I was rocking proto-bogan garage anthems all day at work. Then I found some YouTube videos. Then I figured I'd throw it all up on Moistworks with no rhyme or reason and in doing so, realized the frightening and amazing connectedness of it all.
The Saints....
...need no introduction for you early-punk tramspotters. Nor does the compilation-happy "(I'm) Stranded." But have you seen the video? How brilliantly un-punk seems Chris Bailey. Dude looks more like a movie theater usher. And did you buy 2005's superb Nothing Is Straight In My House? It's impossible to believe that nearly 3 decades gone by from a ragged, firm-prostate kicker like "Porno Movies."
The Victims...
...were a short-lived 3 piece punk band from Perth. Victim James Baker went on to become a founding member of...
The Scientists...
...who gained swamp-rock fame in the 80s under the leadership of Australia's godfather of grunge, Kim Salmon. If the surfy thumping of "Swampland" reminds you of...
The Hoodoo Gurus...
...it's because the original Gurus included fellow Scientists James Baker and Rod Radalj as well as Baker's former Victim bandmate Dave Faulkner. The Hoodoo Gurus knocked out masterful pop harmonies in their sleep. But they were a garage surf-rock band at heart. And the OG Oz kings of garage surf-rock were...
Radio Birdman...
I've written about RB and Deniz Tek before. (I think you can still download the smashing track by TV Jones, Tek's pre-Birdman group.) Great video of the kids going Hawaii 5-OMG! Fellow Birdman Rob Younger moonlighted as a producer for a ton of influential Oz bands, including Lime Spiders and Died Pretty and...
The Stems...
Another Perth garage band in love with the New York sound, though dialing the clock back even further in this video. And Died Pretty frontman Ron Peno co-wrote "Igloo" by...
The Screaming Tribesmen...
...that will make you ask yourself, "How great are Husker Du?" and "What the hell did the shoeshine boy say to you?"
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