dave thomas

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.

The Crisps – The Crisps (Vi-Nil Records)

Pure garage pop goodness and it’s only two decades late. Chances are you’ve never heard of them.

As mentioned elsewhere, The Crisps were a Sydney assemblage of great potential back in the 1990s. The reasons they went nowhere are lost in the mists of time – probably hidden under a floorboard of the abandoned Hopetoun Hotel.

A vehicle for the songs of drummer-vocalist Stuart Wilson (New Christs, Lime Spiders and dozens of others), the band included members of would-be international stars Doomfoxx, road veterans The Johnnys and underrated northern beaches cowboys Orange County.

They recorded these six songs to help rustle up gigs. Ex-music reviewer-turned-bar operator  Mark Fraserheard them while reviving his Vi Nil Records label, loved ‘em and offered to press them up. And the rest is history.    

“Feed The Dog” b/w “Coming Back” – Bored! (Fantastic Mess Records)

Before the recent passing of principal member Dave Thomas, Bored! had probably faded somewhat from the collective underground music consciousness. 

There was a collection of live material out on Spanish label Bang! that did address that but, being a mail order thing, it was probably only heard by diehard Australian fans. This posthumous, limited-edition single from committed boutique label Fantastic Mess rights this wrong and is a fine tribute to Dave.

Issued as a cassette in 1988 in a limited run of 300, these are the first recordings of Bored! Expect no studio wankery or sonic polishing, other than the obvious mastering from cassette to vinyl. This is how the band sounded when they were a bunch of pups from Geelong, playing on the floor of their local record store.

Bang! Records is run by a couple of Basque Country rock and roll fanatics who have championed Beasts of Bourbon and various spin-offs, a host of scuzzy Downtown Manhattan noise-makers and the so-called Geetroit Sound. This recycled gem is on LP only and follows 2016’s “Piggyback” compilation of lost recordings on the same label.

While chowing down on early Stooges songs might be ho-hum in these Post Pop Reunion times, Bored! was really pushing envelopes in post-punk Melbourne and its environs. That explains the three-in-a-row inclusion of “I Wanna Be Your Dog”, “No Fun” and “TV Eye”. “No Fun” especially has intuitively weaving guitar fireworks from Dave Thomas and John Nolan that should make your jaw gape.

BORED! THIS WAS GEELONG (Loco Mosquito)

Sometimes there are insufficient words of adequare to do justice to something and this is one of those times. Let’s be clear: If you’re a fan of underground Australian rock and roll from the 1980s and ‘90s, make it your life’s immediate priority to get a hold of this book.

It’s not an exaggeration to say it’s a watershed in Australian music publishing. All 678 pages of it. Don’t be deterred by its singling out of Geelong as its geographical focus. The city on the western flank of Melbourne is its anchor - but its coverage and spirit extends far past its boundaries.

“Bored!” is many things but first and foremost it’s an outpouring of love for rock and roll by its creator, principal author and driving force Maree Robertson.

Maree – “Rock and Roll Maree” from the Brother Brick song – was a dear friend of the late Dave Thomas of key Geelong band Bored! Besides documenting the band’s rise and its creation of a scene from their mutual hometown of Geelong, Maree wanted to generate profits from book sales to help Dave’s family.

_{Dave and Hoody: The Crisps. Shona Ross photo}

The Crisps
+ PocketWatch
+ The Hot Ness
Marrickville Bowling Club, Sydney
Friday, 7 April 2023

Photos: Shona Ross

Seventeen years after they last stood together on a Sydney stage, The Crisps are hitting the road up and down the Australian East Coast, partly to promote the release of an EPand partly for fun. Tonight’s show is number-two of the run and happening on the Friday of an Easter weekend.

Stalwarts of the Sydney underground scene of the 1990s, The Crisps have reunited for a brief tour and the release of their self-titled EP.

The Crisps were regarded as something of a supergroup back in the day. Comprising Stu Wilson (New Christs), Graham “Hoody” Hood (The Johnnys), Dave Thomas (Doomfoxx) and Chris Nacard (Orange County), they punched out a memorable and melodic brand of garage rock. That’s reflected on the six-track EP they have released through Vi-Nil Records,available on pink vinyl only here.

The Crisps
Reformation and EP Launches
APRIL
5 – Newcastle, Hamilton Station Hotel
+ Drugs in Sport + Shacked
7 – Sydney, Marrickville Bowlo
+ Pocket Watch + The Hot Ness
8 – Newcastle, Hiss & Crackle Wallsend (instore)
       Woy Woy, Link n Pin + Meth Haul
9 – Sydney, Manly Boatshed
+ Sonic Garage + 4 Barrel Hemi
13 – Canberra, Smiths Alternative
+ Pilots of Baalbek + Undermines
14 – Bendigo
15 – Workman’s Club, Brunswick (arvo)
         Melbourne, The Tote (upstairs) +  The Dallas Terrors + Three Broads and a Gun
21 - Enmore, NSW, Route 66 (in-store)
22- MoshPit, St Peters, NSW (3-6pm) + The Jean Wilders + The Jane Does

Rick Chesshirecartoon.

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.

Feed The Dog – Bored! (Fantastic Mess Records)

The original album came out in 1991 and showed off a new, lean and still mean version of Bored!. “Feed The Dog” was an instant classic. Thirty years later, its guitarist, vocalist and driving force Dave Thomas is no longer with us, but be thankful that this fearsome, re-mastered version is.

If you were immersed in the Australian underground scene in 1991, you’ll know that the international name on everybody’s lips back then was Nirvana. Their debut album “Bleach” was making its mark and the over-ground success of “Nevermind” was just over the horizon. Bored! also could have gone on to huge things.