Vale Dave Thomas of Bored!

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By The Barman

The Barman

23 March 2020

Hits: 6282

Rick Chesshire cartoon.

Australian underground rock and roll has suffered another loss with the passing of former Bored! leader Dave Thomas, aged 56. Thomas had been fighting cancer.

Thomas co-founded Bored! in Geelong a satellite city of Melbourne, in 1987. The band was an early blend of punk rock and metal, and spawned a scene dubbed "Geetroit" for its trademark power and high-energy.

• powder monkeys
• bored!
• dave thomas
• geetroit

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Knuckle sandwich is on this menu

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By The Barman

The Barman

22 March 2020

Hits: 4391

All I Wanted Was a Kebab - White Knuckle Fever (self released)

Strap yourself in. Or strap it on. It’s going to be that sort of ride.

White Knuckle Fever is Sydney duo Celia Curtis on vocals and Ross Johnston on guitar and everything else. Ross used to be 3kShort in Machine Gun Fellatio and Celia goes by the name Cruella, Lady of Steel, in macabre vaudeville act Circus Bizarre. So they should be easy to find if the cops issue a summons.

In live performance (remember that?) the duo supplements things with loops and the like. On recordings, they sound like a five-headed Hades houndog that's chewing on the scrotum of Satan. 

• blues rock
• white knuckle fever
• all i wanted was a kebab
• machine gun fellatio
• celia curtis
• ross johnston

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Fuzzed-up and French

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By The Barman

The Barman

21 March 2020

Hits: 3640

Nervous Breakdown - Destination Lonely (Voodoo Rhythm)

There’s more fuzz on “Nervous Breakdown” than an ageing punnet of strawberries from the back of the fridge a month after their use-by date. The band responsible, Destination Lonely, is described as “three angry men from Toulouse”, and they sound more crankier than one of their countrymen at the end of a crash diet when they’re told by the baker that he's fresh out of baguettes.

Sometimes a large meal is best consumed in a couple of portions and that might be your best approach to “Nervous Breakdown”. It’s 17 tracks long and sometimes all that distortion and primal skronk becomes hard going - like on the 14-minute noise fest “Nervous Breakdown (big band)”. 

• voodoo rhythm
• jerry spider gang
• destination lonely
• lo spider

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Who'll Bring the Rain? Endless Boogie.

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By The Barman

The Barman

20 March 2020

Hits: 3289

The much-anticipated return of Endless Boogie and the Australian debut of Howlin’ Rain will happen, and has now been moved from April to late October and early November.

Both bands will be appearing at the rescheduled Boogie festival (October 30-November 1) in rural Victoria and at the same East Coast venues they were originally booked into. All existing tickets will be honoured. 

Endless Boogie & Howlin' Rain
OCT
29 - The Tote, Melbourne, Sydney
NOV
5 - Crowbar, Sydney
+ feedtime
Endless Boogie only
6 - Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane
7 - Eltham Hotel, NSW

• australian tour
• endless boogie
• howlin' rain

October date shift for Died Pretty

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By The Barman

The Barman

20 March 2020

Hits: 3387

The bad and unavoidable news is that Died Pretty has joined the ever growing list of bands impacted by Coronavirus. The good news is that the band has re-scheduled all but one of the four shows for later in the year. The Perth gig unfortunately cannot be re-booked due to member availability, so has been cancelled.

• died pretty
• 2020

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One re-issue that does justice to the legend

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By The Barman

The Barman

17 March 2020

Hits: 4725

X-Aspirations - X (SL Express) 

The (mild) hype accompanying the 40th anniversary edition was deserved and - and then some. This is as essential an Australian “punk” album as the Radio Birdman and Saints debuts - even if comparatively few people noticed at the time. 

The reputation of “X-Aspirations” as the ultimate in primal, spontaneous and minimally brutal music fron this part of the world (Australia) has grown with every re-issue, and this re-mastered vinyl version is surely the last word. 

Sydney-reared and as street-level as a band could be, X had all but been destroyed by reputation and reality by the time they went into Trafalgar Studios in 1979. Venue owners despised them and the crowd they attracted. Gigs inevitably ended with a full house, physical damage, spilled blood and a warning for the band not to come back.

• ian rilen
• steve lucas
• lobby loyde
• steve cafeiro
• x band
• x-aspirations
• trafalgar studios

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Getting loved up with Steve and Joey

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By The Barman

The Barman

16 March 2020

Hits: 3865

Je T'aime Moi Non Plus b/w Je T'aime Instrumental - Steve Lucas & Joey Bedlam (Radio Rocks)

This is the I-94 Bar Singles Bar, isn't it? "Je T'aime Moi Non Plus" (translated: "I love you no more") is a lovingly-crafted cover of the Serge Gainsborough song he wrote for for Brigitte Bardot, sung by X's Steve Lucas and his better half Joey Bedlam, most notably of Dollsquad.

Everybody from Kim Salmon and the Surrealists to Nick Cave and Anita Lane, TV siren Abigail and Bob Downe has had a lash at "J T'aime", so it would be a pity if you had to self-isolate and not have the chance to sing along with your own nearest and dearest and steam up some windows. 

It's a faithfully-rendered version and a million miles from X, but it's also a bunch of fun. Flip the sucker over and there's an instrumental version that you can karaoke with or record along to. Grab a copy at Bandcamp and see the uncensored cover that Facebook banned.

1/2

• steve lucas
• joey bedlam
• x band
• serge gainsborough
• Je T'aime Moi Non Plus

Sorry for the no-shows, folks

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By The Barman

The Barman

16 March 2020

Hits: 2046

I-94 Bar promoted shows involving the New Christs (Marrickville Bowling Club, April 17) and Mick Medew and the Mesmerisers (Marrickville Bowling Club, March 27) have been regretably cancelled due to the Coronavirus crisis. The Mick Medew and the Mesmerisers show at Mayfield Bowling Club (March 29) has also fallen victim to the outbreak.

Pre-purchased ticket refunds for the Marrickville shows are available from Oztix.

Make mine a breakfast burrito with extra chilli

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By The Barman

The Barman

13 March 2020

Hits: 4511

Mexican Hillbilly Surf Music - The Mezcaltones (Foghorn/MGM)

For most Australians, Tex Mex music is like Mexican food: Only a handful of us have experienced the real thing. So props to Sydney band The Mezcacltones for cooking up their home-grown variant of the former, and dubbing it “Mexican Hillbilly Surf”.

The twang is the thang as far the sound of this six-piece goes. It’s all over their music. Their brand is country - with some trimmings - and the delivery is slick without being overly so. It’s commercial enough for The Mezcaltones to have played the Tamworth Festival five times. 

• swamp
• surf
• hillbilly
• mezcaltones
• Mexican Hillbilly Surf Music
• foghorn

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