Welcome to the first in what may be (depending on how we feel) the first of many retrospective posts for Who The Bloody Hell Are They. Basically, the premise behind these posts are to highlight amazing Aussie acts that have now split up but didn’t reach the heights they should have. The idea is that if these bands were still together today, we’d have blogged about them.

Courtesy of FasterLouder.com.au

The Grand Silent System – ‘Seems’ (mp3)

Hands down, The Grand Silent System were, and still are, my favourite Aussie band. Though they only came to NSW on three occasions while I was of the legal gig-watching age, I managed to see them seven times.. or maybe it was more? Their music appeals to everything I like about music – variety, experimentation, complexity, melody and rhythm. Live they were phenominal; they possessed a massive wall of sound courtesy of their six-piece lineup. Vocalist Sean ‘Jova’ Albers also doubled as a percussionist, and he would play live surrounded by a mammoth percussive setup. Couresty of a huge internet buzz, many American sites would often lauder TGSS.

The band released two EPs – the difficult to find One and the amazing They Who Built. Their debut LP Gift or a Weapon is one of the best albums I own, and the follow up Everyone Lies Alone was solid but didn’t live up to its predecessor.

http://www.myspace.com/thegrandsilentsystem

Clann Zú – ‘Five Thousand More’ (mp3)

Like The Grand Silent System, Clann Zú is another brillant Melbourne act who sadly aren’t around anymore. I never got to see these guys live, which I’m still kicking myself about. They were an odd group who found a lot of success overseas, especially in Europe and I think Canada as well. Their music was predominantely rock, but it had a strong Irish influence, thanks to the background of vocalist Declan de Barra and the instruments used. They were another band who rebelled against the commercial standards of music and created their own unique art.

They released a couple of albums, the best being Rua which was their debut. They also released a fantastic self-titled EP, and Black Coats and Bandages, the follow-up LP to Rua, was a solid effort but I never quite got into it. Maybe I need to listen to it more… Anyway, two members of this amazing band have formed a post-rock three piece called My Disco and Declan de Barra is now performing as a solo artist.

http://www.clannzu.com/
http://www.myspace.com/clannzu

Courtesy of FasterLouder.com.au

Switchkicker – ‘A Kiss Becomes A Coma’

Switchkicker is the pseudonym for Many Machines on Nine frontman Dan Sutherland and his solo project. Started before joining MM9, Switchkicker had a couple of radio hits on Triple J including ‘Drown’ and ‘We’re Not Apart’ off the album 17102. The songs were catchy but not in the commerical pop sense – they had a dark industrial feel to them, but they weren’t heavy nor alienating. 17102 was heavily influenced by Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails, but it was really Switchkicker’s second release, Method 2, that showcased Sutherland’s abilities as a songwriter and as a vocalist. The album was a far more mature effort, taking in influence from the 80s new-wave movement but still maintaining an industrial feel, garnishing the album with strong rhymths behind a layer of melody.

Despite having a massive amount of potential and being signed to an independent label, Switchkicker was never pushed as much as Many Machines on Nine and as such the project has sadly fallen by the way-side. There are rumours of a final show at Sydney venue The Basement, so one can only hope we get to see this fine music performed live for one last time.

http://www.switchkicker.com
http://www.myspace.com/switchkicker

Vendettas – ‘Running’ (mp3)

Vendettas combines the very hip talents of Peter Mayes of PNAU and John Hardy of Soundworks Studios, who recently produced the new records by Van She, The Valentinos and Children Collide. I’m very selective when it comes to listening tunes from the so called ‘new rave’ movement, this song though makes the cut. Singer Larissa’s voice reminds me of a lot of mid 80s pseudo-club/rock tunes which I’m not a particularly big fan of but the chorus is just too catchy to ignore. Played at full club volume this song can be easily dropped to most hipster DJs setlist. Rumours are they already had a deal with a major label in Australia. They’ve got a few gigs coming up in Sydney but I’ve yet to meet someone who’s seen them live, though they will play a lot more support slots in the next few months.

http://www.myspace.com/vendettasrock

Josh Pyke – ‘Middle Of The Hill’

There was a time when you couldn’t turn on a non-commerical radio station and not hear ‘Middle Of The Hill’ by Josh Pyke. But it’s not like you cared, because the song was so gorgeous in all its simplicity; the honesty of the lyrics combined with Josh’s great vocals made the song an instant winner and it ended up at number 19 on Triple J’s Hottest 100 of 2005 (a listener-voted countdown of the 100 favourite tracks of that year).

Seemingly Josh Pyke apparaited onto radio waves, but in fact he had been kicking around for a numer of years under the Night Hour moniker. Once he dropped the pseudonym and assumed his real name, Josh catipulted onto radio playlists and into the hearts of many Sydney-siders, and it wasn’t long until his name spread around the country. I caught him live for the first time on tour with WA’s Bob Evans and both performers were fantastic – I really hope they tour together again because they compliment each other so well. They performed a bunch of songs together and it was amazing how well their vocals suited each other.

Josh released the EP Feeding The Wolves this year which was produced by renowned producer Wayne Connolly (You Am I, Youth Group), and that’s where ‘Middle of the Hill’ came from. There’s a new album Memories & Dust in the works…

For those in the UK, these are the final tour dates for Josh’s UK tour, but hurry because they’re this week:

September 25 – Cardiff Point, Cardiff, 8pm (w/ The Walkmen & Soundteam)
September 26 – Enterprise, London, 8pm (w/ The Mike Rosenburg Band)
September 27 – Koko, London, 8pm (w/ The Walkmen & Soundteam)

http://www.joshpyke.com
http://www.myspace.com/joshpyke

Mercy Arms – ‘Half Right’

Completely unrelated to Melbourne’s Damn Arms, this Sydney four piece is one of the biggest buzz band around at the moment and I thought I better jump on the wagon before they get their record out. Much of Mercy Arms’ music is centered around Guitarist Kirin J Calinnan’s amazing guitar work, often hovering around early U2 sounding riffs, partnered with vocalist Thom’s thin Smiths-influenced vocals. It’s hard to describe how good Kirin is on the guitar, when he’s on the melody the whole room seem to be transfixed on his craft, the audience is just sailing through each song on his lead.

Kirin was once member of the Valentinos before leaving to form his own group. He hooked up with some producers based out of Big Jesus Burger Studios to record the now well known demos on their myspace. Manager Todd Wagstaff of Engine Room fame (The Vines, Holly Valance, Veronicas) then picked up the band and put the big wheels in motion. They went on expenses paid showcases for major labels to the US and London and had a few big music industry names flying in for some local gigs, often filled with journalists, agents and A&R reps slipping in to have a look. Rumours of the band signing multi million dollar deals with Capitol, Universal and Modular soon floated around industry circles. We’ll never know if any of them were true, but I have heard recently from reliable sources that the band has signed an international deal so there should be an announcement pretty soon.

So will this band be next big thing? They have all the industry on their side and the songs and live skills to back it up. Recent tours saw them opening huge shows for The Strokes and now they’re on another national tour with Wolf & Cub. The fans are flooding in on myspace and everything else look sweet for these guys. I am very keen to hear the debut album, here’s hoping it’ll stand up to expectations.

www.myspace.com/mercyarms

This duo from the Sydney Northern Beaches are recent signings to the UK label Independiente, home to Gomez, Travis and Martina Topley-Bird (ex-vocalist for Tricky).

Previous post: Angus and Julia Stone

Witch Hats – ‘Jock The Untold’

About ten years ago, I reckon I would have absolutely hated this band. But I guess that just goes to show how much your taste in music can change… Recently signing with In-Fidelity, Melbourne band Witch Hats have finally found a label to unleash their blood-curdling and at times, really quite scary, music on the world. Or at least Australia for the time being anyway. With evident Birthday Party and Pixies influences, the band have an EP coming out soon, including great tracks such as Jock The Untold and Pepperman. I can’t imagine Kris Buscombe’s vocals appealing to everyone, but even so, there’s so much else going on with the rest of the band to keep you more than satisfied. And apparently their live shows are a spectacular riot worth witnessing.

witchhats.com.au
www.myspace.com/witchhats

Quarter Acre – ‘Casual vs Fulltimer’ (mp3)

That promo photo should tell you everything – Quarter Acre are an odd three-piece. Try to find info on them and it can prove an arduous task. Here’s what I know: the band formed back in 2000 and realised their first EP Live From The Traffic Islands in 2003, which you can actually download from the Wash Records website. They then released their debut full-length album this year which is called Bored So I… Kicked The Shit Out Of Him (though the cute cover with coloured pencils has it listed only as Bored So I…) Singer/drummer Andrew Burgess is/was a member of a band called The Drugs who, to be completely honest, I know pretty much nothing about.

Bored So I… is an album that I loved the first time I heard it, and basically haven’t listened to it since. Which is odd. I think I loved it so much the first time that I’m scared I’m not going to love it as much the second time. It’s a short record that clocks in at just over 36 minutes, but has such a fantastic musical diversity. It’s constantly shifting, always keeping you interested. It ranges from Pixies-esque rock numbers to alt-country and cute pop numbers. It’s a rough record, with Andrew’s vocals being slightly lower in the mix compared with many other albums – plus he doesn’t have a great voice, but it has a vulnerability to it that makes it endearing. His lyrics are of the same nature – his tales of suburbia are innocent and honest. I’ve never seen these guys live, and they seem to run under the radar of most music media outlets in Australia, which is a surprise because I would of thought that there’d be a lot of fans of Bored So I…

http://www.quarteracre.info
http://www.myspace.com/quarteracrekids