Friends of Sydney music scene legend Sue Telfer have banded together to assemble a line-up of bands to pay tribute to this much-loved lady at The Factory Theatre in Marrickville on Sunday, October 20. Over eight hours and two stages, a line-up that includes X, the New Christs, The Johnnys, Kim Salmon, Front End Loader will crank up the volume for Sue.

Sydney’s live scene suffered a monumental blow in June when long-time administrator, venue booker, confidante and den mother to countless bands, Sue Telfer, passed away suddenly at her Sydney home.

Sue grew up in in the halcyon days of Sydney’s inner-city scene of the 1980s. A employee of musicians’ rights organisation APRA-AMCOS for 32 years, Sue was around Surry Hills’ vibrant music pubs and clubs for even longer, most notably as the long-time booker for its legendary Excelsior Hotel.

Foundation Radio Birdman drummer Ron Keeley is offering a rare piece of memorabilia for sale on the UK eBay site, taken from his own collection.

This item is a 24 inch (61cm) diameter painted bass drumhead from his white Rodgers kit. It was hand-painted by the band’s long-serving bass player and their artist, Warwick Gilbert. It saw action from 1976-78. It was re-used by Ron after Birdman broke up and he joined The Visitors, at that point being covered by a cardboard fascia with that band’s logo.

“It was on the kit for ALL the Radio Birdman gigs we played during that time, including all those at the Funhouse, the famous live session at 2JJ Studios, both of the legendary 1977 Paddington Town Hall gigs and many others,” Ron said.

“Condition is pretty good considering its age and the number of ‘skirmishes’ it was involved in…although it’s a bit battle-scarred (and stained in places with splashes of beer and other unidentified liquids.)”

The item comes with a personally signed Certificate of Authenticity stating that the drum face is a contemporaneous item from Ron’s personal collection, and describing its provenance.

Hello from the Dimboola farmhouse folks and has it been rocking here!  The reason is that Chris “Klondike” Masuak and the Viveiro Wave Riders have released a rocking good album. Their second long player, “Address to the Nation”, is the follow-up to 2016’s “Brujita” and is pure guitar driven tracks from start to finish. 

Myself, I think it’s a lot stronger than the first album - there is less pop and more grunt.

Well, let’s start with any folks who are not savy to Klondike’s cv: RADIO BIRDMAN, HITMEN , THE NEW CHRISTS, JUKE SAVAGES, NORTH 40 and the wonderful SCREAMING TRIBESMEN. To name a few.

_{Photo from a Brett Allen video.}

Damien Lovelock 1954-2019

I first caught the Celibate Rifles a few weeks after my 17th birthday in the upstairs room at the Paddo Green Hotel. They were loud, fast, made me grow long hair. I’d recently bought “But Jacques, the fish”, skipped the first few classes and went into the city; got back to school with that treasure. It was a passport to a different world.

There were a lot of Rifles gigs over the years. It’s remarkable now to think how damn LOUD they were in the ‘80s. Towering amps, double four-way PA, in an average pub or club. It was inspirational too.   If they could do it...

Of course, the average teenage punter didn’t know how much time and effort had already been ploughed into that band. Thirty-one years after that first gig I put this together. Read it, it’s the key.

The Beasts are embarking on their second Australian tour this year, this time in tandem with Magic Dirt’s Adalita.

Still running hard off the back of their studio album “Still Here”, the band formerly known as the Beasts of Bourbon is planning a run up and down Australia’s East Coast before shows in Perth, Fremantle and Adelaide.

The Beasts are Tex Perkins, Kim Salmon, Charlie Owen, Tony Pola and Boris Sudjovic. Their shows earlier this year were sell-outs and showed the ex-Beasts had lost none of their power. even with the fallen Spencer P Jones and Brian Hooper gone. .

Tickets for The Beasts’ national tour go on sale on Friday, August 9 via Oztix.

The Beasts + Adalita
NOV
28 - Barwon Club, Geelong VIC
29 - York On Lilydale, Mt Evelyn VIC
30 - Croxton Bandroom, Melbourne VIC
DEC
4 - Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle NSW
6 - The Metro, Sydney NSW
7 - Wollongong Uni, Wollongong NSW
12 - The Triffid, Brisbane QLD
13 - Kingscliff Beach Hotel, Kingscliff NSW
14 - Sol Bar, Maroochydore QLD
20 - The Gov, Adelaide SA
21 - Rosemount Hotel, Perth WA
22 - Rock Rover, Fremantle WA

There’s good news on the medical front for Died Pretty frontman Ron Peno, who has been fighting his own battle with cancer. The band posted a message on Facebook earlier today, indicating that the much-loved singer is on a long road to full recovery:

The program of radio and chemotherapy was successfully completed. Shortly afterwards Ron was operated on to remove the tumour in his oesophagus. The doctors have reported the procedure was completed successfully and they are confident that he will make a full recovery. The operation itself however was a major undertaking (lasting over six hours) and Ron will take an extended period to recover physically.

The good news is that the medical staff are confident that all the cancer has been removed from his body. Naturally there will be extended monitoring of the situation but this is the best possible outcome and we are very grateful for the wonderful job all the medical staff involved have done! We thank everyone for their amazing support and all of the messages of love and positivity.

While his band The Mesmerisers are preparing for a run of Melbourne shows to promote their brand spankin' new album, Mick Medew is playing a rare solo electric show at Brisbane's Junk Bar on August 13.

Tickets are on sale via Oztix. Support is Defo Mofo and expect a run through the bulging Medew back cataolgue, with some surprise covers. 

_{From the Celibate Rifles Facebook.}

I went to a Catholic boarding school, and that sort of team spirit thing and having the right attitude to what you do was drummed into you from day one. And I viewed any group enterprise the same way, life's too short for bickering and bullshit. If there's something you want to do, let's get to doing it. You can have fun on the way. but I used to watch most bands and it seemed that it was more a part of a look.

As soon as I met the Rifles I thought OK, there's something here. There's an energy and... there's something that sets them apart from a lot of the other bands. And that, nothing lasts forever. If you don't look after it it'll just dissipate and go. So yeah, I got into that. - Damien Lovelock in conversation with Earl O'Neill.

The magnitude of yesterday’s passing of Celibate Rifles frontman Damien Lovelock at the age of 65 is still sinking in. Lovelock died at his Sydney home after a protracted fight against cancer - a battle that was known to many but largely kept private out of respect for the man.

Damien Lovelock was one of the most articulate, witty and forthright figures to spring from the Australian underground music scene in the 1980s. His laconic drawl was a trademark element of the sound of the Rifles, perhaps Sydney’s ultimate anti-star complex band. As promoter and longtime Damo friend Tim Pittman remarked: "He was a unique human".

Vale Damien Lovelock, lead singer of the Celibate Rifles, raconteur and and sports commentator. The icon of The Australian underground music scene passed away this morning after a protracted health battle. A more fullsome tribute soon.