Punk rock in Australia
Australian musicians played and recorded some of the earliest punk rock, led by the Saints who released their first single in 1976. Subgenres of punk music, such as local hardcore acts, still have a strong cult following throughout Australia.
Many of the pioneers, like the Saints, Sydney band Radio Birdman, and young Perth musician Kim Salmon, were highly influenced by proto-punk sounds from Detroit. A distinct Brisbane punk scene emerged in the 1970s. By 1977, other bands began to form in Sydney, under the influence of Radio Birdman and other local and overseas acts. During the late 1970s, former members of Radio Birdman contributed to several new bands. These bands and other Australian and overseas punk acts were supported by public radio stations. In Melbourne scene, art rock had segued into punk, then evolved into post-punk, typified by the careers of Nick Cave, Rowland S. Howard and the Little Band scene. Another pioneering figure of Australian postpunk was Saints founder Ed Kuepper.
1973–1976
, formed in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1973, were one of Australia's first punk bands. The earliest incarnation of the Saints was formed by Ed Kuepper and Chris Bailey. They shared a background in immigrant families, and an admiration for high energy 1950s and 1960s music, such as the Detroit rock of the Stooges and MC5. During that time, Queensland was under the control of the conservative, allegedly authoritarian Country Party democratic government of Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen. In mid-1976, the Saints recorded and distributed copies of their single " Stranded", which met nearly no critical or public response in Australia. In the UK, however, Sounds magazine received a copy, and declared it: "single of this and every week". As a result, the band was signed to a three-album contract with EMI. Later the same year they recorded their first LP, which was also called Stranded. Hampered by poor production and the indifference of radio stations, the LP failed commercially. In December the Saints moved to Sydney.During 1974, Radio Birdman formed in Sydney, led by another immigrant, Detroit-born medical student Deniz Tek. They also shared an interest in the Stooges and MC5, albeit with a result arguably more akin to hard rock than punk. Their dynamic live shows soon gained a fanatical following at inner city venues. Radio Birdman released an EP and an album with better production values, but with similar commercial results to the Saints' endeavours.
In Adelaide, the first punk band was Black Chrome, which formed in 1975, followed by JAB in 1976. Black Chrome's music attacked Australian apathy, its urban wasteland and its non-existent youth culture. JAB billed themselves as "Synthetic Shock Rock" and were the first Australian punk band to use live synthesisers and tape loop guitar and synthesiser solos. Adelaide in this period was a staid, conservative, and unreceptive city, and consequently the bands were ignored, feared, and could not secure gigs unless they booked venues themselves without disclosing that they were punk bands. Black Chrome's Simon Stretton, who also founded the record label Tomorrow Records, recorded many early punk bands, including JAB, the Chosen Few, Bohdan X, the Accountants, the U-Bombs, the Dagoes, Psychosurgeons, the Lipstick Killers, Riff Raff, and Young Modern, as well as later punk. In some cases, they are the only audio record of the band. Riff Raff played at the Seacliff Hotel, while Irving and the U-Bombs were mixing reggae with punk at the Belair Hotel. The Dagoes were later described by Donald Robertson of Roadrunner as "a mutant brainchild of various import record store owners". The Accountants learnt to play in the northern suburb of Elizabeth.
In Perth – a geographically isolated city with social and political similarities to Brisbane – young musicians like Kim Salmon, Dave Faulkner and James Baker were also influenced by the Detroit bands, as well as New York proto-punk figures like Lou Reed and the New York Dolls. Salmon led the Cheap Nasties, and then the Scientists, before embarking on a solo career. Baker was in a short-lived act called the Geeks, before forming the Victims with Faulkner in 1977. They recorded an acclaimed single, "Television Addict", before breaking up. Baker later joined the Scientists. Faulkner gravitated towards poppier sounds. In 1981, he and Baker founded a successful retro rock act, the Hoodoo Gurus.
1977–1980
By 1977, other bands were starting to form in Sydney, under the influence of local and overseas punk acts. The early Sydney punk scene centred around the Sydney inner city suburbs, and the Grand Hotel in Haymarket in particular. Among the first was the Last Words, from Liverpool in Sydney. Other Sydney bands in 1977 included the Hellcats, the Psychosurgeons, Johnny Dole & the Scabs and the Thought Criminals.These bands and other Australian and overseas punk acts were strongly supported by public radio stations, especially 2JJ. Punk bands like the Reals and the Babeez were also being formed in Melbourne. In Brisbane, the Survivors, the Leftovers, Razar and the Fun Things all followed in the wake of the Saints.
After the British punk scene took off in 1977, both the Saints and Radio Birdman moved to the UK. This proved to be disastrous for both bands. Neither of them fit in with, or were inclined to adjust to aspects of the London scene at the time, such the now-established punk fashion in clothes. Radio Birdman were dumped when their record company got into financial difficulty, and soon broke up. Later recordings saw the Saints adopt soul, blues and jazz influences, although their most successful single, "This Perfect Day" – which reached number 34 in the UK singles chart – was typical of the band's musical style. After another acclaimed single, "Know Your Product", and second and third albums failed to make an impression, EMI dropped the Saints. Last Words later followed their predecessors to the UK and also failed to make a strong impression.
The Saints bassist, Algy Ward continued to make significant impact in the London punk scene however, when he left The Saints to play with British punk rock band, the Damned and to work with Lemmy and Fast Eddie Clarke of Motörhead, playing on The Damned's comeback album Machine Gun Etiquette, which was released on proto punk and pub rock record label, Chiswick Records, who had also released Motörhead's early records. Joe Strummer, Lemmy and Paul Simonon also appear on the album. The reissue of the album includes the band's take on The Sweet's "Ballroom Blitz". The album also features sometime Pink Floyd lyricist Anthony Moore on synthesiser. Philip Lloyd-Smee contributed to the sleeve and logo design work on Machine Gun Etiquette.
During his time with The Damned, Ward also played bass on cover versions including Motörhead's "Over the Top", the MC5's "Looking at You" and live, the band played the Sex Pistols' "Pretty Vacant" and The Stooges' "I Feel Alright". He toured with the band worldwide, including America in 1979 where they played at Whisky A Go Go, Hollywood, and the Waldorf in San Francisco, significantly influencing the American Hardcore scene. Ward appeared on the live performance on The Old Grey Whistle Test in England featuring "Smash It Up", before he was fired from the group due to animosity between him and drummer Rat Scabies. He was replaced by former Eddie and the Hot Rods and UFO bassist Paul Gray.
Speaking of Algy Ward's contribution to the album in an interview with Louder than War online punk rock fanzine, Captain Sensible said "Algy was immense on Machine Gun . The sound was largely based on the thundering bass lines that he delivered, it was a beautiful noise. And then Paul came along and was a very fluent and flowing kind of bass player."
By the end of 1977, the Melbourne supergroup Young Charlatans had formed from the remnants of earlier bands. They included Ollie Olsen, Rowland S. Howard, Jeff Wegener and Janine Hall. The band recorded the first version of the Howard song "Shivers". In Sydney, a Birdman offshoot, the Hitmen, had started to gig and Ian Rilen formed the longevitous X.
On 8 November 1977 the ABC nightly news magazine program "This Day Tonight" broadcast a feature on Australian punk rock, featuring a live recording of Black Chrome at Adelaide University's Union Hall, with commentary and interviews highlighting the largely negative contemporary attitudes to punk rock. The introductory voice over concluded;
″... but if you're wondering if its going to take off in a big way here, its worth remembering that the quiet streets of Adelaide are a long, long way from the streets of London. The message of punk rock is violence and anarchy; and its a message which has got Adelaide radio stations on the defensive.″
In April 1978 Black Chrome released the single "Australia's God" on their own label Tomorrow Records, but despite the band driving around Australia to the few record shops selling punk rock and delivering it to radio stations around the country, it failed to secure airplay and sold in tiny numbers. "Wallaby Beat" in 2011; "It must be said that of all the original 1977 Aussie bands Black Chrome are the one most shrouded in mystery. The single remains unheard and the facts we can report are scant... so to the record, perhaps the most singular sounding of the first generation Australian punk records with its restrained fuzz, and strange backing vocals. It's in the lyrics where the punch is packed."
Entrepreneurs began to realise the potential of the growing scene and Michael Gudinski launched the Melbourne-based Suicide Records, which in May 1978 released a compilation, Lethal Weapons. The album included tracks by the Boys Next Door, Teenage Radio Stars, JAB, the Survivors and X-Ray-Z. However the royalty rate offered by Suicide was low and both the News and Young Charlatans decided not to get involved. Keith Glass launched the Melbourne-based Missing Link Records, which between 1978–80 released La Femme's singles & Album, They were the first independent band on Countdown and opened "Suburban pub rock" to local punk bands. Keith Glass also managed the Boys Next Door and released all their music through to the change to the Birthday Party.
Australian chart success eluded all of these bands in the late 1970s. Radio programmers were conservative and unenthusiastic about punk. The above artists who eventually found success either did so overseas, or after a remove of several years in Australia, and/or in different bands.