Australian Post-Punk (Updates)

ICS - it's not all written by Clinton although over half is and the new section at the end is all his work. It's coverage is wide and almost complete but a fair bit of the text does link back to Birdman/Birthday Party/Saints, especially at the beginning. In a lot of cases for the smaller bands, there's a picture and a small bit of text to accompany that.

BTW, The best "Birdman" article is "You Cant Put Yor Arms Round a Memory" which is a scathing review of a 1979 Visitors/Hitmen gig - "egad, it's like Anzac day in here - the crowd of motley old diggers proudly adorned with antique red and black badges of courage on their expectant chests", etc. Written by Peter Nelson who was one of the 1st members of the Birdman fan club and with whom I spent many sweaty Friday nights at the Funhouse in Taylor Square. He was easily the best writer of the time (as Clinton says in the rundown of writers and photographers near the front) but stopped around the time he started playing guitar for Wild West.

so this 2LP will have the tracks from that double 10" on Invitation au Suicide, yeah?

i never owned that one nor saw it around but i'm certain it will have all of the material that was released plus a lot of good studio demos and dabblings.

Just wanted to say that the musical and lyrical wallop of the Birdman/Birthday Party/Saints school is incredibly important to me. Not to denigrate bedroom industrialists, but there was a special energy about Aussie garage/punk records, particularly if you were listening to them in the pinky-blue popist hell of 80's Britain.

I have just alienated 95% of ILM. I'll get my coat.

Just wanted to say that the musical and lyrical wallop of the Birdman/Birthday Party/Saints school is incredibly important to me

and it was of vital importance to me (and many other of the band members of the time) as well. we just couldn't keep thinking it was the ultimate.

M2 compilation news:

- Mitch and Drew (scattered order) were seemingly lost for a few years but they've reappeared
- it's definitely made up of previous cassette releases only
- the tentative list is "more songs that will never be released", the 2 pat gibson solo; prod; acra and another lp of various things.

:-) to all that.

Just wanted to say that the musical and lyrical wallop of the Birdman/Birthday Party/Saints school is incredibly important to me. Not to denigrate bedroom industrialists, but there was a special energy about Aussie garage/punk records, particularly if you were listening to them in the pinky-blue popist hell of 80's Britain.

I have just alienated 95% of ILM. I'll get my coat.

-- Soukesian, Monday, 5 May 2008 22:09 (4 weeks ago) Link

This seems quite reasonable to me! And I love bedroom DIY!

But where is Mr. Odd?

goes without saying i am v interested in this M2 comp

i finally ripped my copy of growing pains, maybe not as good as 'a selection' but up there, even if only for the girl from ipanema and paint it black covers

yeah, growing pains is still pretty good but lacks the breadth of a selection. it's a shame that b selection was never finalised.

systematics update:

- markus schmikler has done the remastering: excellent
- the cover designer is a mainstay of the Cologne techno scene: no draft as yet but it's underway
- Pat has written reams of notes to accompany the tracks and they are just fantastic; detailed, funny, self-deprecating - ie the epitome of the systematics all round

so excited

I also eagerly await this release.

The Sytematics release should be available in mid November. The cover art is done and test pressings are almost ready.

An entry has been made at Discogs.com:

http://www.discogs.com/release/1511502

The 'label' will be selling the record via links from this page. This will probably be the only method available to those who live outside Germany or, maybe, a couple of other European stores.

hi um I am leaving the country for 4 months on Nov 16th and I will email you privately if I have not been able to pre-order by then, asking for assistance.

i.e. I really want this release.

sleeve - i'm just a conduit for this info. i have none of these in my hands nor will i. if you want a direct email link then email me off board.

Sounds interesting, Phil--thanks for the heads up. And thanks for the kind word and mention on my blog.

you can also try at http://www.youdonthavetocallitmusic.de/index.html

lp is available for preorder from the discogs link, 22 euros plus post

cool thanx

Proposed track list for the VOD M2 box:

Proposed title - "Pardon me for barging in like this" - M Squared 1979 to 1983

RECORD 1
Scattered Order

SIDE A
1. Tanks 1.49
2. Violent 4 ** 1.44
3. Fun 3.13
4. Untitled 3.37
5. Still happily 2.36
6. What / Not now 1.48
7. Greek Airport '80 2.28
8. This is a song about love 3.03
9. Count your blessings 5.25

TOTAL 25.43

SIDE B
1. Hold my cold hand (Live Melbourne Feb 82) 5.57
2. Giant 1.48
3. Waiting for you to come home 2.56
4. Teenage romance * 1.32
5. Because they are more difficult 3.18
6. Last one / Another song 3.01
7. Motionless 1.47
8. Blood is your blood 2.47
9. Star star delta 3.59

TOTAL 27.05

* From the cassette release "More songs that will never be released"
** Different version to that on "More songs that will never be released"
All other songs are unreleased

RECORD 2
Patrick Gibson / The Systematics

SIDE A
1. Modra Inara * 2.16
2. When a Band of Men * .44
3. Yellow Suit Weighing Machine 2.09
4. Swimming * 3.08
5. New Zealand * 3.57
6. I Needle the Oven! * 3.44
7. Hydrobes 4.20

TOTAL 20.36

SIDE B
1. 5/4 Fisted Tales of the Holy Trinity 4.05
2. The Master Plan Ain't Worth It 6.01
3. Korner 2.50
4. Children 1.48
5. Drowning Man 2.03
6. We, Him and Us Three (Instrumental) 3.47

TOTAL 20.49

* From the cassette release "Two Separate"

RECORD 3
Dead Travel Fast (TBC) - Not the band name!! although it still could be up
for grabs BUT the track selections, order and durations

SIDE A - "SOUR" Approx.
1. Urchin 4 mins
2. Brooding Buffalo 5 mins
3. Sea Heads - Part 1 8 mins
4. No Pesos 4 mins
5. Electro Superwoman 4 mins
6. Jacinto 3 mins

TOTAL 28 mins

SIDE B - "SWEET"
1. Pathways to Glory 4 mins
2. Tournament 4 mins
3. Slo Wasser 5 mins
4. Reverse Loops 3 mins
5. Old Shoe 4 mins
6. Steve Piano Bass 4 mins

TOTAL 24 mins
All previously unreleased

RECORD 4
A Cloakroom Assembly

SIDE A
1. Tom Salted * 2.02
2. Clock Tom Snare * 2.17
3. SnareGrrr * 2.25
4. Keeping Apprehension Time * 2.21
5. Drolling * 1.56
6. Tom to Tom * 2.07
7. Over Heads Whoop * 3.25
8. The Airside ** 3.24
9. The Swing Box ** 2.31
10. Raft ** 2.00

TOTAL 24.23

SIDE B
1. Retreat 1.10 *** 3.04
2. Retreat 1.8 *** 2.54
3. Last Tuesday Night ** 2.42
4. Retreat 1.11 *** 3.17
5. Retreat 1.14 *** 12.56

TOTAL 24.48

* from cassette release "Tom Tom Tom" 1981
** from cassette release "Trace and Rumble" 1982
*** unreleased "Retreat 1-26" 1983

RECORD 5
Compilation

SIDE A
1.Prod / Michael Prowse - "Day glo" ("Is the truck on fire") 4.23
2.Height Dismay - "Dusk" (Fast Forward cassette) 1.53
3.East End Butchers - "Eating paper" ("More songs.") 4.12
4.Prod / Michael Prowse - "Knife on top"("Is the truck on fire") 3.27
5.Johnathon Dunshea - "A minute later the .." ("More songs.") 6.09
6.Prod - "?" * 5.29

TOTAL
25.33

SIDE B
1.A Volatile T Shirt - "Making babies in heaven" ("More songs.")4.10
2.Height Dismay - "Blood pressure in the sand" * 4.00
3.East End Butchers - "The elephant freak" ("More songs.") 2.09
4.Pleasant Peasants - "Iranian rockabilly" ("More songs.") 1.47
5.Shane Fahey - "Crack in the Radiator Head" (When my.") 2.38
6.Height Dismay - "Untitled" * 3.29
7.A Volatile T Shirt - "Nautical engineering" ("More songs.") 1.56
8.Shane Fahey - "A run for your parlour" (When my.") 5.00

TOTAL 25.09
* These songs are unreleased

7 INCH SINGLE

A SIDE
1. Patrick Gibson - "Put your trust in God"

B SIDE
2. Still to be decided.

PS - all tracks for the VOD release are being remastered professionally from the available source material.

systematics pre-order also at:

http://www.mannequinmailorder.com/news.html

the scattered order site : http://www.scatteredorder.com/ has been updated with great lean and humour.

or possibly elan

the systematics albums have been pressed and received by the 'label' who are now going through the manual process of adding their stamp and putting them all together. they should be dispatched sometime soon.

cool. i'm already pre-ordered

me too!

arrived today! cover is lovely

yes, it's worked quite well. inside-out paper style. the booklet is great.

any comments on the systematics release - positive or not???

ps - going to the sydney ATP 'curated' by nick cave. with the reformed saints (apparently still quite good); reformed laughing clowns (no reviews so far); roland howard (bound to be dull); reformed the reels (not sure how that will be - will polly be there?); a lot of middling-good indie bands: quite a few influenced by the birthday party. i'll also be seeing the reformed harmonia (whose recent stuff is a bit digital but... hey, it's still harmonia after all) and the necks; afripampo; etc. should be a lovely day on the harbour.

I need to get that Systematics thing. Actually I need to get more of this stuff in general.

laughing clowns had an underwhelming mix. rowland looks like a melting waxwork and his voice doesn't sound far off, but the gtr was still great. harmonia ruled. polly was on the last two rounds of reunion reels and was AMAZING at the first ones (I saw the Factory show) but on the second ones was training sc0tt saunder5 onstage and only playing keys, not keys and horns and percussion and sampler all at once. ATP line-up is dave and john-boy, plus s.s., some jazz-funk bassist in a jumpsuit that he's brought along, and brendan ga11agher. they were nothing compared to the original reunion lineup, coming off a bit "hotel bar reels covers show," but it's still dave healthy and active and singing those songs again, so: great. harmonia were totally ace, possibly best of the day (competing with necks), and mostly analogue (or analogue-sounding) and guitar.

The Systematics album is waiting at my house in Oregon, I won't be back in the States until mid-March. That said, "Vanessa Teratology" is one of my fave things ever in this vein of music. That band always had a great melodic and lyric sensibility.

atp - sydney - sunday 18th:

missed rowland howard (not particularly interested) and the reels (too old and tired to stay any longer); caught the later part of laughing clowns and they were good if not spectactular, some of their songs are superb but the playing was just a little off (but i did see them from way back which is never as good as close); robert foster was ok just not my cuppa - i kept wondering if the band were his kids; the saints were pretty good i thought with chris bailey not being too much of an arse and the band was nice and tight although they played the songs slower than expected and bailey didn't deliver them with the sneer i needed; nick cave was twice as loud as everyone else and they did their normal schtick.

non aus-post-punk: harmonia were terrific - highlight of the event (hugo weaving was in the front row next to me) ; the necks were great as well - very rhythmic and not at all soothing; spiritualized were good - i was up front and it made some sort of sense from there - 3rd song was wonderfull; bridezilla were cute - like the raincoats but with some musical skills (and we know thats not always a good thing); dead meadow have a lot of moustaches; beaches were a pleasant mix of krautrock groves and sonic youth; afrirampo were afrirampo.

the venue was spectactular - it's exactly the sort of industrial space that voigt/465 always wanted to play in.

did either of you guys see silver apples? i heard the spz support they did wasn't so good

no - they were on as we were waiting to catch a ferry back to circular quay

I went to the Melb ATP. Chris Bailey still behaves like the Saints never mattered. The Silver Apples were a low point to Harmonia's high. Also, I'm quite sure the Necks are from Townsville (or Sydney)?

I saw two songs of Silver Apples - one was an old geezer making lovely whooshing noises, toggling a phaser and singing a bit and was great, one was an old geezer making some clanking noises, toggling a phaser and muttering a bit and was dull.

Necks are from Sydney but are not post-punk. Were great though, second best after Harmonia for mine.

Conway solo was better than Rowland solo. Shame Rowland didn't get up for a couple with the Bad Seeds.

more like the Bad Friends

jim can we get that 'nick cave' youtube up here

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=YzToxxXS4vY

xposts Necks/T'ville confusion becoz they have an album recorded in Townsville (iirc?)

conway did spend approx 68% of between-song banter time asking for audience to bring him drugs

missed ATP. quite annoyed about that, as the venue is impeccable. i can take solace in having already seen a bunch of the acts before.
saw spiritualized and silver apples at the metro on the friday. both were below par.

spz were pretty terrible at atp too. new band looks like he'd found them in cheap rehearsal rooms and thrown them some charts, and j's gtr was completely inaudible down the front.

yep, it seemed like the new band members had been rehearsing the tracks individually - barely any semblance of unity throughout the performance. the show picked up a bit right at the end, but only after a slew of quieter numbers that did nothing for me in the live setting.

whereas the necks played to the atmosphere - all percussive and forward motion