It's nearly Open Season

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By The Barman

The Barman

22 May 2019

Hits: 3866

Our own loss-leading I-94 Bar Records is proud to announce the imminent release of "OPen Season", the new album by Mick Medew and The Mesmeriers.

Led by Brisbane legend Mick Medew, the band includes members of his Screaming Tribesmen, the Lipstick Killers, The 31st and Shy Impostors.  "Open Season" is available for pre-order from our Bandcamp now and will be out on CD and digitally from June 4. Enjoy this teaser and the ordering link is here.

• Medew
• mesmerisers
• Mick
• screaming tribesmen
• lipstick killers
• the 31st
• open season

Bedouin of the Fitzroy Evening - Lonely Stretch (self released)

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By Robert Brokenmouth

Robert Brokenmouth

22 May 2019

Hits: 2919

"Bedouin of the Fitzroy Evening" is the first album by Adelaide's Lonely Stretch.

You've probably heard of The Dunes, who are deservedly gaining increased amount of fame and favour. Lonely Stretch is, essentially, a side project spearheaded by Matt Reiner (guitar, 'programming', vox).

He's joined by the occasional Dune (Brett Walter, keys) and other likely  musicians such as Max Tulysewski (drums), the multi-talented Matt Hills (production, 'programming', bass and other guitars), and Romana Ashton (vox).

• lonely stretch
• Matt Reiner
• the dunes
• bedouin of the fitzroy evening

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Queen of the Pill - The Jackets (Voodoo Rhythm)

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By The Barman

The Barman

20 May 2019

Hits: 3998

I read Voodoo Rhythm label head booster Beat-Man's customary over-the-top accompanying blurb for this Swiss band. Other people, famous folk whose music you love, rate The Jackets very high. Who? Well ... Alice Cooper. 

Nah, can't be that good.

It's better. 

Every song is crafted, clever, and a blazing, shooting, call-out-the-army riot in a small town over a misplaced pair of slippers. 

The band are: Jack Torera aka Jackie Brutsche (guitar, vocals), Chris Rosales (drums) and Samuel "Schmidi" Schmidiger (bass).

You have to imagine a slightly different 1960s. Where the studios were better. Where short, sharp, powerful bolts of lightning strike over thundering drums and a glorious fuzz drone (no song here is over 3 minutes). Where more women were into the macho world of r'n'r. 'Queen of the Pill' is ten supercharged luscious slabs of dance-frantic, limbo-struttin', death-defying rawk that'll come close to blowing your head off.

• garage
• garage punk
• voodoo rhythm
• the jackets
• queen of the pill

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Quake Up! - Surfquake (Surfquake)

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By The Barman

The Barman

19 May 2019

Hits: 3262

It’s a (mainly instrumental) surf album but “Quake Up!” covers more genres than you can shake a wax stick at. Movie and TV themes, sci-fi and garage pop litter the wake of this Essex quartet like pebbles on a Pommy beach. It's probably a reason for surf music purists to hate ‘em.

Surf music isn’t a language that openly speaks to everyone these days but it’s murmuring away in the background. From an Australian perspective, scratch the veneer of any of our greatest rock and roll bands from the last 50 years and you’ll surf music lurking underneath. The blues and beat pop that British migrants brought with them rode right over the top of surf in the early ’60s.

• surf
• united kingdom
• surfquake
• quake up
• essex

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Bella Wreck - Bella Wreck (Heavy Medication)

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By The Barman

The Barman

18 May 2019

Hits: 4120

This re-issued gem on Polish label Heavy Medication is by a band led by an Australian expatriate based in Germany. It was originally released in Europe on vinyl in 2014 and it’s odd-on that if you weren’t in the know back then and you come from outside Europe, you probably wouldn’t have noticed.

Dave Thomas is the Australian vocalist and guitarist in Bella Wreck and, no, he’s not the Dave Thomas from Geetroit legends Bored! For one, he’s about a metre taller. He also has strawberry blond hair down to his arse.

This Dave Thomas lived colourfully for a while in New York City and was a member of Sydney bands Flame Boa and The Crisps. The Crisps included Hoody from The Johnnys and Stuart Wilson (New Christs and Lime Spiders) on drums.

• heavy medication records
• dave thomas
• bella wreck
• doomfoxx
• mick cocks

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Remembering Tony Grudge Hayward

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By Robert Brokenmouth

Robert Brokenmouth

17 May 2019

Hits: 5029

Tony “Grudge” Hayward, my friend with the impish smirk, that strong, capable, street-smart man who saw through the city snobs and inspired friendship in all around him because he was simply a force of nature, has died. He was taken to palliative care on May 11 and passed six days later. 

Tony was a member of C-Bombs, Roadkill66 and REPO. Six months ago I would've said Tony was damn near indestructible, but once more, Adelaide's scene is in a state of shock and grief.

You need to know that I am probably the least of Tony's friends to write this, and I apologise for that. I came so late to Tony's life, and it was a damned big life. There are many bandmates, friends and relatives with much, much more to tell - and in time perhaps they will.

Tony died in a South Australian country hospital; he went in knowing the end was imminent, and he faced it in characteristic style, with an apparent offhand acceptance. Was he brave for the love of his life? Partly, I am sure; but even had she not been there, Tony had faced a lot of things, dealt with them all because he was, as I say, a capable man as well as being tough, brave.

Mandy Tzaras photo

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A full sick night, mate

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By Robert Brokenmouth

Robert Brokenmouth

15 May 2019

Hits: 4626

"The Odd Night Out"
Botanic Gordon + Leitmotiv Limbo
+ r.domain + Vomit of the Universe
The Metro, Adelaide 
May 11, 2019
Photos by Somnambulist Dillinger

I'd never seen any of these outfits. Only heard of one of them, Vomit of the Universe (aka VoU), because my friends Adam Mondayitis (pictured right - sometime DJ at 3D Radio until they got gentrified, Hydrocephallus and Smallpox Confidentialist) and Jordy Dodd are VoU and ... well. You never know, do you? Might be dreadful. Might be wonderful.

The organiser wasn't sure what the order of play was until everyone more or less got there. So this is how the bands appeared on the FB event page (and yes, it's 'sic'):

Vomit of the Universe - guitar and drums duo plays slimey soiled rusty metal

r.domain - modular synths of megalopic proportions with a sea of wires

Botanic Gordon - formerly of the '70s organ synth, now renovating for future antiquity

Leitmotiv Limbo - clarinet sin storage, synth put aside, "just playing spring sculptures"

• vomit of the universe
• botanic gordon
• leitmotiv limbo
• r.domain
• the odd night out

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Shoving some Stranglers down our throats

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By Steve Lorkin

Steve Lorkin

10 May 2019

Hits: 4672

Hugh Cornwell
The Manning Bar, Sydney
Thuirsday, May 9, 2019

The Stranglers were the first UK Punk/New Wave band I ever saw. It was February 25, 1979, at the State Theatre in Sydney with opening band, The Hitmen.

Of course, The Stranglers were not punk or new wave or pub rock or ANYTHING. They played Strangler Music (god bless their drug taking, karate fighting, foul mouthed socks). A band like that couldn’t last forever. Lead singer/Guitarist Hugh Cornwell went one way, the rest of the band went another way…que sera sera …what ever will be will be.

• australian tour
• the stranglers
• 2019
• hugh cornwell

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Powertrane with Tek and Asheton, Scientists head revival of Grown Up Wrong label

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By The Barman

The Barman

10 May 2019

Hits: 5068

This could be the best news fans of raw and real rock and roll will hear this year: Esteemed Australian label Grown Up Wrong - th forerunner of Dogmeat Records - is back in business. Owner David Laing is kicking off with a bang with two killer releases to get the ball rolling (again.)

First  is a fantastic collection of primarily live recordings from the original Perth-based line-ups of The Scientists - back when James Baker of Victims/Hoodoo Gurus was still drumming for them. "Not For Sale: LIve 1978/79" is an archival set of recordings from the band's ragged powerpop days when they sounded like a collision between the Flamin' Groovies and The New York Dolls.

The second release is a reissue – with extra tracks, and for the first time on vinyl – of a rare 2002 live album called “Ann Arbor Revival Meeting” by Scott Morgan's Powertrane with Deniz Tek and Ron Asheton.

• kim salmon
• deniz tek
• scott morgan
• ron asheton
• the scientists
• grown up wrong
• dogmeat records
• ann arbor revival meeting

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