Tribesmen

Pig City author ANDREW STAFFORD speaks to former Screaming Tribesman and I-94 Bar Records signing MICK MEDEW about all the old, all the new, and "All Your Love". Cartoon by Rick Chesshire.

The big three are money, drugs and women – the three things that invariably fuck male bands up. For the Screaming Tribesmen, it was women, or a woman, though the whole thing was probably the bass player’s fault, really. It’s the best story of its type I’ve ever heard.

Chris Masuak (Radio Birdman, Hitmen, Screaming Tribesmen) has a new music video live and it's a taster for a forthcoming album, currently in production with his Spanish band, The Viveiro Wave Riders Associaiton. Here it is in all its stark glory, showcasing the "dead centre" of Klondike's adopted home town of Viveiro, in northern Spain.

Mighty little French label Pitshark continues to punch above its weight. Not content with issuing exclusive vinyl releases from the likes of the Stooges, Radio Birdman and the New Christs, it’s about to launch a Singles Club with a year’s worth of 7” records in bi-monthly waves.

A couple of listens in and it’s evident why Paul Collins recruited the core of this band to back him on his Australian tours. The On and Ons play classic guitar pop in the mould of The Plimsouls, the Flamin’ Groovies in their Beatles-besotted era and Collins’ own The Beat.

This is a band that walks down the pop side of the street. If lineage counts, The On and Ons start with a considerable advantage over many others. The members’ rap sheets include the early Hoodoo Gurus, the latter-day Screaming Tribesmen, Kings of the Sun, The Barbarellas and The Stems. To paraphrase Lou: Their powerpop day beats your year.

Our favourite Canadian-born guitarist, Chris Masuak of Radio Birdman/Screaming Tribesmen/Hitmen fame, has a cheap and cheerful film clip doing the rounds online for the B side of his "Another Lost Weekend" single on Spanish label New H. Here's "Animal".

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Ex-Screaming Tribesmen Mick Medew has been awarded the Grant McLennan Lifetime Achievement Award by Queensland's peak music organisation, QMusic. 

Mick received his honour at last night's Queensland Music Awards in Brisbane.

Previous recipients include the late GoBetweens member Grant McLennan, indigenous artist Kev Carmody, producer Mike Chapman, the Bee Gees, Railway Gin vocalist Carol Lloyd and Ed Kuepper of the Saints and solo fame.

This is a return to the record store racks (those that are left) for Mick Medew and one that's well overdue. His regular band The Rumours are still a going concern and this was conceived as a solo side project, but grew into a full-blown, plugged-in album with a new band. "The Mesmerisers" is a superbly rounded record.

Canadian-expat Aussie Chris “Klondike” Masuak’s the kind of guy who likes to put pictures of his guitars (Strat! Robin! Perspex Dan Armstrong! Firebird!) on his records (like his pal Deniz Tek did on his back-from-the-Navy career restarter “Take It to the Vertical:). One gets the sense that Klondike’s the kind of cat who just purely loves to play, and is as much of a fan as a muso.

It is actually quite hard to review the work of someone you know and I tend to avoid it wherever possible.

A brand new powerpop-rock combo with an impeccable pedigree, The On and Ons, are launching their Citadel Records CD album, "It's The On and Ons Calling", at the Factory Floor in Sydney on July 18.

The back story is this: Ex-Screaming Tribesman and Kings of the Sun member Glenn Morris (lead vocals and guitar) and his brother Brian (drums), of The Zeros (the Australian band) toured Australia and the US in 2012 as members of The Paul Collins Beat.

That successful stint encouraged them to record their own album of Glenn's original songs. The resultain record "It's The On and Ons Calling" was produced and engineered by legendary Australian guitarist Dennis Wilson, of Khavas Jute fame.