"Ghost" EP is majesty in a Velvet glove

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By Robert Brokenmouth

Robert Brokenmouth

28 April 2025

Hits: 799

Ghost - Velvet Parade (Kasumuen Records)

In what promises to be a huge weekend, this Saturday (May 3) Velvet Parade will be in Adelaide ahead of their Japanese tour, supported by The Cold Field and Electric Badger. 

Velvet Parade is Cold Harbour's Vincent J. Kramer is on guitar, Fraudband's Don Drum is on drums, The Coves' Pete Azzopardi is on bass, Ashley Jones (from Matt Malone and The Holy Spirits) is on keys, and (former Adelaide boy) Ripley Hood on vox ...

Sorry, why is Rip a former Adelaide boy?

Well, he found the railway station, is what I heard...

• ghost
• kasumen records
• ripley hood
• velvet parade

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Born Out Of Time is back

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By The Barman

The Barman

27 April 2025

Hits: 691

The Born Out Of Time mini-festival has been dormant since COVID times but is returning to Melbourne to deliver some savage Antipodean sounds.

Saturday May 17 is the date to be at the Town Hall Hotel, North Melbourne, for a bill featuring Gas Babies, The Tommys, Dino Bravo, young upstarts Howl, plus a mystery band.

It’s primo rock ‘n’ roll proudly presented by Munster Times Zine, I-94 Bar and Off The Hip. The shindig kicks off at 5pm, and entry is free. Delish pub grub is available from 5-9pm. See you there.

• i-94 bar
• munster times
• born out of time
• townie
• the tommys
• town hall hotel
• gas babies
• dino bravo
• howl

The Cruel Sea tells Mick Harvey: "This Is Not The Way Home"

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By The Barman

The Barman

27 April 2025

Hits: 1070

If Ash Naylor is Australian rock and roll’s Mr Everywhere for holding down spots in The Stems, Paul Kelly’s band, The Church and his own outfit Ash Naylor’s Spaceship, elder statesman Mick Harvey can lay claim to being its Busiest Utility Player.  

Harvey has played with The Birthday Party, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, Crime & the City Solution, his own bands and more recently with The Saints ’74-78 and now adds The Cruel Sea to his resume.

• the birthday party
• mick harvey
• the cruel sea
• straight into the sun

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Asteroid B612's single arrives

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By The Barman

The Barman

26 April 2025

Hits: 681

"Park Bench Gods", the first single from the forthcoming Astroid B612 album “Roads, Stars”, is here. John Morrison made the clip for what's described as" a raucous, full-throttle return to form that captures the essence of what made Asteroid B-612 an underground cult favourite". If streaming is your thing, play it here.

• asteroid b612
• park bench gods
• roads, stars

Frankly speaking, this solo debut is gold

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By Ronald Brown

Ronald Brown

26 April 2025

Hits: 849

Living Between The Lines - Frank Meyer (Kitten Robot) 

Hello Barflies! Have I got a ripper album for you...“Living Between The Lines” is the first Frank Meyer solo album and it is a wonderful record  

Frank, of course, is a founding member of The Streetwalkin Cheetahs, and guitarist for Handsome Dick Manitoba (ex-The Dictators), legendary LA punk band Fear, and vocalist for James Williamson (Iggy and the Stooges) in  James Williamson & The Pink Hearts.  

His other bands include Spaghetti & Frank, Trading Aces, Highway 61, Sweet Justice, and Thor. So he has lots of form.

• bellrays
• james williamson
• cherie currie
• streetwalkin' cheetahs

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Lest We Forget: Sydney salutes The Stems

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By The Barman

The Barman

25 April 2025

Hits: 904

 _{Dom Mariani and Jules Matthews.}

The Stems
The Rinehearts
Sydney Crowbar
Thursday, April 24, 2025

An annual run of shows by The Stems should be inscribed indelibly on the Australian musical calendar. Better still, make it bi-annual.

Last year, The Stems notched their 40th anniveresary and marked it with gigs all around Australia, and a tour of Europe. This show, on the eve of Anzac Day, the national day of remembrance, brought out a crop of (mostly)  rock and roll soldiers, keen to relive their 1980s youth. All looked comfortable in the knowledge that a public holiday the next morning meant most wouldn’t have to front up at a workplace. 

More than most of their peers, The Stems have a sound that’s timeless. Rooted in the ‘60s, riddled with hooks and melodies, the songs ride on the back of a powerful engine room of co-founders Jules Matthews and Dave Shaw, wrapped in Dom Mariani’s rich vocal and peppered by guitars.

• sydney
• dom mariani
• the stems
• ash naylor
• crowbar
• dave shaw
• rinehearts
• jules matthews

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Original Alice Cooper group premieres "Black Mamba" from forthcoming album

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By The Barman

The Barman

24 April 2025

Hits: 583

_{Jenny Risher photo.}

Just in case the news has evaded you so far, the original Alice Cooper group is reuniting to release a new studio album, "The Revenge of Alice Cooper," on July 25 via earMUSIC, the same people who have delivered a slew of studio and live Blue Oyster Cult releases.

There have been part reformations (without the late guitarist Glen Buxton), most notably for a scorching 2018 live release “Live From The Astroturf”, but this is the group’s first full album in 50 years.  Buxton will be present, via a guitar part tracked from a demo,

The first single from the album, "Black Mamba," is out now and features Robby Krieger of The Doors.  Click MORE to see the video.

• bob ezrin
• alice cooper
• dennis dunaway
• neal smith
• michael bruce
• earMUSIC
• black mamba
• robby krieger

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Post-punk revelation: The Institutionalist is Real (Ernie) O Mind

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By The Barman

The Barman

23 April 2025

Hits: 1261

Adjustment Disorder – The Institutionalist (self released)

The Institutionalist is a post-punk creation from the sonic laboratory of Ernie O, a gifted but unassuming producer, engineer and musician from the fringes of Melbourne.

 At this point we’ll declare that The O Man is the mastering wiz-of-choice for many discerning labels, I-94 Bar Records, among them. His  playing history includes Suburban Urchins, The Photon Belt, The Undecided By Default and Vocabularinist, none of which are household names. That’s what you get for misspending your youth in Tasmania. In a fair and just world, however, “Adjustment Disorder” would change that.

• post-punk
• slug
• dwarfthrower
• mick medew and ursula
• The Institutionalist
• adjustment disorder
• vicious circle
• no mans land

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A look back on the Wonderful Life of Damien Lovelock

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By Earl O'Neill

Earl O'Neill

22 April 2025

Hits: 1825

_{Damien at one of the final Rifles gigs at Narrabeen RSL.}  

The loss of Damien Lovelock to cancer in 2019 left a yawning gap in more than just Australian rock and roll. The frontman for the cherished Celibate Rifles had by then become an cookbook author, a sporting commentator,  a father, a yoga teacher and a raconteur.

The records show that the Rifles formed in Sydney in 1979 and amassed nine studio and three live albums along the way, making inroads into Europe and the USA. The band did not achieve mainstream successs, but did forge a path for high-energy yet thoughtful rock and roll. They inspired countless others to follow and do things, as the Rifles had, on their own terms.

Damo’s dry wit, laconic vocal and powerful stage presence were uneniable. Away from the music, his ability to talk the (blind) ear off anyone who wanted to engage him in conversation made him similarly unforgettable.  

In October 2010, rusted-on Rifles fan Earl O’Neill sat down with Damien at a Narrabeen café. The interview that appears here was part of a planned book about the band (you can read a previous extract about the Rifles’ formative days here.) The book idea has long been shelved but the conversation stands up as a snapshot of the Rifles and the motivations of Damo himself. Peta Couvret transcribed the conversation.   

• kent steedman
• celibate rifles
• damien lovelock
• dave morris
• paul larsen
• jim leone
• mikey couvret
• earl o'neill

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