THE BARMAN
I-94 Bar barkeep
Sydney, Australia 

“Monday Evening Gunk”
My favourite thing to do on a Monday night. Props to Jill, Wax, Pat and Sonja at MoshPit, News and Brews co-pilot Rossy,  tech-head Zac, photographer/chronicler of choice Shona Ross, and the many guests and hosts involved. My original Top Ten was going to be a chronological list of Gunk episodes because it would be like picking a favourite child. 

“Goose Lake” – The Stooges (Third Man Records)
What a fucking trip.

"If This Is The Hand I'm Dealt" and "I'm Gonna Cheat As Much As I Can" solo albums by Peter Black
Got to these very late in 2020 and the Hard-Ons and Nunchukka Superfly guitarist just goes from strength-to-strength with his quirky, catchy and compelling solo work. One acoustic, one electric. Get a full hand.

RONNY VAN DYK
Wreckless Enterprise label honcho and member of The Leftards
Wollongong, NSW, Australia 

TOP TEN '60s CLIPS

PETER ‘ROSSY” ROSS
Celebrity Roadie, Jupiter 5 bassist
Sydney, Australia

This is a list of things that have caught my eye in 2020 - in no particular order.

WHITE KNUCKLE FEVER
Everybody’s favourite two piece have been kicking goals all through the year culminating with a new double single release that is killer. Ross and Celia are not only hard working but one of the funniest bands in Sydney.

OUTTASPACE RECORDS
Milly and Adam have been working their rings out throughout the year, releasing high quality record after record. It’s been great watching the rise of their Central Coast colossus. Now they’ve even got their own venue in Woy Woy, The Link and Pin! Honourable mention also goes to Wreckless Enterprises.

LIVE MUSIC OFFICE
Sydney’s dormant live music scene won’t return overnight to prominence, and it doesn’t happen by accident. Blokes like John Wardle, and his team, have been pushing for legislative support and reforms to remove the barriers to get live bands into back into venues. They’re kicking some goals and it would be remiss to not acknowledge their massive efforts.

MONDAY EVENING GUNK
Live from the little venue that tried, Sydney’s version of CBGBs The Moshpit, MEG was one of the bright spots in a difficult year. Driven by The I-94 Bar’s Barman and Jill “Force of Nature” Dures, it was one part history lesson, Rockwiz knock-off, Molly Meldrum’s Humdrum and a live gig packed into a one hour live stream for 10 weeks… a garage rock version of Countdown if you like. A technical conundrum handled with style by Zac Ruokari from Zenn Streaming, the show was fun to be involved with and we can only hope it gets another airing in 2021.

MILLY D'ALTON AND ADAM BRZOZOWSKI
Owners of Outtaspace Records
Co-owners of Link and Pin live venue
Central Coast, NSW Australia

Hiss & Crackle Records, Wallsend
Old-school record shop with an owner who knows what you wanna hear before you’ve heard it; limited-edition local releases, live in stores and shitloads of support for non-mainstream artists.

Celia Curtis’s (White Knuckle Fever, Stone Cold Fox) highly entertaining live stream and Facebook performances
They kept us Covid-sane.

Tequila-based beer.
For when you’re torn between a frothy and and a marg, and Umina BWS shuts at 8pm on a Sunday.

Thee Cha Cha Chas and Fuzztoon Studios
They released a spookily prophetic 7” (‘It’s Coming After You’), always smiling despite hardcore Melbourne lockdown. And Lluis’s prolific art kicked 2020’s arse.

ASHLEY THOMSON
Ex-Kelpies, Rollcage, Brother Brick, Panadolls
Sydney, Australia

Top Ten Gigs I wish I was at drunk

Beatles - @ the Kaiserkeller - Hamburg, Germany. October 1960.
From the era when the Beatles played four sets a night, 50 days straight, making themselves an extremely tight rock n roll machine. Heineken ja ja!

The Doors - @ Whiskey a Go Go - Los Angeles, USA. August 1966
Mostly I just want to hear a fat version of “The End”. I’d probably drop a trip as well. JD. 

Coloured Balls/Lobby Lloyd - @ Sebastians, Melbourne. Saturday April 15, 1972 
I’d make sure I was fucking hammered and slammed my head into the PA when they did their “torture rock porn” version of Heartbreak Hotel, suck more piss indeed. Just beer. 

Robert Johnson @ anywhere around the Mississippi Delta, USA. 1935
“Hellhound on my Trail” is one of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard. Moonshine. 

The Byrds @ Whiskey a Go Go - Los Angeles, USA. 1966
So influential, changed everything, still listening to them. A trip as well? Not sure. Watermelon wine. 

KEVIN "BIG DADDY K" CHERRY
2RRR-FM host of "Sydney Sounds"
Sydney, Australia

I'm sure that everyone agrees that 2020 has been a shitty year. The worst I can remember in my 60 years on this planet.  I'm not generally into reminiscing and my bad short term memory usually prevents me participating in these types of lists. Living on the Northern Beaches area of Sydney and being in lockdown for the second time, however, I've decided to attempt to give my impression of the year's music events.

The last band that I saw before the first lockdown in March (which resulted in all the gigs I had planned to go to in the following weeks collapsing before my eyes like a stack of dominoes) was THE MEZCALTONES at The Orient Hotel in Sydney’s The Rocks district.

THE MEZCALTONES are a fantastic Mewxican Hillbilly Surf band from the Northern Beaches fronted by COL “PADRE” PORTER, his guitar-slinging wife NERALYN and whip-twirling, go-go dancing, singing percussionist, MISS MIMI, as well as the three other members. They always put on an entertaining performance of original songs and crowd pleasing covers and obscurities. They attract an audience that loves to get up and dance.

I also saw them at a socially distanced performance at The Marrickville Bowlo, which was a different atmosphere due to the restrictions, which meant that none of the audience could get up and dance or even stand with a drink in their hand. 

DARREN BIRCH
Bass player for Black Bombers and former member of Gunfire Dance, Brian James Gang, Walter Lure and The Godfathers
Birmingham, UK

It's been a funny old year! I managed to play one gig before the world shut down and didn't get to see any. From the beginning of March, I couldn't leave the house for 15 weeks so books and music became my friends....

My Top 10 for 2020:

1.) “Sing Backwards and Weep” by Mark Lanegan. His autobiography.

2.) “The War is Never Over” by Nick Soulsby. A book and companion piece to the Lydia Lunch documentary of the same name.

3.) “Just A Shot Away. 1969 Revisisted” Volumes 1 and 2 books by Kris Needs.

4.) “Diminished Responsibility: My Life as a UK Sub and Other Strange Stoies” (book) by Alvin Gibbs