TOTAL
UNION – Band of Light (Aztec
Music)
God bless Aztec for re-issuing stuff like this. It’s hopefully a nail
in the commercial coffin of that small-time bootlegger who’s been doing
small business around Sydney markets with CD rips of old vinyl at drastically
inflated 
prices. It's also a reminder that although the musical palette in
Australia in 1973 was limited and there was hoards of crap around, some bands
were doing it well.
To most I-94 Bar patrons, Band of Light was the first band of significance
for future X and Rose Tattoo bassist Ian Rilen, a true legend who still prowls
stages with his current band The Love Addicts. So, on that score alone, this
one will spark interest. Looking past the presence of the Bad Boy For Love, “Total
Union” also showcases the unique slide talents of Norm Roue, whose
cutting tone (and the instrument’s prominence in the scheme of things)
must have played a role in inspiring the future Tatts.
Band of Light’s charting single, “The Destiny Song”, has
long had a place in my collection but it’s good to hear the album (on
which it didn’t appear) in its entirety. If this has been sourced from
vinyl rather than the presumably long-lost master tapes, there’s no
telling. It fairly leaps out of the speakers. Kudos to the people at Vicious
Sloth Collectables, and Aztec owner Gil Matthews, for a remarkable resuscitation
job. You can lament the decline of vinyl as a dominant media but I'm hard
pressed recalling many Australian LPs sounding this good.
Lyrically, Band of Light truly were hippies in an era when it was cool to
be so. The words are credited to “Wheel”, which was a pseudonym
for band leader Phil Key’s wife Pam. There are instances down the years
of people providing lyrical or creative inspiration from outside the immediate
circle of a band (R. Meltzer and Blue Oyster Cult spring to mind) but none
I can recall of someone’s spouse writing a whole album. Must have made
for interesting dinner table conversations - but the themes go beyond who's
going to do the washing up. Songs like "Free Them From Hunger", "Earthbound
Blues" and "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" give you a clue.
The Keys were obviously into the metaphysical, going by some of the words
and the band’s signature yin-and-yang logo. Some of the words are clunky
(some say more relevant) in these disposable times but if that's an issue,
go read some Hemingway.
The music is more or less straight-up blues and boogie with a shade of harder-edged
rock, so don’t expect anything dramatically groundbreaking. That said,
Band of Light mined their turf exceptionally well. Keys (an ex-La De Da)
was an accomplished guitarist-vocalist. Rilen and drummer Tony Buettel were
a nimble and dynamic engine room, if not as monstrous as some of the later
partnerships in which the former would figure. Keys and Roue intertwine nicely
and there's an edge to the playing that lifts Band of Light above most of
the rest of the field.
In true Aztec style, you cop the full album plus a generous serve
(five) of bonus tracks. The two singles (“Moonstruck” b/w “The
Cat” was the other) makes the cut, along with a storming live “Messin’ With
the Kid” from the 1973 Sunbury fest (and no, it’s not the Saints
song). Ian Macfarlane contributes the usual detailed liner notes in the generously
illustrated booklet.
Nice package. This is a reminder of a time when punk was still a few years
away and pub boogie ruled. It remains a guilty pleasure for many. Well recommended. –
The Barman
