Blackie deals a strong hand with quirky new clip

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By The Barman

The Barman

09 April 2021

Hits: 3336

Hand-Ons/Nunchukka Superfly guitarist, singer-songwriter and much-loved Australian punk-rock icon Peter "Blackie" Black has dropped the first video from his solo album "If This Is The Hand That I'm Dealt”. 

The album was released late last year in tandem with another solo record, "I'm Gonna Cheat As Much As I Can". The two albums, when taken together, reveal the breadth of Blackie's pop smarts, the quirkier and heartbroken ends of which can both be heard in  "What The Fuck Should I Be Thinking".

The film clip was co-directed by Jonathan Sequeira (director of the acclaimed Radio Birdman documentary "Descent Into the Maelstrom") and his partner in Cheap Music Videos, Wade Jackson. When asked to comment about the video, Jonathan said:

"‘I thought Blackie was joking when he told me about wanting to do the pec dance. But he got it one take so we knew he’d been practising in front of the mirror’.

“That is actually true, but probably not the quote you want. How about:

"'It was great to work with Peter, one of Australia’s best songwriters, and I love the new albums so was keen to do a video. He had a simple idea and really let me run with it, which wasn’t difficult because he gave such a great performance, and it was a lot of fun shooting it.'"

• hard-ons
• peter black
• blackie
• descent into the maelstrom
• jonathan sequeira
• nunchukka superfly
• If This Is The Hand I'm Dealt
• I'm Gonna Cheat As Much As I Can

"Loud As Ever" collection captures a time and place

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By The Barman

The Barman

09 April 2021

Hits: 3834

Loud As Ever – Various Artists (Sound As Ever)

Every generation of music lovers grows up thinking its era was the best. So it goes with those who ploughed through puberty in the ‘90s, a time now digitally immortalised  (as all things are) by a Facebook page, “Sound As Ever”, dedicated to Australian independent music from 1990-99.

“Sound As Ever” is a snapshot of what life looked and sounded like on the fringes of Australian music in the ‘90s. It has an audience of 72,000 Facebook users after just a year. Like any retrospective, some of what’s thrown up is gem-like and some is shite.

Personally, the ‘90s were a letdown: Once the tidal wave of grunge had subsided, it left a lot of mediocrity on the surface and it seemed there wasn’t much Real Rock and Roll left. Bands like the Powder Monkeys and New Christs that were grossly underappreciated at the start of the decade criminally remained so at the end.

• meanies
• scott thurling
• loud as ever
• sound as ever
• nitrocris
• christbait
• area 7
• jane gazzo
• fur
• budd
• dwarfthrower
• seaweed gorillas

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Fifty years on, you'll love this madly

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By The Barman

The Barman

08 April 2021

Hits: 3829

The ghosts of '80s St Kilda will meet the spirit of '71 when Hugo Race - mainman of St. Kilda icons The Wreckery and foundation Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds guitarist - together with his band The True Spirit performs two special shows in April with special guest Steve Lucas of X.

Lucas, whose legendary X called St Kilda home in the late '80s and early '90s, has joined the bill for Race's upcoming L.A Woman 50th Anniversary shows at Theatre Royal in Castlemaine on Saturday 17 April and the Memo Music Hall in St Kilda on Friday April 23.

Hugo and band will be performing The Doors' apocalyptic “L.A. Woman” in its entirety to mark 50 years since its original release in 1971. Steve will open each night, performing a solo set of his favourite tunes from the same year, including selections from the Rolling Stones' ”Sticky Fingers” and Rod Stewart's “Every Picture Tells A Story”. 

• st kilda
• hugo race
• steve lucas
• memo music hall
• la woman
• the doors
• theatre royal

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Industrial strength riffage from one of Melbourne's best

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By Patrick Emery

Patrick Emery

08 April 2021

Hits: 2740

Waiting in a Corner - Jackson Reid Briggs and the Heaters (Legless Records)

Ever since The Enlightenment pulled away the fig-leaf of irrationality of religious justification, we’ve convinced ourselves that there is some rational basis for existence, some ultimate purpose to which we are cleaving, some end game of cognitive understanding.

Along the way there have been heated philosophical disputes, heresy trials, corrupted social policy programs, perverse economic theories and the same merry go-round of war, peace, famine and indulgence that has always characterised human history. No wonder Jean Paul Sartre decided to raid the top shelf of his local pharmacy in an amphetamine-ravaged attempt at deconstructing it all.  

Does existentialism belong in rock’n’roll?  According to the press release, Melbourne’s Jackson Reid Briggs and the Heaters’ new album, “Waiting in a Corner”, “explores the idea of waiting and searching for something that isn’t specific. Just a sense of something coming".

• melbourne
• jackson briggs and the heaters
• legless records
• waiting in a corner

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Dictator Top Ten stands down due to ill-health

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By The Barman

The Barman

07 April 2021

Hits: 4857

The reformed Dictators have announjced the sad news that Scott "Top Ten" Kempner is being forced to retire due to ill-health.

The band made the announcement on Facebook overnight, saying the rhythm guitarist and member of the Del-Lords has early stage dementia:

• dictators
• top ten
• scott kempner
• del-lords

Vale Beasts of Bourbon and Surrealists drummer Tony Pola

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By The Barman

The Barman

06 April 2021

Hits: 6173

Tony Pola - drummer for Beasts of Bourbon, The Beasts and Kim Salmon and the Surrealists - passed away over the Easter weekend. His wife Katherine Pola made the announcement via  a Facebook post.

The West Australian-based drummer (pictured far right with The Surrealists), with bass player, the late Brian Hooper, and Kim Salmon had a reputation as one of Australian music’s most irascible and eccentric characters. He was a founding member of The Surrealists, as well as drummer on the Beasts of Bourbon’s “breakthrough” classic, “The Low Road”.  

Bandmate Kim Salmon has launched a GoFundMe campaign to cover the costs of Tony’s funeral. You can make a contribution here. Kim also posted a tribute online:

• beasts of bourbon
• kim salmon
• surrealists
• the beasts
• tony pola

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Detroit label puts out the trash - again

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By General Labor

General Labor

05 April 2021

Hits: 4557

Trash Brats – Trash Bats (I-94 Recordings)

Summa you cool kids might remember I-94 Records out of Detroit (as opposed to I-94 Bar Records out of Sydney, Australia) as the dead savvy tastemakers behind those vital and volatile “Drunk On Rock” compilations. The label introduced loads of underground punk-roll bands, as well as essential full-length releases by Cranford Nix Jr. and the Malakas, the Trash Brats and B-Movie Rats. They are back with the highly influential debut of the Trash Brats first album, previously only available on cassette. In the 80's.

Trash Brats were the most important punk band in the Midwest - part NY Dolls, part Candy, part Teenage Head, poppy, melodic, fun, with notoriously crazy shows known for big energy and wild abandon. Appealing to fans of Sloppy Seconds, Hanoi Rocks, the Dickies, and the Ramones, a Trash Brats concert was where small-town kids travelled to shake ‘n’ shimmy, to get fucked up and jump up and down, try out all their kookiest Alien Sex Fiend and Bat Cave makeup, and to meet all your favorite, lifelong, goth girl pen pals.

• detroit
• b-movie rats
• trash brats
• i-94 recordings
• drunk on rock
• malakas

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Having one more drink with Streetwalkin' Cheetah Frank Meyer

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By The Barman

The Barman

02 April 2021

Hits: 5202

_{Frank Meyer flanked by Cheetahs bandmates (from left) Bruce Duff, MIke Sessa and Dino Evertett on bass. AP Murray photo.} 

In these COVID-fraught times, asking Frank Meyer what he puts on his curriculum vitae is a valid question. The Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs vocalist-guitarist doesn’t skip a beat, down the line on Zoom from his home in Long Beach, California.

“Right now, I mean, I'm basically freelance film producing and directing. You know, my last full time job was at Fender as directing and producing their digital content. But at the beginning of COVID, they laid off a lot of my team, including myself. And then showbiz kind of shut down.

“But now I've essentially just been doing music and freelance editing and online production, and a lot of session work, singing and playing, recording and producing. In the last few months, digital production has picked up and I've been getting a bunch of field production gigs. And I've got some book deals happening. So things are looking good right now.”

• cheetah
• chrome
• wayne kramer
• ramones
• james williamson
• dead boys
• deniz tek
• iggy & the stooges
• streetwalkin' cheetahs
• one more drink
• monte melnick
• bomp records
• greg shaw

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New Bomb Turks tribute hits the shelves

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By The Barman

The Barman

31 March 2021

Hits: 3792

The idea took root a year ago. Ardo from Estonian band Dead Furies had an idea to compile a tribute album for New Bomb Turks, perhaps his favourite band and oen of the stars of the US 1990s punk rock scene. He hit up some up and coming rock bands, and some mainstays, to see if they would be interested.

The response was overwhelmingly positive.

The tracks started coming in from the likes of the Hellacopters and DEMONS from Sweden, the UK’s Hip Priests and the Killer Hearts (USA). In the end he got 14 different incredible artists from Europe and North America. 

Newish label on the block , Dragstrip Riot Records  have collaborated with seasoned labels Ghost Highway Recordings from Spain and Spaghetty Town Records from US to bring you “No Heroes No Leaders No Artists No Gods”. Every label released a different limited coloured vinyl and also the regular black version. 

It's strictly vinyl only and the label names above link to websites. 

Tracklisting:

1. Professional Againsters “Bolan’s Crash” (Sweden)
2. Deadheads “Quarter To  Four” (Sweden)
3. “DEMONS” “Pretty Lightening” (Sweden)
4. The Boatsmen “Wine and Depression” (Sweden)
5. Acid’s Trip “Snap Decision” (Sweden)
6. The Chuck Norris Experiment “End Of The Great Credibility Race” (Sweden)
7. The Hip Priests “Jukebox Lean” (England)
8. Dead Furies “Your Beaten Heart” (Estonia)
9. Scumbag Millionaire “Tryin' To Get By” (Sweden)
10. The Drippers “Hammerless Nail” (Sweden)
11. Jonesy “Jeers Of A Clown” (Canada)
12. Killer Hearts “Spanish Fly By Night” (United States)
13. Randy Savages “We Give A Rat's Ass” (England)
14. The Hellacopters “Veronica Lake” (Sweden)

• hellacopters
• new bomb turks
• ghost highway recordings
• spaghetty town records
• demons
• dead furies