Showing posts with label INXS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label INXS. Show all posts
Saturday, 26 April 2014
The D-Generation takes on Australian rockers
Five In A Row:
The D-Generation were a comedy troupe that started out as students at Melbourne University in the mid-1980s. Well known to Australian TV viewers, they had their own TV series as D-Generation, then The Late Show. They then branched out into other programs such as Full Frontal and then into various radio and film projects.
They had two successful singles that beautifully skewered Aussie music legends. Five In A Row, issued in 1989 took the "mickey' out of (in order):
John Farnham
Jimmy Barnes
Little River Band
Kylie Minogue
and James Reyne's idiosyncratic clipped and slurred vocal style
The sequel, released twelve months later, took shots at:
Michael Hutchence of INXS
Dragon
Darryl Braithwaite
Kate Ceberano
and Midnight Oil
They are very funny short films, well worth a look. Enjoy
Five More in a Row:
Wednesday, 19 February 2014
INXS: Hand picked by TSATF
Usually with the resurgence of a band or musician into the public's consciousness, music fans like myself often take the opportunity to reappraise their back catalog.So I guess it comes as no surprise to anyone that I've been spinning a few of my old INXS LPs again of late.
With INXS, I've always had a love/hate relationship with. I grew up with the band's music on radio and on dubbed cassettes during my formative years. I still have a soft spot for "Underneath The Colours", as well as the three big ones "The Swing", "Listen Like Thieves" and "Kick". By the time "X" was issued in 1990, I was over them. I never gave that album, nor the subsequent ones, any serious attention.
In the ensuing years, I've had occasion to spin them again. There are certainly some jewels among the rough, but then, as much as now, some of their work is just purely irredeemable. "Baby Don't Cry" is still the worst song they've ever recorded, and I've never liked "Suicide Blonde". I still don't.
There are still many key records in the history of INXS that have gone missing on reissues and on streaming Services such as Spotify. In the recent telemovie "INXS: Never Tear Us Apart", they make mention of their cracking first single "Simple Simon" as well as a side project by Michael and Melbourne based electro-wizz Ollie Olsen called "Max Q", who issued one very interesting and worthwhile self-titled record in 1990, which is well worth tracking down.
MAX Q - Way of the World
Max Q - Sometimes
The same with the soundtrack to "Dogs In Space", a film Michael starred in, and was directed by Richard Lowenstein. It features an excellent track by Michael called "Rooms for the Memory". None of these are available digitally at the moment, so let's hope for their speedy reissue.
Michael Hutchence - Rooms for the Memory
What you have here is a playlist, hand-picked by yours truly, of some of the hits and hidden gems from the INXS back catalog. Of particular note is the 1994 collaboration with Ray Charles called "Please (You Got That...)", which is one of the best things the band ever committed to tape.
INXS and Ray Charles live on Letterman 1993 (this is so COOL!!!!)
Kick back and chill with these tunes, and take a look at the YouTube clips as well, and do something that Channel 7 failed to do in its ratings blockbuster: celebrate the music.
With INXS, I've always had a love/hate relationship with. I grew up with the band's music on radio and on dubbed cassettes during my formative years. I still have a soft spot for "Underneath The Colours", as well as the three big ones "The Swing", "Listen Like Thieves" and "Kick". By the time "X" was issued in 1990, I was over them. I never gave that album, nor the subsequent ones, any serious attention.
In the ensuing years, I've had occasion to spin them again. There are certainly some jewels among the rough, but then, as much as now, some of their work is just purely irredeemable. "Baby Don't Cry" is still the worst song they've ever recorded, and I've never liked "Suicide Blonde". I still don't.
There are still many key records in the history of INXS that have gone missing on reissues and on streaming Services such as Spotify. In the recent telemovie "INXS: Never Tear Us Apart", they make mention of their cracking first single "Simple Simon" as well as a side project by Michael and Melbourne based electro-wizz Ollie Olsen called "Max Q", who issued one very interesting and worthwhile self-titled record in 1990, which is well worth tracking down.
MAX Q - Way of the World
Max Q - Sometimes
The same with the soundtrack to "Dogs In Space", a film Michael starred in, and was directed by Richard Lowenstein. It features an excellent track by Michael called "Rooms for the Memory". None of these are available digitally at the moment, so let's hope for their speedy reissue.
Michael Hutchence - Rooms for the Memory
What you have here is a playlist, hand-picked by yours truly, of some of the hits and hidden gems from the INXS back catalog. Of particular note is the 1994 collaboration with Ray Charles called "Please (You Got That...)", which is one of the best things the band ever committed to tape.
INXS and Ray Charles live on Letterman 1993 (this is so COOL!!!!)
Kick back and chill with these tunes, and take a look at the YouTube clips as well, and do something that Channel 7 failed to do in its ratings blockbuster: celebrate the music.
Monday, 17 February 2014
INXS on TV: The Verdict
You may remember my recent post about the INXS telemovie "Never Tear Us Apart" where I speculated that it would be less about the music and more about the off-stage antics...
...it turns out I was correct.
Reading three reports on the topic this week, one each from The Sydney Morning Herald, News.com.au and The Guardian, one would think that each of the reviewers were watching a totally different program from another.
The Guardian opines that it "...takes us back the age of bare-chested rock excess, and not much more", while making the obvious point about how uncensored the show supposedly is based on the amount of groupie boob exposure it contains.
The Sydney Morning Herald claims that it was "sex drugs and rock 'n' roll with...a batch of bad wigs" and that it played out like "Home and Away [but] with better music",while News says that the show was "...true event television, powerfully and unflinchingly told". I'm sure that is correct if you like watching soapy dramas.
The sad thing about this production is that it doesn't do anything for the bands legacy. I can't help thinking that INXS will end up with a place in Australian music history like the Doors now possess in American music history: they'll pretty much be known by those with all but a passing interest as "Michael and those other blokes". They will be always regarded not as great tunesmiths, but as the pub band who made more money and scored more drugs and pussy than anybody else.
Ditto the Doors.
Their music will always be tied to its era, dated by [then] contemporary production values intended on making everything sound bigger than anything else, at the expense of restraint.
Ditto the Doors.
They will always be mentioned in the same breath as all the gratuitous debauchery and excess of the period - some of the worst elements of the time - because THAT is how the media and social commentators have seen it and called it. And what is this telemovie doing about it? Nothing - it is doing exactly the same thing: Celebrating the excess and not the reason they got to enjoy it: the music.
I can think of heaps more bands that were way more successful worldwide than INXS back in the day but they are not even regarded with anywhere near the kind of reverence they are. What about Milli Vanilli? They sold way more copies with their one album than any INXS album did. Why aren't they highly regarded anymore? Because the music was shit, and it remains so. INXS's albums may sound dated but the songs are killer. Without the music, there wouldn't be an INXS to make a telemovie about.
Having said that, the Sydney Morning Herald piece rightly says that the whole reason this program exists in the first place is down to the "enduring power of the late Michael Hutchence, the lead signer whose charisma and magnetic stage presence could blow a concert audience clean out of their seats, and whose death in 1997...remains an intriguing...part of the legend." It's his tabloid-headline-grabbing antics the punters want to see - the music, as many viewers will see it, was a means to an end. This probably explains why it pulled in nearly 2 million domestic viewers on each respective Sunday night.
The death of Michael has been ruled suicide and NOT auto-erotic asphyxiation by the NSW State coroner - a fact that has been disputed by the late singer's family and friends. This issue wasn't tackled all that well in the film, largely because Michael died alone, the details surrounding are sketchy at best and any depiction of it would be purely speculative. It was handled tastefully, however, in my view, it did attempt to build to a climax and yet strangely failed to reach it.
So now they're proclaiming that this is the television hit of the year. It's a big call, considering we're only 6 weeks into the year. It was hugely successful in terms of ratings, substantially less so if it is measured on content. Did it match the hype? Hardly. But at least it got chins wagging, and the remaining members of INXS will get a boost to their retirement funds with back catalog sales going completely apeshit in the last few weeks.
I just hope we don't see a sequel that chronicles the aimless and pointless years in the aftermath of Michael's death, including the awkward choice of Terence Trent D'Arby as a vocalist and their credibility-destroying foray into reality television...the less said on that issue, the better.
...it turns out I was correct.
Reading three reports on the topic this week, one each from The Sydney Morning Herald, News.com.au and The Guardian, one would think that each of the reviewers were watching a totally different program from another.
The Guardian opines that it "...takes us back the age of bare-chested rock excess, and not much more", while making the obvious point about how uncensored the show supposedly is based on the amount of groupie boob exposure it contains.
The Sydney Morning Herald claims that it was "sex drugs and rock 'n' roll with...a batch of bad wigs" and that it played out like "Home and Away [but] with better music",while News says that the show was "...true event television, powerfully and unflinchingly told". I'm sure that is correct if you like watching soapy dramas.
The sad thing about this production is that it doesn't do anything for the bands legacy. I can't help thinking that INXS will end up with a place in Australian music history like the Doors now possess in American music history: they'll pretty much be known by those with all but a passing interest as "Michael and those other blokes". They will be always regarded not as great tunesmiths, but as the pub band who made more money and scored more drugs and pussy than anybody else.
Ditto the Doors.
Their music will always be tied to its era, dated by [then] contemporary production values intended on making everything sound bigger than anything else, at the expense of restraint.
Ditto the Doors.
They will always be mentioned in the same breath as all the gratuitous debauchery and excess of the period - some of the worst elements of the time - because THAT is how the media and social commentators have seen it and called it. And what is this telemovie doing about it? Nothing - it is doing exactly the same thing: Celebrating the excess and not the reason they got to enjoy it: the music.
I can think of heaps more bands that were way more successful worldwide than INXS back in the day but they are not even regarded with anywhere near the kind of reverence they are. What about Milli Vanilli? They sold way more copies with their one album than any INXS album did. Why aren't they highly regarded anymore? Because the music was shit, and it remains so. INXS's albums may sound dated but the songs are killer. Without the music, there wouldn't be an INXS to make a telemovie about.
Having said that, the Sydney Morning Herald piece rightly says that the whole reason this program exists in the first place is down to the "enduring power of the late Michael Hutchence, the lead signer whose charisma and magnetic stage presence could blow a concert audience clean out of their seats, and whose death in 1997...remains an intriguing...part of the legend." It's his tabloid-headline-grabbing antics the punters want to see - the music, as many viewers will see it, was a means to an end. This probably explains why it pulled in nearly 2 million domestic viewers on each respective Sunday night.
The death of Michael has been ruled suicide and NOT auto-erotic asphyxiation by the NSW State coroner - a fact that has been disputed by the late singer's family and friends. This issue wasn't tackled all that well in the film, largely because Michael died alone, the details surrounding are sketchy at best and any depiction of it would be purely speculative. It was handled tastefully, however, in my view, it did attempt to build to a climax and yet strangely failed to reach it.
So now they're proclaiming that this is the television hit of the year. It's a big call, considering we're only 6 weeks into the year. It was hugely successful in terms of ratings, substantially less so if it is measured on content. Did it match the hype? Hardly. But at least it got chins wagging, and the remaining members of INXS will get a boost to their retirement funds with back catalog sales going completely apeshit in the last few weeks.
I just hope we don't see a sequel that chronicles the aimless and pointless years in the aftermath of Michael's death, including the awkward choice of Terence Trent D'Arby as a vocalist and their credibility-destroying foray into reality television...the less said on that issue, the better.
Sunday, 9 February 2014
INXS on TV
Finally the new INXS biopic Mini-series is on tonight. Channel Seven has been flogging the promos for weeks now and it has finally time to show the first part.
There's been a lot of discussion around the place about "will it be any good". Without having seen it, it's supposed to be a biopic, not a documentary - there's a difference.
Biopics, while useful, are not always accurate nor informative. They are designed to tell a story and to entertain an audience, not necessarily to deliver the facts surrounding the story.
The story of INXS is already well documented around the traps anyway, and judging by the promos, the biopic is less about the music and the band, but rather the sordid private life of singer Michael Hutchence that very much became public thanks the scavenging British Tabloid press. It's my great fear that this miniseries will focus on the off-stage turbulence and not on the artistry of the band.
To be fair, the drudgery of overdubbing harmony vocals and in-store appearances is not what makes a good story. The stuff that will hook in the punters is the success, the drugs, the relationships and the sex, all of which distanced Michael from his bandmates, and ultimately finished with his demise.
I'll still watch it, and I'll see if my fears are confirmed.
There's been a lot of discussion around the place about "will it be any good". Without having seen it, it's supposed to be a biopic, not a documentary - there's a difference.
Biopics, while useful, are not always accurate nor informative. They are designed to tell a story and to entertain an audience, not necessarily to deliver the facts surrounding the story.
The story of INXS is already well documented around the traps anyway, and judging by the promos, the biopic is less about the music and the band, but rather the sordid private life of singer Michael Hutchence that very much became public thanks the scavenging British Tabloid press. It's my great fear that this miniseries will focus on the off-stage turbulence and not on the artistry of the band.
To be fair, the drudgery of overdubbing harmony vocals and in-store appearances is not what makes a good story. The stuff that will hook in the punters is the success, the drugs, the relationships and the sex, all of which distanced Michael from his bandmates, and ultimately finished with his demise.
I'll still watch it, and I'll see if my fears are confirmed.
Saturday, 2 February 2013
January 2013 Playlist
Wet and cold on the east coast of Australia today. But despite this comes the latest Spotify playlist from The Sound and the Fury. And it's cool and groovy and warm and delectable and awesome.
You'll find delights within such as:
and heaps more. Put it on random, crank it up and have some fun. Discover your new favourite tune.
Enjoy!!!
You'll find delights within such as:
- New stuff from San Cisco, Biffy Clyro, Birds of Tokyo, Calling All Astronauts and Bored Nothing
- Hidden gems from Andy Clockwise, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Buffalo Tom and Hey Ocean!
- Classics from Free, Herman's Hermits, Small Faces, Bo Diddley, Louis Jordan and Hunters and Collectors
- Extended jams and workouts from Branford Marsalis, Jimi Hendrix and Healing Force
- Classic Oz tracks in honour of Australia Day from INXS, Matt Finish, Mondo Rock, Mental as Anything and Screamfeeder
- Laid back grooves from Bob Marley, Damian Marley and The Melodians, not to mention an appearance from Rastamouse & Da Easy Crew!!!
- and some crazy crap from Peter Sellers, Scared Weird Little Guys, Parry Gripp and Tripod
and heaps more. Put it on random, crank it up and have some fun. Discover your new favourite tune.
Enjoy!!!
Tuesday, 13 November 2012
R.I.P. INXS
image source Gold 104.3FM Melbourne.
This morning the news that INXS had broken up was everywhere - it was inescapable. Apparently it was announced during their performance on the last night of their tour supporting Matchbox 20 in Perth last night.
It remains to be seen if this is a complete retirement announcement or an announcement of the David Bowie, sleep deprived "last show we'll ever do" type at the end of the 1973 Ziggy Stardust tour.
Either way, is it surprising?
Um...no, not really.
For any kid growing up and coming of age in the 1980s, INXS was a mainstay of your music library. They rocked hard, like all Aussie bands were required to do in those days, but had enough swing and groove to make the girls dance, thus boosting their profile enormously. It also helped that frontman Michael Hutchence carried himself with the swagger of an Adonis, but that's another story...
They conquered the world in the 1990s and became a truly global band, before their Michael descended into tabloid fodder, tawdry sex scandals with other peoples wives and, finally in 1997, his own untimely death in a bizarre accident gone wrong.
By the time they released "X" in 1990, I was over them. I'd moved on. They had a few great singles during that time, such as "Heaven Sent" and the unusual but highly inspired Ray Charles collaboration "Please (You Got That...)". When Michael died, commercial radio and TV in this country went nuts, having 24 hour coverage of the scene and a constant stream of teary tributes from female fans.
Since then, in my view, the band existed on its past glories and became a parody of itself. They tried a host of new singers. The first of which was ex-Noiseworks frontman Jon Stevens, probably the best fit for the band out of any of subsequent singers to fill Michael's shoes. They tried to plug the void Michael left with Terrance Trent D'Arby (which thankfully didn't last long), karaoke caricature JD Fortune and the new Irish chappy Ciaran Gribbin. Unfortunately, none have really matched up to the larger than life Michael Hutchence.
One of the special aspects of the band was lost in 1997 and the band never recovered. It wasn't that Michael was a great singer - he was no Caruso, but neither should he have been. Like Peter Garrett from Midnight Oil, he had a limited vocal range, but it was expressive. It was the perfect fit within the band's sound. He used it to the best of his advantage: for the group, the music and the song he was singing at the time. It suited what they were doing, and he had the charisma to carry it to the world.
Still, albums like "Underneath The Colours", "The Swing" and "Kick" deservedly belong in any collection of classic Australian music. Songs like "Don't Change" still sound as fresh as they day they were recorded.
Below is a link to a Grooveshark playlist of some of my selections from the long back catalog of INXS...in loving memory.
Enjoy.
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