A pleasant Saturday evening bode well for the short journey from my own residence to the Northcote Social Club to see what promised to be an excellent night of garage rock.
First on the bill were the Tash Mints. A local supergroup of sorts (with no offence to the members, ‘super’ in this context refers to the aggregation of members from various other outfits, rather than the Crosby, Stills and Nash sense of the term), the Tash Mints comprises members of the Meanies, Hired Guns, Crusaders and Breadmakers. With original drummer Toshi Maeda having been forced to vacate the drum stool in lieu of his quest for Australian citizenship, Mick Baty (of Off the Hip fame) has taken up residence at the rear of the stage.
It’s a solid set, any limitations arguably the consequence of a lack of time on stage. There’s nothing high concept about the songs – three chord garage wonders, amusing lyrics and there’s plenty to warrant returning for multiple return visits. If you’re looking for a taste, check out “Dog Tired” on the second volume of the Antipodean Screams compilation (there’s another song about dogs in the current set list, suggesting that someone in the band has a canine fixation). Expect an album out sometime this year, all things going according to plan.
The Pink Fits took up their positions not long after 10pm. Everytime I see the Pink Fits now I begin by wondering if they’re as good as I remember them from last time. And within a few songs I always realise it’s a stupid question to ask.
Tonight the band is lacking the swish pink suits of some earlier gigs – and when the dust settles on the set, that’s the only thing I can identify that’s lacking in the show, or the band itself. It’s like watching a train almost about to crash – you’re waiting for it to go off the rails and plummet down the bank, but it never does. In fact, the entire band seems to revel in the frenzy it whips up.
Lenny (wearing a Ritchie and the Creeps t-shirt in honour of his former Tumbleweed colleague) pulls out some killer riffs that rip the air apart like a machete wielding psychopath, and Karl on guitar, vocals and occasional harp preaches like the passionate street corner evangelist, his doctrine about the power of rock’n’roll, and his delivery enough to compel even the most die-hard insipid folkie to drop the peace, love and happiness shit and get on board the Pink Fits train. At the bar shortly after the set Mick Baty remarks that the Pink Fits are bullet proof, and it’s a fair assessment. If you haven’t seen the Pink Fits yet, your life is lacking.
Finally, it’s The Stems’ turn. Only recently back from a brief tour of the US, and with further offers lined up, The Stems are enjoying a new lease of life. Having managed to put to bed the ego problems of yore, and realised that playing rock’n’roll is about fun, not money, The Stems are a new beast to behold.
Dom Mariani might be pushing middle-aged, but he’s got more excitement and energy than the 20-somethings who loiter around the streets of suburbia waiting for something exciting to happen. Richard Lane looks like he should be a panellist on First Tuesday Book Club – that is, until he straps on his Rickenbacker, or starts attacking his keyboard. The set opens with Leave You Behind from the very excellent ‘come back’ album of 2007, “Heads Up”, moving (no pun intended) into the past (via a re-recorded version that appears on Volume 2 of “Antipodean Screams”) with “Move On”. “Make You Mine” causes me to mention briefly to a fellow parent that I’d told my children that very day that this particular song was one of the greatest Australian songs ever written (children will believe many things, especially if coming from a parent – that is, until they hit teenage years) and the recent “Surround Me” demonstrates that the band’s pop edge is still there.
By the time the band announces its last track – “Sad Girl” complete with seamless segue into the MC5’s “I Can Only Give You Everything” – it’s clear The Stems have nothing left to prove. But that doesn’t stop them coming back – three more times, by my hazy recollection. There’s a couple more covers – The Easybeats’ “Sorry”, “I Just Want to Make Love to You” (most memorably recorded by the Rolling Stones), before finally the lights are turned out, and the PA cuts in to signal that festivities are over.
Yet there’s still more to come – and The Stems overcome the tide of management opposition and finish the night with “Love Will Grow”. If ever proof was needed that a band can come back bigger and better than before, this was it. The Stems might have left us for 20 years, but their impact is strong now as ever it was.
3/4
