DISGRACEland

Bright Lights & Dead Beats – DISGRACELand (self released)

It’s hard to translate a live band to tape/hard drive, but DISGRACE Land have given it a damned good shot on their sophomore CD “Bright Lights & Dead Beats”. In doing so, they’ve also wound the clock back to Sydney circa 1986 when the city resonated with the sounds of the garage and the swamp in equally large measures.

“Bright Lights…” is a major sonic advance on “A Beginners Guide to DISGRACEland” and that’s largely down to engineer, mixer and masterer John Cobbin,but the band gave him the songs and performances to make it fly.

It’s a no-frills recording but the energy is palpable on songs like the surging “Sweet Salvation”, brooding opener “Border Town” and the urgent and lean “Better Call Saul”. Granted, you don’t get frontman Carl Musker jumping on top of your stereo to preach at you in person but listening to the CD is the next best thing.

They were Australian rock and roll’s undisputed Kings of Cowpunk in the 1980s and broke house records around the country. Four decades later, The Johnnys are out to show they’ve lost none of their edge when they rock Manly and Elizabeth Bay in New South Wales this month, presented by The I-94 Bar.

The Johnnys will play The Old Boat Shed at Manly with locals DISGRACELand on Friday, February 16 and Pacific Palms Recreation Club with Mid North Coast rockers Mooton Saturday, February 17.  Tickets for Manly are here and Pacific Palms Rekky here.

1. THE MUNKS and THE STALLERS @THE MOSH PIT, SYDNEY
Opening act The Stallers pumped out a high-energy set , a mix of obscure garage covers and originals. Loved it , good guys , great players led by head gunslinger DARREN FALCONSTEIN who plays in many other bands like BAHNE SUPER-FLEX.  All the way from Ulladulla  THE MUNKS pumped out the Raw ROCKNROLL, a sense of humour , showmanship and quality playing. Probably my favourite Semi - local band I've seen in a long time. 

2. The JOHNNYS, @THE OLD BOATSHED, MANLY
I saw THE JOHNNYS  many times in the ‘80s, one time at Selinas supporting the HOODOO GURUS and THE JOHNNYS blew them away. It's  ow 2024 , 40 years later. SPENCER, unfortunately, isn't there but HOODY, SLIM and BILLY still blasting the stuff that hooked me as a teenager. 

3. The DAMNED @ENMORE THEATRE, SYDNEY
Some bands get old and bitter, these guys don't. The more I listen to THE DAMNED the more I appreciate and love them.  Punk, Goth, Pop - call them what you want, I call them  awesome. RAT SCABIES was a highlight,  I didn't realise how good a drummer he was.....possibly second only to CLEM BURKE.

A Beginners Guide to DISGRACEland – DISGRACEland (Vi-Nil Records)

DISGRACELandare the remnants of Sydney Northern Beaches band from the ‘90s, Orange County, MERGATROID and the group fronted by infamous ‘80s wastrel Johnny Teen, and have hooked up with re-animated label Vi-Nil to release a debut album. Sounds just what’s needed in these fraught times where live music is still staggering under the weight of a COVID hangover.

With pandemics being what they are, DISGRACELand hasn’t appeared live much, but the shows they have under their collective belt have attracted attention. One animated affair at the Link and Pin Café in Woy Woy, north of Sydney, impressed part-owner and Vi-Nil honcho Mark Fraser so much that he decided to put out the band's CD.