstar their most recognisable song
1222-640: The Detroit rock of the Stooges and MC5 . During that time, Queensland was under the control of the conservative, authoritarian Country Party democratic government of Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen . During 1974, Radio Birdman formed in Sydney , led by another immigrant, Detroit-born medical student Deniz Tek . They also shared an interest in the Stooges and MC5, albeit with a result arguably more akin to Hard rock than Punk. Their dynamic live shows soon gained
1316-674: The Hard-Ons (from Sydney) and Exploding White Mice (from Adelaide), also emerged. Former members of the Celibate Rifles and Lime Spiders formed the Eastern Dark , a short-lived but well-regarded act. Australian hardcore punk acts also emerged, such as Massappeal , who began gigging in Sydney during 1985. Additionally, bands such as The Hellmen, Toys Went Berserk , Happy Hate me Nots , Bits of Kids and Wet Taxis existed in
1410-792: The Hellcats (featuring Ron Peno , later lead singer of the Died Pretty ), the Psychosurgeons (later known as Lipstick Killers), Johnny Dole & the Scabs and the Thought Criminals (who featured Steven Phillip, later of Do-Re-Mi and John Hoey, who was also later in Died Pretty). These bands and other Australian and overseas punk acts were strongly supported by public radio stations, especially 2JJ . Punk bands like
1504-511: The Queensland Police special branch, or "Brisbane's notorious undercover police." Razar, and most high-profile Brisbane punk groups, received intense scrutiny from the local constabulary with their venues often raided and closed. 4ZZZ's Dave Darling, and an independent concert promoter, recalled: "We encountered problems with police just like everybody else did that tried to run a venue... 9 out of 10 of them I don't think ever made
1598-582: The royalty rate offered by Suicide was low and both the News and Young Charlatans decided not to get involved. Keith Glass launched the Melbourne-based Missing Link Records , which between 1978–80 released La Femme's singles & Album, They were the first independent band on Countdown and opened "Suburban pub rock" to local punk bands. Keith Glass also managed the Boys Next Door and released all their music through to
1692-497: The " little band scene ". By the early 1980s, only a handful of bands were still playing songs with classic punk sounds, such as the Cosmic Psychos and the satirically -inclined Painters and Dockers . Melbourne's La Femme were a fascinating meld of late Seventies influences: punk, new wave, glam and hard rock. Their 1978 debut single Chelsea Kids is one of the all-time classic Australian singles and their only LP: La Femme,
1786-456: The "second generation" of bands were formed. They were given air time on 4ZZZ and the station was influential in playing the new music during this period. One band, which benefited from such airplay, was Razar with their track, "Task Force (Undercover Cops)" (1978). Hutson and Sawford described them as a "Youthful and popular punk outfit which attracted a lot of attention due to their controversial material." The lyrics of "Task Force" dealt with
1880-410: The 1970s. By 1977, other bands began to form in Sydney, under the influence of Radio Birdman and other local and overseas acts. During the late 1970s, former members of Radio Birdman contributed to several new bands. These bands and other Australian and overseas punk acts were supported by public radio stations. In Melbourne scene, art rock had segued into punk, then evolved into post-punk , typified by
1974-530: The 1980s, a “punk panic” emerged that positioned punk as a dire threat to public order. Punks were cast as nihilistic, destructive, and dangerous villains” applied to a significant proportion of the attitudes within Brisbane’s mainstream society. Nevertheless, as 1984 progressed, the perceived “scary” aspects of punk by Brisbane’s general public faded. The people in the community that harbored either resentment, revulsion and/or hostility became more tolerant towards
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#17327977137362068-546: The Arabic – style vocals on the title song are taken into account. The lyrics have Satanic overtones." It was asserted in 2000 that "the band quickly gained a reputation for courting controversy," by being banned by the Australian Broadcasting Tribunal and by the acts of violence at various times perpetrated upon them with knives and guns. The Mystery of Sixes, along with Public Execution supported
2162-918: The Australian east coast with bands like No Idea (VIC), the Scam(QLD), the Lost Cause (QLD), Deputy Dipshit (QLD), the Worst (VIC), Stay Down (TAS), Wot Rot (VIC) and many more leaving their mark. In Adelaide, primarily driven by a resurgence of interest driven by the internet, the publication of early punk discographies, and requests to play from venues and contemporary punk bands, Black Chrome reformed in 2010. They have since appeared on several contemporary live punk compilation albums, and from 2018 commenced releasing new material. Vans Warped Tour successfully returned to Australia in 2013 after an 11-year hiatus, however many DIY grass roots events stepped up to fill
2256-515: The Banana Curtain (2000, a CD compilation sponsored by the radio station, 4ZZZ ) they were described as "Raw, intoxicated, energetic and antisocial." The Leftovers experienced "continuous harassment from the local constabulary"; and a history that included, a "story of prison, the shocking aftermath of attempted suicide and now-numerous deaths." In June 1979 they released their only single, "Cigarettes and Alcohol", which McFarlane declared
2350-712: The Dawn of Time , Post No Bills, Prince of Weasels, Never Again, Oral Injury, Psycho Circus, Reality Damage, Sanity Assassins, The Slam, Subsonic Barflies, Thrash this Trash, Vampire Lovers , Voodoo Lust, Crucified Truth, Dementia 13, Mungabeans , Water Rats Picnic, Aloha Pussycats and one of Brisbane only all female bands Batswing Saloon, Sentinel and Trash of all Nations. [1] Venues include The Outpost, The Lands Office Hotel, Sensoria and The Love Inn. Brisbane has continued to produce acts which espouse punk ideologies and/or aesthetics, diversifying in attitudes and stylistic influences according to international trends characterising
2444-580: The Detroit rock and the closely aligned Garage punk groups, with Hardcore punk / thrash bands being almost as large in number. A smaller contingent of Skate punk groups made the third category. Stylistically or in a Punk fashion sense, many of the bands (except for some of the hardcore scene) and their fans replaced the generic style of spikey or outlandish mow hawk hair (for the period), cheap items of attire, studded belts, sewn-in tight trousers, leather and PVC in favor of longer hair, casual clothing sometimes incorporating skater shorts and skateboards , which
2538-600: The Dum Dums, both early to mid 1980s), Ska (BLoWHaRD, late 1989 to 1990s), Rockabilly (The Skeletones, mid 1980s) and Heavy Metal (The Dreamkillers, late 1989 to 1990s) Brisbane "alternative" punk bands that belonged to the particular era between 1985 and 1988 are as follows. ACT, The Adorable Ones, Bad Ronald, Criminally Insane/Rabid Souls, Death of a Nun, The Dinky Flyers, Disorderly Public Outbreak, The Egyptians, The Four Horsemen, The Girlies, The Horny Toads, Hotel Breslin, La Fetts, Insane Hombres, The Pineapples from
2632-568: The Elizabeth Street Bar (White Chairs) became an important hang out for those of a Hardcore Punk and Oi! persuasion during the stretch of 1983 to 1987. During 1983 large number of Alternative acts appeared in the local underground music scene. Brisbane's original spirit of punk begun to wane; eventually it was lost in 1985. It was superseded by the Alternative Rock movement. It has been said, "Essentially, "alternative"
2726-531: The Half Pints, Let's Jump Ship and the Flying Rats forming, there have also been the emergence of folk punk bands like Gentleman's Riot, Mutiny and Catgut Mary and skate punk bands such as Bombs Are Falling and Postscript . The reforming of many earlier punk bands from the 1980s (such as Bastard Squad and Depression) has also been prominent. The Late 2000s has also seen a resurgence in street punk across
2820-670: The Hamilton Hall and Toowong RSL hall. Hutson and Sawford stated that "Two of the more notorious DIY venues were the Saint's 76 Club ... and the Baroona Road Hall, scene of numerous 'one-off' multiple band gigs." From November 1975 4ZZZ broadcast local punk music; John Stanwell, its original Arts Administrator, explained, in September 2006, that it was "The first (Radio) station in the world to play The Saints." The era
2914-639: The London scene at the time, such the now-established punk fashion in clothes. Radio Birdman were dumped when their record company got into financial difficulty, and soon broke up. Later recordings saw the Saints adopt soul , blues and jazz influences, although their most successful single, " This Perfect Day " – which reached number 34 in the UK singles chart – was typical of the band's musical style. After another acclaimed single, " Know Your Product ", and second and third albums failed to make an impression, EMI dropped
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3008-525: The Meanies , Frenzal Rhomb , and Screamfeeder led to the formation of punk-influenced bands such as the Living End , Jebediah , Bodyjar , 28 Days , Dreamkillers, Four Zero One Four, Align, Tiltmeter and Guttersnipes . Punk revival scenes began in various cities around Australia. In Melbourne, punk has seen a resurgence in recent years. Along with straight up punk bands like Dixon Cider, Scrayfish,
3102-659: The New Christs , the Visitors , the Passengers (featuring Angie Pepper) and the Screaming Tribesmen . Two distinctive, long-lasting Sydney bands, the Celibate Rifles and Lime Spiders , were formed in 1979. Meanwhile, other Sydney groups like X and feedtime carried the punk energy of their forebears into nascent noise rock territory. In Melbourne, post-punk sounds began to take over, typified by
3196-461: The Parameters – who were known for their rock song with punk like sentiments, '" Pig City ", which was released as a single in September 1984. Andrew Stafford used it in the title of his book, Pig City: from the Saints to Savage Garden (2004). He explained the choice: "it was really a rallying call, and a signature song for Brisbane at that time. Certainly if you listened to ZZZ in that period,
3290-892: The Reals (featuring Ollie Olsen ) and the Babeez (later known as the News) were also being formed in Melbourne. In Brisbane, the Survivors (who showed a 1960s influence), the Leftovers (diverse influences), Razar and the Fun Things (Detroit rock) all followed in the wake of the Saints. After the British punk scene took off in 1977, both the Saints and Radio Birdman moved to the UK. This proved to be disastrous for both bands. Neither of them fit in with, or were inclined to adjust to aspects of
3384-476: The Saints "had been developing in near isolation for three years, but it took just one review in Sounds magazine to make their career." The Saints arrived in the UK in 1977 but found that their hair and image did not fit the UK punk dress codes . The locals were sporting spiky hair and brothel creepers , instead the group had appeared similar to street bums with attitude. Kuepper reflected on their reception, "By
3478-605: The Saints' endeavours. By 1977, other bands were starting to form in Sydney, under the influence of local and overseas punk acts. The early Sydney punk scene centred around the Sydney inner city suburbs, and the Grand Hotel in Haymarket in particular. Among the first was the Last Words , from Liverpool in Sydney. (They recorded their first single "Animal World/Wondering Why" in 1977.) Other Sydney bands in 1977 included
3572-643: The Saints). The band recorded the first version of the Howard song " Shivers ". In Sydney, a Birdman offshoot, the Hitmen , had started to gig and Ian Rilen formed the longevitous X . On 8 November 1977 the ABC nightly news magazine program "This Day Tonight" broadcast a feature on Australian punk rock, featuring a live recording of Black Chrome at Adelaide University's Union Hall, with commentary and interviews highlighting
3666-578: The Saints. (Kuepper left in 1979 and Bailey began to pursue a more mainstream musical direction.) Last Words later followed their predecessors to the UK and also failed to make a strong impression. The Saints bassist, Algy Ward continued to make significant impact in the London punk scene however, when he left The Saints to play with British punk rock band, the Damned and to work with Lemmy and Fast Eddie Clarke of Motörhead , playing on The Damned's comeback album Machine Gun Etiquette (1979), which
3760-525: The Sharks, who were considered among the more subversive and threatening local talent." The Fun Things , originally known as The Aliens, were an outfit that characterised the Detroit sound inspired by Sydney-based punk group, Radio Birdman . Fun Things recorded a track, "When the Birdmen Fly", released on their self-titled EP. According to McFarlane, "The Fun Things issued what has emerged as one of
3854-503: The Silver Dollar Disco. Rotten Import Records was a shop dedicated to punk music in 1978 and The Elizabeth Street Bar (nicknamed White Chairs) – a hang out for punk, new wave or alternative rockers from 1980 to 1987. This phase centered on the early to mid-1980s. The dark mood of the bands reflected the changing dynamics of punk. "As the restrictive measures of punk, and all the clichéd fashion statements it entailed, came to
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3948-830: The Swell Guys, the Toy Watches, the Upsets. Fuller Banks & the Debentures, supported UK group the Stranglers at the Queens Hotel, other groups played spasmodically, generally at hall gigs. The Stranglers issued a single in October 1979, Nuclear Device (The Wizard of Aus) , which focussed on Premier Bjelke-Petersen and his political style. It peaked at No. 36 in the UK singles chart. Also during 1979
4042-597: The UK, however, Sounds magazine received a copy, and declared it: "single of this and every week". As a result, the band was signed to a three-album contract with EMI. Later the same year they recorded their first LP, which was also called (I'm) Stranded . Hampered by poor production and the indifference of radio stations, the LP failed commercially. In December the Saints moved to Sydney. Radio Birdman released an EP (" Burn My Eye ") and an album ( Radios Appear ) with better production values, but with similar commercial results to
4136-603: The Unknown: Brisbane Bands 1976–1988 , "Home Town Connection", p. 9. Brisbane punk rock developed under the state government of Joh Bjelke-Petersen , the Premier of Queensland from 1968 to 1987; his administration was investigated by the Fitzgerald Inquiry (1987–89), which found "long-term, systemic political corruption and abuse of power." Bjelke-Petersen resigned, two of his ministers and
4230-707: The band played the Sex Pistols ' " Pretty Vacant " and The Stooges ' "I Feel Alright". He toured with the band worldwide, including America in 1979 where they played at Whisky A Go Go, Hollywood, and the Waldorf in San Francisco, significantly influencing the American Hardcore scene. Ward appeared on the live performance on The Old Grey Whistle Test in England featuring " Smash It Up ", before he
4324-402: The band presented "plenty of youthful energy, belligerent spirit and all-important punk attitude. In the 1980s the band changed its name to Kicks and joined the rising Goth rock sound. Other artists from this second phase included the 31st., the Alphabet Children, the Bodysnatchers, Flying Squad, Gerry Mander and the Boundaries, Just Urbain, the Leftovers , the Pits, Same 13, the Survivors,
4418-505: The careers of Nick Cave , Rowland S. Howard and the little band scene . Another pioneering figure of Australian postpunk was Saints founder Ed Kuepper . The Saints were one of Australia's first punk bands. The earliest incarnation of the Saints was formed by Ed Kuepper (guitar) and Chris Bailey (vocals) in Brisbane, Queensland in 1973. They shared a background in immigrant families (Kuepper's German and Bailey's Irish ), and an admiration for high energy 1950s and '60s music, such as
4512-421: The change to the Birthday Party . Australian chart success eluded all of these bands in the late 1970s. Radio programmers were conservative and unenthusiastic about punk. The above artists who eventually found success either did so overseas, or after a remove of several years in Australia, and/or in different bands. During the late 1970s, former members of Radio Birdman contributed to several new Sydney bands:
4606-414: The closely aligned garage punk ), hardcore punk including Crossover thrash and skate punk – the Brisbane punk rock movement had changed to alternative rock . "For many bands Brisbane proved not to be the isolated haven in which they could polish their art, but a repressive, aggressive town, the very personification of the red neck deep South (of America)." Doug Hutson and Gavin Sawford, Out of
4700-463: The closure of another punk venue in 1984, The Aussie Nash (at the Australian National Hotel) there was a general decline in punk band numbers participating in the local scene. The Mystery of Sixes self-titled song, "Mystery of Sixes", received substantial airplay on 4ZZZ. Jello Biafra , (Dead Kennedys) reviewed their EP's songs as such, "this Brisbane band is a little more on the post-punk side. They definitely live in their own world, especially when
4794-417: The community radio station, 3RRR -FM. Wednesday, Crash and Sutcliffe joined Sean Kelly (ex-Teenage Radio Stars) to form the first line-up of Models . Sutcliffe was replaced on bass guitar after six months. He won $ 503,000 in May 2014, on Australian TV quiz show, Million Dollar Minute . Wednesday stayed with Models for a year, after which he played with the Metronomes, Modern Jazz and Crashland. He issued
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#17327977137364888-538: The cops would break them up anyway, as they did any sort of gathering." The Saints' debut single, " (I'm) Stranded " (September 1976), was issued on their own Fatal Records label. Copies were sent to local, national and international media and record labels. "(I'm) Stranded" came to the attention of the UK musical press and fitted neatly into the punk sound and attitude in London. Sounds magazine's Jonh Ingham declared it "Single of this and every week." Jon Savage , UK journalist and punk historian, later wrote that
4982-409: The cultural straight and narrow of beer, beach and burgers." Kid Galahad and the Eternals were a garage rock band formed in 1973 in Brisbane by school mates: Chris Bailey on lead vocals, Ivor Hay on piano and Ed Kuepper on guitar. Locally they earned a reputation for their punk attitude after a debut performance at a Returned and Services League venue in the western suburbs. Bailey described
5076-527: The day...". The Black Assassins supported the Dead Kennedys at Brisbane's Festival Hall in 1983. During the same early 1980s period 'hardcore' punk bands also appeared in Brisbane, particularly from 1983 onwards. Two of the more prominent hardcore groups were New Improved Testament and the La Fetts. New Improved Testament, existed from 1983 – 1984 with Fred Noonan on drums. Fred Noonan also drummed previously with Public Execution and went on much later to Six Ft Hick . "Hard and abrasive 4 piece which attracted
5170-754: The dissolution of the Soviet Union. 4zzz has since persisted to operate in this settled, alternative cultural zone, in which punk aesthetics and/or ideals have been a mainstay alongside the station's prominent new left orientation and anarchist and/or socialist activists. Notable bands beginning in the 1990s include Brisbane underground music mainstays Clag, who music journalist Everett True described as "...a beacon of weirdness, surreal humour and unrepentant femaleness." Clag employed 'reckless genre swapping', unconventional stage theatrics and goaded their audience with banter, resulting in hecking that front-woman Bek Moore described as 'fairly vicious' and 'involved people throwing things'. An example of Brisbane punk of
5264-511: The end of 1975 the band added Kym Bradshaw on bass guitar and moved Hay to drums; soon after they changed their name to the Saints . The Saints favourite rehearsal space was a shed behind Hay's home, which was near a police station; after the group were "ostracised" by the local music scene they established their own venue to perform their original material. Located at 4 Petrie Terrace, it was named Club 76. Kuepper later opined "we didn't play until we started putting on shows of our own, and then
5358-420: The facts we can report are scant... so to the record, perhaps the most singular sounding of the first generation Australian punk records with its restrained fuzz, and strange (moaning?) backing vocals. It's in the lyrics where the punch is packed."[167] Entrepreneurs began to realise the potential of the growing scene and Michael Gudinski launched the Melbourne-based Suicide Records , which in May 1978 released
5452-405: The final song... and [we would] disguise them from Task Force knowing they were on, but eventually in the course of the night one of them would find out and next thing you know you had all of them there..." Hutson and Sawford elucidated that, "In fact it wasn't uncommon for police, both uniformed and Special Branch plainclothes, to regularly break up concerts by bands such as Razar, the Leftovers and
5546-400: The first Australian bands to combine electronica with a punk aesthetic and hard-edged guitar sound. Bohdan X joined members of the Chosen Few to form Bohdan and the Instigators. He later issued solo records, including a four-track, 12-inch extended play , Fear of Flying , on Rumour Records in December 1983 and the mini-album, Kingsnake on Rampant Records in 1988. He later hosted a show on
5640-456: The first Australian punk band to use live synthesisers and tape loop guitar and synthesiser solos. This early iteration of JAB has been described as 'an insane electronic evolution of the velvet underground'. Adelaide in this period was a staid, conservative and unreceptive city, consequently the bands were ignored, feared, and could not secure gigs unless they booked venues themselves without disclosing that they were punk bands. In Perth –
5734-432: The first gig to a United Kingdom fanzine, Sniffin' Glue , in October 1976, "Then after our second drummer walked out and we almost called it 'quits' but we decided to keep playing to the 30 people (from an original 150 patrons) who were still with us. Before the last number the manager of the hall arrived with cops, turned off the power... The cops told us they would confiscate our equipment if we didn't go, so we went." By
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#17327977137365828-421: The gap. Age of Rage: The Australian Punk Revolution , a documentary film directed by Jennifer Ross, premieres at the Melbourne International Film Festival in August 2022. Brisbane punk rock Brisbane punk rock had its main impact between 1975 and 1984 as part of the overall punk rock scene in Australia . According to rock music historian, Ian McFarlane , the Queensland capital provided "some of
5922-415: The great Melbourne punk albums and yet they never rose above being a cult attraction. The Quick and the Dead, who played in Perth during 1979–81, pioneered a sound closely related to Oi! . They attracted media attention resulting from the behaviour of some fans, including violence and the use of Nazi regalia. Some Brisbane punk rock bands prolonged their unique punk direction from the Seventies, that
6016-443: The hardcore fashion of social activism and political correctness. It became a far cry from the earlier punk era. The Brisbane punk groups of the late 1980s were influenced by the strong Sydney alternative music scene as well as from California 's hardcore. Generically speaking, the punk music scene in Brisbane during the mid to late 1980s period split mostly into three main basic categories. These categories during this time were
6110-435: The label's compilation album by various artists, Lethal Weapons . In May Pierre Voltaire (a.k.a. Peter Sutcliffe or Pierre Sutcliffe) (ex-Teenage Radio Stars) joined on bass guitar, allowing Wednesday to concentrate on keyboards. The band played their final show in August 1978 at the Crystal Ballroom (then known as the Seaview Ballroom), which was also the first gig ever played at that venue. JAB were later recognised as one of
6204-445: The largely negative contemporary attitudes to punk rock. The introductory voice over concluded; ″... but if you're wondering if its going to take off in a big way here, its worth remembering that the quiet streets of Adelaide are a long, long way from the streets of London. The message of punk rock is violence and anarchy; and its a message which has got Adelaide radio stations on the defensive.″[165] In April 1978 Black Chrome released
6298-411: The latter half of the 1980's. From Brunswick emerged the smooth distorted sound of the Zorros with their single from Missing Link records "Too Young" reaching Number 3 in Radio RRR charts. The Zorros would play hard and fast and pack out many venues. By the early 1990s, the success of grunge music, American punk veterans and revivalists, as well as local bands like the Hybernators, the Speed Demons,
6392-422: The lettering and Gothic calligraphic work on Joe Petagno 's early Motörhead logo; though the "War-Pig" image itself is by Petagno. ) contributed to the sleeve and logo design work on Machine Gun Etiquette . During his time with The Damned, Ward also played bass on cover versions including Motörhead's "Over the Top" (released later under the collective moniker Motordamned ), the MC5's " Looking at You " and live,
6486-582: The likes of Eno, David Bowie and certain German electronic artists such as Kraftwerk, Neu!, Faust and Can." In 1977 Bob Stopa replaced Boris as second guitarist. JAB defied strict categorisation and split audiences with their abrasive sound. Adelaide's music press described their sound as "synthetic shock rock "; with one contemporary critic opining that it was "experimental, confrontational synthpunk ." Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane , felt they adopted "a brasher punk stance... part of the... new wave scene." JAB relocated to Melbourne in August 1977 joining
6580-648: The local punks. This led to the local scene losing its power of negative reaction forever to time. However, punk rock in Brisbane still was not seen as a “celebrated subculture” until much later, when it was distorted through the lens of the punk bands from 1990s onwards. Zits, a punk venue in the Fortitude Valley during 1982, was instrumental for putting on the early appearances of last wave punk groups such as Mystery of Sixes (mix of punk, hardcore punk and death rock influenced by The Stranglers and Bauhaus ), Vampire Lovers ( Radio Birdman – The Damned style of punk), and Public Execution ( Black Flag inspired ). After
6674-471: The mid-early 2000s was Anal Traffic, who used sexually-charged shock value , blatant parodies of rock stage conventions, and intentionally unconventional bricolage outfits to reinforce sardonic, politically charged lyrics. Venues including Trainspotters, Stepinn (defunct), Prince of Wales Hotel, The Trans, the Foundry, the Bearded Lady, the Beetle Bar (defunct), the Underdog (defunct) have hosted performances in recent years, along with informal spaces such as
6768-564: The most anarchistic bands" of that era whilst it was "arguably the most conservative city" in the country. The development of the local punk movement differed from other cities because of its relative geographic isolation from other similar trends. The Brisbane scene also received a greater scrutiny by local police where early punk bands formed as "an obvious backlash to an oppressed society". This generated antagonistic and individualistic groups or "snot" driven punk bands. The Brisbane punk rock movement can be divided into four phases. First, there
6862-548: The most collectable artefacts of the Australian punk rock era, the Fun Things EP which came in a pressing of only 500 copies." The band members, John Hartley, Brad Shepherd and, his older brother, Murray Shepherd, went on to join other bands, including the Hoodoo Gurus for Brad and The Screaming Tribesmen for Hartley and Murray. Zero , a feminist-styled punk band, (although some critics considered Zero to play
6956-607: The nineties. While the overt police brutality of the Bjelke-Petersen era waned after the end of his reign in 1987, Brisbane was still experienced as stiflingly conservative, and post World Expo 88 , increasingly expensive. Alternative rock, post-punk and skate punk continued, with additional influences of 90s grunge, hardcore, shoegaze, indie-pop, ska and pop-punk trends. Performances diversified to reflect an increased representation of feminine, queer , post-modern , surrealist and/or overtly ideological perspectives relative to
7050-441: The pop star game and the serious drug addiction, among other things, perhaps ended up compromising the band's drive. For an inner-city band with so much potential, in the end they really did give it away. They toured constantly, built up a huge support base on the suburban pub circuit, scored several prestigious support gigs, made three appearances on Countdown (one of the first punk/new wave/alternative bands to do so), released one of
7144-820: The punk scene and playing alongside the Boys Next Door and X-Ray-Z. Bohdan later recalled, "They were very exciting times, we were changing the face of the music scene and we all knew it. .... All the bands on the scene just kind of found each other. Usually it was through playing together at places like the Tiger Lounge in Richmond , Bombay Rock in Brunswick and of course Bananas down in St Kilda ." JAB signed to Suicide Records in January 1978 and two of their tracks, "Blonde and Bombed" and "Let's Go", were included on
7238-473: The raw, 'snot-driven', straightforward approach of punk predecessors more closely influenced by rock and roll . The latter was still channeled to an extent, but its prominence and subversive reputation had yielded to the political ambiguities of the nineties. In 1993, 4ZZZ purchased their Fortitude Valley headquarters from the Communist Party of Australia, which had diminished in relevance following
7332-452: The single "Australia's God" on their own label Tomorrow Records,[166] but despite the band driving around Australia to the few record shops selling punk rock and delivering it to radio stations around the country, it failed to secure airplay and sold in tiny numbers. "Wallaby Beat" in 2011; "It must be said that of all the original 1977 Aussie bands Black Chrome are the one most shrouded in mystery. The single remains unheard (but not unloved) and
7426-529: The song was inescapable and it was so symbolic of living in Brisbane at that time, it described so vividly what it was like to live here. And also, it described police and political corruption in this State three or four years before anyone had heard of Tony Fitzgerald." Popular venues from this particular time include Amyl's Nitespace, Zits, The Australian National Hotel, and the South Brisbane Blind Hall. The Treasury Hotel downstairs, near
7520-454: The state's police commissioner were jailed for corruption charges. Doug Hutson and Gavin Sawford co-wrote in their book from 1988, Out of the Unknown: Brisbane Bands 1976-1988 that, "Authority's intolerance of anything different, which, to be fair has since considerably diminished, reflects the peculiar suspicious verging on animosity that Queenslanders as a whole hold for anyone who leaves
7614-713: The time we got here the initial spirit already died out, it was very contrived. There were too many people following slavishly after. We had problems because we didn't look new wave." The Saints reached the UK charts with their third single, " This Perfect Day " (July 1977), after the Sex Pistols had released their second single, " God Save the Queen " (May). The Saints released (I'm) Stranded (February 1977) and followed with Eternally Yours (May 1978), which included their single, " Know Your Product " (February). Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane , declared that "Know Your Product"
7708-500: The times, coming on like a punk-metal Mick Ronson by pealing off large chunks of dense power riffing when other guitarists were still going plink-plonk. The thuggish rhythm section of Peter Kidd and Graham Schiavello played it mean and hard, providing the relentless, driving beat. La Femme could well have made it into the big league if they’d wanted but swimming against the commercial tide seemed to be their raison d'être. In many ways they were their own worst enemies. An unwillingness to play
7802-637: Was "one of the classics of the late 1970s Australian punk rock era." They disbanded later that year. Also from this period were the Survivors (formed in 1976 as Rat Salad), which issued a sole single, "Baby Come Back", in December 1977. It was included on the Lethal Weapons (May 1978) compilation by various Australian punk bands. The Survivors' bassist, Jim Dickson, went on to play for profile bands that included The Barracudas and Radio Birdman . During this era Brisbane punk rock venues included
7896-528: Was "one of the greatest R&B-fuelled rock songs of all time." A third album, Prehistoric Sounds , was released in October before Kuepper left. Bailey formed a new line-up of the Saints in 1980; however, their punk edge was lost without "Ed Kuepper's relentless power chords." In May 2001 "(I'm) Stranded" was listed in Australian Performing Rights Association's Top 30 Australian songs of all time . (I'm) Stranded
7990-556: Was a beautiful noise. And then Paul (Gray) came along and was a very fluent and flowing kind of bass player." By the end of 1977, the Melbourne supergroup Young Charlatans had formed from the remnants of earlier bands. They included Ollie Olsen , Rowland S. Howard (guitar, later in the Birthday Party), Jeff Wegener (drums, former member of the Saints, later in the Laughing Clowns ) and Janine Hall (later in
8084-574: Was declared by Rob Younger (from Radio Birdman ) "a masterpiece". Tim Yohannan from U.S. fanzine, Maximum Rocknroll , reviewed the original E.P's lyrics as “pretty decent” and “highly caustic”. They disbanded in 1984 only to reform in 1988 after the popularity of the Buzzsaw Popstar 1987 single re-release. The Black Assassins were another popular live punk band from the early 1980s. The band claimed that, "Their songs and stage act were energetic and highly political, focussing on issues of
8178-561: Was documented in a fanzine SSuicide Alley , arguably Australia's second punk fanzine, which was printed in Brisbane in April 1977 by Walker and Andrew McMillan . Walker detailed the late 1970s Brisbane scene through his contemporary work for University of Queensland paper, Semper , and another fanzine, Pulp . His later books include Inner City Sound (1982) and Stranded: The Secret History of Australian Independent Music 1977–1991 (1996). The Brisbane punk movement expanded from 1978:
8272-551: Was fired from the group due to animosity between him and drummer Rat Scabies . He was replaced by former Eddie and the Hot Rods and UFO (band) bassist Paul Gray . Speaking of Algy Ward's contribution to the album in an interview with Louder than War online punk rock fanzine , Captain Sensible said "Algy was immense on Machine Gun (Etiquette) . The sound was largely based on the thundering bass lines that he delivered, it
8366-715: Was in a short-lived act called the Geeks, before forming the Victims with Faulkner in 1977. They recorded an acclaimed single, " Television Addict ", before breaking up. Baker later joined the Scientists. Faulkner gravitated towards poppier sounds. In 1981, he and Baker founded a successful Retro rock act, the Hoodoo Gurus . In mid-1976, the Saints recorded and distributed copies of their single " (I'm) Stranded" , which met nearly no critical or public response in Australia. In
8460-488: Was in line with the skate punk style. Bands of the early 1980s, such as The Screaming Tribesmen and Presidents 11 originally began with aspects of punk, however, they quickly diverged beyond the punk genre to explore wider alternative tastes. Also since the early 1980s, an assortment of Punk fusion bands speckled the local punk movement, with a mixture of various musical styles that belonged outside punk rock including Country and Western (The Kingswoods and Tex Deadly and
8554-561: Was in part due to Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen 's continued use of the Queensland Police against perceived threats to the government. The Boys Next Door , renamed the Birthday Party in 1980 and featuring Nick Cave , were pioneers in incorporating "darker" elements into their image, with connections to the genres of gothic rock , horror punk and deathrock . Other prominent examples included Brisbane bands Vampire Lovers and Mystery of Sixes. A fourth generation of bands, such as
8648-596: Was listed at No. 20 in the book, 100 Best Australian Albums (October 2010), with Prehistoric Sounds at No. 41. In 1976 the Leftovers were formed in Sandgate , as "Australia's first true punks in the Sex Pistols mould" according to music writer, Clinton Walker . Walker felt they were "obnoxious, anarchic, anti-social, powerful, violent and with a strong self-destructive bent." They gained local recognition for their existentialist approach. On Behind
8742-456: Was released on proto punk and pub rock record label, Chiswick Records , who had also released Motörhead 's early records. Joe Strummer , Lemmy and Paul Simonon also appear on the album. The reissue of the album includes the band's take on The Sweet 's " Ballroom Blitz ". The album also features sometime Pink Floyd lyricist Anthony Moore on synthesiser. Philip Lloyd-Smee (who is known for his design work for Syd Barrett as well as for
8836-571: Was the pioneering chapter, which lasted from 1975 to 1977. These bands were either innovators or part of the first wave of local punk bands. Foremost of all such groups are the Saints , which are acknowledged as "Aussie punk pioneers". The second phase occurred between 1978 and 1980, which McFarlane described as "the second generation" of punk groups. The next period or "third-generation" spanned from 1981 to 1984 and diverged into two genres of punk rock and hardcore punk . The fourth period, during 1985 to 1988, developed three styles: Detroit rock (and
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