Five of the eight Radio Birdman ”Birdman  5-0” Australian tour dates have sold-out and the remaining three are poised to go the same way.

The run kicks off at The Croxton Bandroom in Melbourne this Friday. That show and Saturday at the same venue are down to their final ticket allocations. 

All three Sydney gigs and two Brisbane dates have had the House Full signs put up and Adelaide on June 23 is showing signs of going the same way. Extra shows are not being added so go here to buy.

Controversy? Hallowed be thy name in show business. The Saints ’73-‘78 tickets are moving faster than Ed Kuepper’s downstroke with shows in Brisbane, Melbourne and Castlemaine selling out and two extra gigs added.

Brisbane sold out in one day which prompted the addition of another show. Melbourne has an extra date and capacity at Castlemaine was increased to meet demand before the House Full sign went up. 

Supports have been confirmed and include relative new kids on the block Chimers, Parsnip and Alien Nosejob alongside veterans Kim Salmon & The Surrealists.

Meantime pre-orders for the deluxe 4-LP box set version of (I’m) Stranded (due this November) can be made here. 

_{The classic early Saints line-up with reformation participants, drummer Ivor Hay and guitarist Ed Kuepper at front, and Chris Bailey at the rear.}

The Saints reformation has turned ugly with the Estate of late frontman Chris Bailey going public with a condemnation.

In a tersely-worded media statement released overnight, Chris Bailey’s Family and Estate questioned the decision to reform The Saints with Mark Arm from Mudhoney replacing the late singer who passed away two years ago.

“Neither the late singer’s family, nor the Chris Bailey Estate, were informed or consulted, on this decision,” the statement said. “We are surprised that Mark Arm agreed to do this without consultation.”

The statement said the Estate owns “The Saints” name and its primary objective is “to honour Chris Bailey’s memory and the Saints significant legacy with integrity”.

Here's news to make it This Perfect Day or send you down a One Way Street...

The Saints are reforming with Mudhoney's Mark Arm up front for a six-date Australian tour in November.
 
Arm, founding Saints members guitarist Ed Kuepper and drummer Ivor Hay will be joined by bassist Peter Oxley of Sunnyboys and former The Birthday Party/Bad Seeds member Mick Harvey on guitar.

The dates will be in celebration of a vinyl box set release of the 1977 classic debut album "(I’m) Stranded" on In The Red. The sets will be largely drawn from it, "Eternally Yours" (1978) and "Prehistoric Sounds" (1978). 

Wed Nov 13 Hindly St. Music Hall, Adelaide, SA
Fri Nov 15 Theatre Royal, Castlemaine, VIC
Sat Nov 16 Northcote Theatre, Melbourne, VIC
Wed Nov 20 Freo Social, Fremantle, WA
Fri Nov 22 Enmore Theatre, Sydney, NSW
Sat Nov 23 Princess Theatre, Brisbane QLD SOLD OUT
SUN Nov 24 Princess Theatre, Brisbane QLD 
Tickets via feelpresents.com

“Heavy Lifting” – which is being marketed as the first MC5 studio album in 53 years – is out on October 18.

Led by late founding member Wayne Kramer (pictured right) and recorded with iconic producer Bob Ezrin (Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, KISS), the album features original Five drummer, also late Dennis “Machine Gun” Thompson, on two tracks along with special guests including Slash, Tom Morello, William DuVall (Alice in Chains), Vernon Reid (Living Colour), Don Was, and Tim McIlrath (Rise Against).

"Heavy Lifting" will be on LP and CD with a bonus disc of live tracks by MC50, the band Kramer fronted on a world tour to showcase MC5 songs for the 50th anniversary.

earMUSIC will release the album a  day prior to the MC5’s induction into 2024’s Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.

It had to happen: Californian imprint PR Press is publishing a ground-breaking new book on Australian punk, “Orstralia: A Punk History 1974–1989” by Tristan Clark, on July 9. And on the same date, Clark will self-publish a companion volume “Orstralia: A Punk History 1990 –1999”.

"Ostralia: A Punk History"will be the first comprehensive overview of the story of Australian “punk”, from its beginnings as an underground movement in the '70s through the emergence of hardcore in the '80s, and extending into its commercial ascent in the '90s.  

Both volumes seek to go beyond the music to take in cultural context and sociological concerns. They tell the story on a city-by-city basis with regional centres also covered.  

Author Tristan Clark has been involved in the Melbourne punk scene for mor than three decades. He has done his homework. Clark conducted 130 interviews, with members of The Saints, Radio Birdman, Boys Next Door/Birthday Party, Babeez/News, Victims, Leftovers,  Fun Things, Zero, Psycho Surgeons and X, through to the likes of Depression, Hard-Ons, Cosmic Psychos and Grong Grong, TheLiving End, Bodyjar and Frenzal Rhomb.