Mini Kiss Were Made For Loving You

Does the real thing exist any more or is it a hologram? Mini Kiss is way better anyway. They even play their own instruments!

MiniRockerz video "I was made for lovin' you"


Spare me the Gene Simmons sex tape.

Here's Mini Kiss on St Paddy's Day.

The Eastern Dark remembered

The Eastern Dark has been on high-rotation yesterday, as part of an effort to get into finishing some liner notes for a bunch of Australian music from the same time and place. I can’t help noting that this band was head and shoulders above anything else of its kind.

If it’s going to be power/punk-pop, it needs three essential ingredients.
The first of these is melody – preferably in shovel-loads. That’s a no-brainer and sometimes I despair that people don’t get this. The Ramones had melody to burn and knew, maybe instinctively, that this was at the core of all great music, which was especially crucial when they stripped it back to basics.

You also need power, some rough edges to make the ride more interesting. Then there’s a less definable element loosely described as character. This comes from themes (sex and death are often recurrent) and some sort of conviction that a band or artist isn’t putting you on, even if living in someone else’s shoes in a lyrical sense.

Technical things like dynamics and tension are important, but it’s the melody, power and character combined that make powerpop/pop-punk music memorable.

The Eastern Dark was really the vehicle for James Darroch, ex-Celibate Rifles bassist and member of a handful of other unrecorded and short-lived Sydney bands like Slaughterhouse Five. He wrote great songs (“Pretty Pictures” was his) but the Rifles weren’t big enough for three leaders, so Darroch took his leave. The Eastern Dark came about (as great bands often do) when three sympathetic players entered each others’ orbits. James Darroch sang and played guitar. Melodic bassist/back-up vocaliser Bill Gibson and un-tutoured drumming powerhouse Geoff Milne were more than just the other pieces of a puzzle, but it has to be said that James occupied the driving seat. Amazing music resulted.

That they only released one single (“Julie Is a Junkie” b/w “Johnny And Dee Dee”) when they were around is tragic enough, but that a road accident claimed James Darroch’s life is the real loss.

The Ramonic single was excellent and it’s probably an achievement that it sounded as good as it did, given stories of near insurmountable problems with the studio where it was recorded. But the posthumous “Long Live The New Flesh” EP was a jaw-dropper, especially the soaring “Walking”, the bittersweet rollercoaster “I Don’t Need The Reasons” (maybe their best song) and the simmering resignation of “It’s Over”.

There was obviously a massive emotional investment in Darroch’s tunes that tell stories of loss, lies and anger and this recording underlines that the forced demise of The Eastern Dark was indeed monumental.

While I kick myself for not seeing them more often live, buy, beg, borrow, steal or download "New Flesh" or the out-of-print Half a Cow compilation “Where Are All the Single Girls” which appends most of the live “Girls On The Beach (With Cars)” live double LP.

Just for the hell of it, here's the only known footage of the band shot at Sydney's Caringbah Inn (I wuz there.)

Gabba Gabba Pray

With surefire "hits" like "Blitzkrieg Church", "Nazareth Affair" and "Beat on The Beast", the members of Chapel Hill's Christian Ramones (that'd be Matty, Markey, Lukey and Johnny) are surely bound for hell. Check the comments and you'll see the Bruddas' ex-road manager Monte Melnick is a fan. More here.

Clash conveyer belt keeps flowing

Psst, Clash fans: Coming down the pipeline: A live at Shea Stadium CD, a live DVD presumably culled from other shows and a book on The Clash by The Clash (i.e. a transcript of a previously issued documentary.)

Is too much Clash barely enough? Ex-drummer Topper Headon doesn't think so and tells Billboard as much here. Interesting read.

Personally, the last live compilation Clash CD was a bit of a snore and even the deluxe edition of "London Calling" with the demos appended wasn't essential as the songs in their formative stages were exactly that. I'd settle for a complete, killer live gig - which the Shea Stadium clearly isn't, judging from Topper's assessment and the footage that's surfaced to date.

I like this a lot

But my sense of humour is weird.

BDO kids playing silly buggers. Do the owners know?

There’s some funny stuff going down at the forum to promote the Big Day Out live music caravan that traipses around Australia and New Zealand every summer. Apparently, discussion threads mentioning other festivals have been taken down by moderators. One of the first rules of online forums is let the moderation be light and even-handed, but the discussion that persists points to a heavy brand of paranoia.

Fuck knows why a behemoth like the BDO would want to shoot down commentary on other fests when many of them are run by promoters who share acts and they sell out in five minutes anyway. Do the people in charge know what’s going on? Have a look for yourself here.

This explains a lot

Click to enlarge.

And aliens killed JFK

Expat American Mark Sisto (singer for the Visitors and numerous other bands of his own creation) loves a good conspiracy and tugged my coat to a video on YouTube allegedly showing the stockpiling of hundreds of thousands of plastic coffins in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s rumoured to be the precursor to a catastrophic event of the US Government’s instigation, the end game being you need to have somewhere to stash the bodies.

(Come to think about it, didn't Mark already sing about this in the Visitors' song "Disperse"?)

Ever willing to fuel such fires, Mick Farren (of the Deviants and the Pink Fairies and also the author of a fantastic autobiography covering his time in the UK underground of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s called “Give the Anarchist a Cigarette”) has penned a dissertation for LA City Beat. It's not short on the wonderful Farren invective.

Personally, I think the coffins are actually mega-sized compost bins to accommodate output from the enormous servings that US fast food outlet dish up.

Springtones

This gets it's own special little springtime post. Like a shy green bud...

Yes, the good folks at Mistletone Records have kept to schedule, and are presenting another in their series of seasonal showcases at the Tote on Sunday, from 3.00pm. You can see what it's all about, right there.

Stuffed

Well, if I was a hot-rodding type, I'd be heading out of town this weekend, up to Newstead for this:

The idea of seeing the Hatchets, Ninetynine, Paper Planes, Bulls and the Stabs play outdoors, at night, with the kind of crowd I'm (perhaps lazily) assuming will go this is very, very tempting. But I'm not. So, moving on...

The Espy will be packed on Friday, and not just with an early crop of English backpackers. In the front bar, you can catch Deaf Wish, Brisbane's Vegas Kings, Kids Of Zoo and Pistons Misfire, with DJ Sam Kamikaze (aka Sam Agostino, of Kamikaze Trio & Digger and The Pussycats) before after and probably during the bands. And that's all free. While out in the Gershwin Room, you can see the Cosmic Psychos, the Spazzys, GUT and Mammoth Mammoth for a measly $10.00. $10.00!

Something tells me that hallway carpet is going to take a pounding.

Across town, at a newish place called Yah Yahs, Crystal Thomas and the Flowers Of Evil are launching their (excellent) debut CD:

It's at 99 Smith St. Fitzroy, and apparently is pretty OK. Supports from the Stu Thomas Paradox & Andrew McCubbin and the Hope Addicts. And as you can see, they'll be launching in Sydney and Adelaide over the net few weeks, too.

On Saturday I may go to this ridiculous thing:

which is on at Birrarung Marr, and sees a bank celebrate it's 150th birthday by sponsoring a half-arsed, semi-arty and patronisingly indigenously-themed mini festival in a park. But the awesome Wagons are throwing in a half hour set, so it may be worth a quick look.

Think smart, invest in beer

The following is just in from Dutch punk rock funnyman Tony Slug of the Hydromatics and Nitwitz, among others:

If you had purchased $1,000.00 of Delta Air Lines stock one year ago you would have $49.00 left.

With Enron, you would have had $16.50 left of the original $1,000.00.

With WorldCom, you would have had less than $5.00 left.

But, if you had purchased $1,000.00 worth of beer one year ago, drank all of the beer, then turned in the cans for the aluminum recycling REFUND, you would have $214.00 cash !!!!!

Based on the above, the best current investment advice is to drink heavily and recycle.

Keep On Rockin' in the Expensive, Not Free, World

I like the sentiment behind this opinion piece on the price of supporting arena rock, even if I don't always practice what the lady preaches. Nice thought (pity no staffer on the SMH came up with it.)

I like Neil but left it too late to buy tix. I have an aversion to the barn that is the Sydney Entertainment Centre and sitting in a seat near the roof. He's also playing the Big Day Out (headlining, no less) but I'm reluctant to endure that. I did hear BDO promoter Ken West on radio the other day talking about the decision to book Neil and had to laugh that he said it took a while for the Greendale Tour to slide from the memory.

Altamont wasn't the Stones' show

So says their Australia-based ex-road manager Sam Cutler (pictured above with Mick Jagger) in a new book that promises to be a fascinating read.

"There's a lot of rubbish written about the Rolling Stones, especially the thing at Altamont, that we hired the Hells Angels ... and it was the Rolling Stone's free concert which it wasn't," Cutler says.

"It's kind of enter rock and roll mythology that we organised the concert, which we didn't.

"That we were responsible for what went down, which in part we were, but only in part. I wanted to write my version of the truth."

Read some more here.

When guitar shop employees attack

Click to enlarge

Kick Out the Guitar Hero 3, Motherfuckers

Now Brother Wayne's joined Motorhead and the Pistols in selling a re-recorded song to the makers of the Guitar Hero computer game. "Kick Out the Jams" is coming to a games store near you. While the usual low-level comments about selling-out will no doubt come from predictable sources, I'd just settle to hear his latest solo album which is said to be a return to his jazzy/spoken word stylings.

And in word just in, there's a good interview with Kramer here that throws more light on the forthcoming album.

So what's with the Grande Ballroom movie trailer?

I suppose I should be grateful that this is available as a teaser on YouTube, but the spelling mistakes in the superimposed graphics and the apparent absence of interviews with the members of Grande notables like the Stooges, the Rationals and The Up doesn’t fill me with too much positivism.

No details on how, when or if it’s coming out. We live in hope.

MOPBA

Yes, it's that time of the year again.

For the fourth year running, Helen Round is presenting the Museum Of Particularly Bad Art show. I think this is the first time that it's been roped in as part of the Melbourne Fringe Festival, but the idea is the same as ever.

The criteria are simple(ish):

• Completely devoid of technical skill (Colour, tone, perspective and shading)
  
• Unusual, poor or tasteless subject matters (Preferably all three!)
  
• Undeniable passion, driven by an uneducated hand.
  
• That ‘special’ feeling that forms in your gut
  

Launch night is Friday 3rd October, at the Chapel Off Chapel, in Prahran. More details, and plenty of examples,  at that link above.

Let's (not) party with Rolling Stone Australia

Excuse me for being underwhelmed by the news that the Australian version of Rolling Stone is re-launching following the sale of its licence to publishing house Australian Consolidated Press. The news is so big that US founder and longtime major label act suckarse Jann Wenner is out here to celebrate at a party featuring Powderfinger (snooze) and one of the Finns (whose first name I conveniently forget.) Wake me up when it’s over.

The “new” Rolling Stone Australia will be coming off a low base. What was once a mildly counter-cultural, music-centric magazine is crammed with fashion ads and transparently feeble editorial stabs at being “cutting edge”. Sub-mainstream musical content is almost accidental and the over-priced rag feels like a brand extension of the Idol franchise.

Perversely it has no online presence – something that’s usually a given these days when you look at their target demographic. The former publishers even let the domain be parked with some on-seller/squatter. I suppose I could be wrong and it's a lame attempt to turn a dollar. Either way, it shows what little regard they had for their masthead.

So Jann, hope you have a good time at the party, pal. Here's to another 20 years of mediocrity.

Saints, Clowns on ATP Australia bill

The All Tomorrow's Parties is coming to Australia in January with performances by the reformed Kuepper-Bailey Saints and the Laughing Clowns among the highlights. Nick Cave is curator and will play the three-part festival with his Bad Seeds. Full line-ups are to be announced but the acts already unveiled include Spiritualized, Robert Forster and Rowland S Howland. Sydney Harbour's Cockatoo Island, Brisbane and Mt Buller, Victoria, will be the venues. Details here.

Is there a place for Extra Place?

It was the alley where the classic cover shot for the Ramones' first album was taken by Roberta Bayley. It backs onto the rear of what used to be CBGB's postage-stamp backyard, where an abandoned car used to sit. Just like the famous punk fleapit, it's now at risk according to this piece in the NY Times.