Feature: DEAR SANTA – an Aussie Music 101 Christmas Special
To get into the spirit of Christmas, I asked some Aussie rock stars the most important question of the season:
What do you want from Santa this Christmas?
Also, seeing the bands were so nice to answer my emails on extremely short notice, they will be the focus for my Music 101 this issue.
End Of Fashion
“This year for Christmas, can I please have a carton of ginger beer, but it has to be really cold cos its hot over here”
Nick, End of Fashion (Perth)
End of Fashion is a pop/rock band from Perth, Australia. The band was originally formed as a side project by guitarists Justin Burford and Rod Aravena from the The Sleepy Jackson together with Malcolm Clark (drums) and Jonathon Dudman (bass). After two years, Justin and Rodney split from The Sleepy Jackson, reformed as End Of Fashion and after a series of bass players and drummers including finally settled on current line up with Nick Jonsson (drums) and Tom King (bass). On the 25th August 2005, End of Fashion released their self titled debut album, which went gold in Australia and New Zealand and was released in the United States in May 2006. www.myspace.com/endoffashion
Mz Ann Thropik
“Two men with grapes and fans, a foot massage, a jar of moths and pug dog”
Mz Ann Thropik (Sydney)
Mz Ann Thropik will take you into her rabbit hole; cover you in pink furs, PVC buckles and spider web melodies. Take you through her world of love and pain, whispering songs into your ears, till you're hurting from the beauty of it all. Born in Oct 2001 to a pawn shop guitar, Mz Ann Thropik has cultivated a large fan following world wide and it's obvious why. Mz Magdalena Terror's sugar coated voice creeps its way into your being, blooming in the crowd's hearts. Her sound is of 12am beating on the inside of your head, the purple fluid moans that pours into you like honey, and whispered words barely audible beneath the drum and bass. The shrieking hiss of painful lyrics and divine plump melody of a thousand lost loves. www.myspace.com/mzanntrophik
Trial Kennedy
“I would love 7 new pairs of jocks, one for every day of the week and possibly an indestructible guitar, that would be fantastic inclusion for Christmas and don't forget a big bottle of RRRRUMMM!!!!!”
Stacey (Guitar/vocals), Trial Kennedy (Melbourne)
Trial Kennedy is singer Tim Morrison, Stacey Gray (guitars/vocals), Aaron Malcolmson (bass) and Shaun Gionis (drums). This rock band from Melbourne, Australia knew from the start that finding like-minded friends that shared the same musical vision and ambition was crucial to the bands longevity. United in their love of rock & melody, Trial Kennedy released their debut EP 'Present For A Day' in September 2004 through Melbourne's Helltrack Records. The band have wasted no time, getting in the van & supporting the likes of Alexisonfire, After The Fall, Kisschasy & Shihad and this years Peaches 'n Cream Festival. The most influential & memorable bands in the world are the ones that don't quite fit, bands that only have the desire to play their own style and express it in their own way. This is where you will find Trial Kennedy. Trial Kennedy released their follow up EP in August 2005. www.myspace.com/trialkennedy
Fire Underground
“A trip to Hawaii!”
Daniel (Vocals/Guitar), Fire Underground (Melbourne)
Quite possibly the first rock 'n' roll band ever to incorporate a clarinet, Fire Underground from Melbourne, Australia. Daniel who plays guitar, sings, and blows a mean clarinet, while Doyle bashes his drums and sings. Drawing influence from two of the biggest and most popular music styles of the last century, Fire Underground have developed their own style that is highly entertaining to watch live, is powerful but fun, and thoroughly danceable. They have played with bands of many genres like Youth Group, Airbourne, The Black Keys, Alexisonfire and Starky. In September 2006 the band toured overseas as part of the New Found Frequency World Tour, playing in Canada and the US before heading to Europe to play shows in Amsterdam, Berlin and London. The band are currently writing new songs and looking for a bass player, and will release brand new material early in 2007. www.myspace.com/fireunderground
Kid Down
“I would ask Santa for a world tour. That would be sweet”
David (Drums), Kid Down (Sweden)
Emo-band Kiddown is from Sweden. Since all websites mentioning this band are suspiciously down, and their myspace doesn’t give many details, there’s not much more we can tell you about them. Go listen to their music though! It’s good. www.myspace.com/kiddown
Calabrese
"What we want from Santa is complete and total global domination!"
Calabrese (Phoenix, USA)
In 2001, CALABRESE was formed by the three brothers Bobby, Jimmy, and Davey Calabrese. The brothers from Phoenix have combined Gothabilly looks, B-movie drive-in lyrics and a Rock n' Roll sound. The band appeals to those who feel disgusted and abandoned by the current state of popular music. Distributed in the U.S., Japan, and the through the Internet, CALABRESE are quickly converting an international audience. With consistent touring and song writing, CALABRESE are building a vortex of anticipation for the upcoming 2006 release, which promises to push even further into the nightmares of helpless fans! www.myspace.com/calabrese
New London Fire
"I would like a rickenbacker guitar, 2 fender bassmans, a chuck berry song book, a buzzard and a xylophone. Thanks!"
Jon Lam (guitars) New London Fire (New Jersey USA)
Some people make music because they want to, others do because they simply have no other choice. New London Fire frontman Dave Debiak fits into the latter category. While New London Fire’s moniker was inspired My Chemical Romance bassist Mikey Way, the band quickly took on a life of their own. Comprised of Dave, his brother keyboardist Jason Debiak, drummer Nima Shirazi, guitarist Jonathan Lam, bassist Eric Willis and studio collaborator D. James Goodwin, New London Fire’s debut, I Sing The Body Holographic is an album that doesn’t defy genre categorizations—it transcends them. www.myspace.com/newlondonfire
** All band info taken from their myspaces and official websites