PRESS RELEASE FROM THE
DESK OF HEAD MILES RECORDS:
Ladies and gentlemen, an historic event is to take place. Twenty-five or so
years ago, after obliterating Sydney in The Bedhogs and Suicide Squad, young
punk Mark Easton wanted to get a new band going. With his mate Con Murphy
on bass, he asked wild-man Jim Bedhog to sing, and seduced a 16-year-old Brian
Conolly to play guitar. During auditions for a drummer, a fat, long- haired
loudmouth creep (with a massive penis) got the job. They set about on a year
or so of venue and self annihilation rarely witnessed in Sydney, very opposite
to other bands of the day happy to be liked by the general public. They left
behind a trail of destruction, a couple of recordings (one a rehearsal cassette
released by Aberrant records) and a manic enduring obscure legacy.
Past and present members played in The Bedhogs ('70s) Suicide Squad ('70s)
Soggy Porridge ('80s) The Undertakers ('80s) Candy Harlots ('80s) The Panadolls
('90s) Brother Brick ('90s) Roll Cage (2000's) Mark Easton Limousine (2000's).
They were The Kelpies. Mark Easton, Jim Atkins, Brian Conolly, Con Murphy,
Ashley Thomson 20 years since their last gig they will perform a live show
at the Annandale Hotel, Sydney, on October 9, 2003, accompanied by Asteroid
B6-12 and Fragile.
In an era where we have seen Radio Birdman, X, and The Stems reform to perform,
The Kelpies will resume their rightful place -Ê at the fuckin' bottom...
The Kelpies, circa 2003. (From left) Brian Conolly, Jim Atkins, Ashley Thomson,
Mark Easton and Con Murphy. Photo, Troy Scerri
UNSOLICTED E-MAIL RESPONSE:
Greatest news in the history of anything...the Kelpies were the only band to ever equal Radio Birdman when it came to burning up the stage...mere opinion of course.
- Jules
R.B. Normington,
founder, Phantom Records and ex-Radio Birdman manager
Heady stuff all round, but the
scarce recordings that remain have convinced many that shortlived Sydney punk
band the Kelpies WERE worth the fuss. Those of you who missed them the first
time around can find out first-hand if uyou're in Sydney for the one-off Annandale
show. If you can't make it, you can grab a copy of the compilation of re-mastered
(and unearthed) songs, "Television", on drummer Ashley Thomson's
Head Miles label (who can even kit you out in a commemorative t-shirt).
We sought out singer MARK EASTON (ex-Bedhogs, Suicide Squad, Soggy Porridge,
Candy Harlots and, lately, fronting his own Mark Easton's Limousine), to document
this historic reformation. THE BARMAN
poured the drinks.
It's 20 years or so since
the last Kelpies show. Why reform now and how did it come about?
Well I guess Ashley has always been on my back about doing this and Ii had
all the master tapes in my dad's garage. So I gave them to Ash and he's been
compiling the recorded material for a while. I'm not really one for reformations,
as I treat music as a journey and I'ive played a lot of different styles since
the Kelpies.
I've been playing slide guitar for a while now and it gives me a chance to
play guitar in normal tuning and with my fingers; personally, it just feels
like the right thing at the moment!
Do you remember the band's last show? What were the circumstances?
I think it was at Mosman Hotel and I think it was a good show but I've killed
a lot of brain cells since then.
For a band that was together only a couple of years, the Kelpies seem to
have carved out a pretty good impression. What was it about the band that
people liked so much?
Jim's got a good voice and is pretty charismatic. We were always doing interesting
things with the guitars, and the songs were good!
There some infamous shows that resulted in a banning. I'm sure the Mosman
banned you. Can you recount some of the more extreme events of some of those
nights? Was this a frequent occurrence with the crowd that you attracted?
I don't remember getting banned from Mosman, (but) I do remember being banned
from the Manly Vale Hotel, because we supported the Sunnyboys and our crowd
thought they sucked (which they did) and started canning them. The scuffle
just escalated into the carpark and someone spraypainted an anarchy symbol
on the manager of the pub's car. We also trashed the Paddington Town Hall.
There wasn't a window left that was not broken.
The audience were always getting us in trouble - that's part of the reason
we split. It was like a bloodbath. I really hated that!
You put out a single on Phantom ("Take Me Away") that holds
up pretty well today. Why did the band only put out one single and how dysfunctional
were the Kelpies when it came to taking care of business?
The band was divided from
the start. Some saw it as a vehicle for music, some saw it as a vehicle for
scoring free drugs. Wev'e all been junkies at different stages of our lives,
it's just not all at the same time and that pissed the straight ones off.
Ihated smackies in those days, but five years later I became one, and the
guys in that band hated me! We were just young and dumb!
One rehearsal tape has been issued, as well as a few other scattered recordings.
How did involvement with the Abberant label come about?
(Label owner) Bruce Griffiths was just a fanatical punk fan and he wanted
to release the material.
There's now a re-mastered set of songs on Head Miles. Are these
all the Abberant recordings compiled? Anything else hidden under the
bed?
I don't think Abberant relesed everything off our demo and "How
Can I Tell You" was recorded for the "Take Me Away" single
but never released. I re-recorded it as my first single with Soggy Porridge,
so it's the first time it has been released, I think, and yeah, there is one
other item that just popped up in the last few days that might be released
in the future. It's a live video of the last Mosman gig.
Long
before the Kelpies you were in Suicide Squad, who started in 1978. What inspired
you to play high energy music?
My dad was a jazz musician, and I used to play with his band but they used
to complain about me playing too loud, so I split and put a punk band together.
I was suppressed as a kid so I had a lot of anger inside!
What was the story with Suicide Squad and lead singers? You seem to have
had four or five vocalists and two different ones on the recordings that have
surfaced.
All singers that don't play an instruments are wankers basically. I know because
when I was with the Candy Harlots I was a wanker, and swore I'd never sing
and not play an instrument ever again.
Your subsequent band, the Bedhogs, seemed to be around for a while. How
long were they in existence and did you actually record anything with them?
I played in the Bedhogs and Suicide Squad at the same time. We never recorded
anything and we were together for two years.
Vocalist, James Gelding,
of course, came with you from the Bedhogs to the Kelpies. At what point did
you call a halt to the Bedhogs and why? How did you pull together the Kelpies?
We were heading in different directions. I wanted to go heavier and Stuart,
the other guitarist, wanted to play ska music. He went on to play in the Allniters.
Chris Cross went on to the Drop Bears, so me and Jim stuck together.
Your current project is Mark
Easton's Limousine, which is a more bluesy affair. What's the band's current
status?
It's blues with balls, its probably actually faster and louder than anything
else I've done, althought the new record has a few softer moments. I play
slide guitar and sing and it's got lots of hillbilly rhythms. We put one ep
out last year, and I have an album coming out in November. I just have trouble
keeping a stable line up, but I never stop.
Ashley's doing his Roll Cage thing and his Head Miles label, artwork
studio, mastering facility and online shop. Are any of the others guys doing
anything musically?
No, not that I know of!
So is this show a one-off or will you guys play and record more?
We'll see how we feel after the gig. I have material written that would work
with the Kelpies. But it's not just about the music, it depends if we can
stand each other. We have all changed a hell of a lot.
Since we're in a Bar, what are you drinking?
I always start with two vodka and Red Bulls and then drink a few Guinesses
and finish up with red wine or port, what are you having?
The Kelpies play Annandale Hotel with Asteroid B612 and Fragile on October 9. CDs and T-shirts available at the show or at Head Miles.
Go here to win a Kelpies pack.
