If
you need to be convinced of the rich and undeniably unique heritage
of Australian rock music, look no further. And now is as an appropriate
time as any to celebrate that richness, since the kind of venues
that supported this and other uprisings are disappearing before
our eyes, as the new music rebels prefer to labour over their samplers
in bedrooms. It was a unique period of Australian music then, and
now, one we'll probably never see again. That sentiment is just
part of the reason to listen to the music contained here. Then there's
that sense of youth and adventure and abandon that went with this
particular period and strain of music. Too often we see music defined
in international terms. The CBGB bands. Truth is when punk hit music
we did it our way (Birthday Party/Radio Birdman). We had to. Otherwise
it wouldn't have meant anything. And the same applies to the "post-punk"
that flowed from it. This album captures that period of music wonderfully,
ranging from selections from the seminal (Moodists, Essendon Airport,
Ash Wednesday, Apartments) to the essential (Equal Local, The Particles,
Wild West), and giving us a feel not just for the difference between
the various bands but between the cities they terrororized. This
is not about nostalgia. This album documents a time in music, a
time in Australian music when rock and roll and words like "wild"
and "innovation" and "original" were synonymous. The final reason
for wanting to listen to this record is that the music speaks for
itself. It roars. (Chapter Records - chapter@corduroy.com.au)
If
you need to be convinced of the rich and undeniably unique heritage
of Australian rock music, look no further. And now is as an appropriate
time as any to celebrate that richness, since the kind of venues
that supported this and other uprisings are disappearing before
our eyes, as the new music rebels prefer to labour over their samplers
in bedrooms. It was a unique period of Australian music then, and
now, one we'll probably never see again. That sentiment is just
part of the reason to listen to the music contained here. Then there's
that sense of youth and adventure and abandon that went with this
particular period and strain of music. Too often we see music defined
in international terms. The CBGB bands. Truth is when punk hit music
we did it our way (Birthday Party/Radio Birdman). We had to. Otherwise
it wouldn't have meant anything. And the same applies to the "post-punk"
that flowed from it. This album captures that period of music wonderfully,
ranging from selections from the seminal (Moodists, Essendon Airport,
Ash Wednesday, Apartments) to the essential (Equal Local, The Particles,
Wild West), and giving us a feel not just for the difference between
the various bands but between the cities they terrororized. This
is not about nostalgia. This album documents a time in music, a
time in Australian music when rock and roll and words like "wild"
and "innovation" and "original" were synonymous. The final reason
for wanting to listen to this record is that the music speaks for
itself. It roars. (Chapter Records - chapter@corduroy.com.au)