North American Record Industry Sees Melbourne, New Zealand Music Scene as Breeding Ground For Rock Revolution
Not since Nirvana turned Seattle into a breeding ground for grunge and post-punk has a geographic area become synonymous
with a particular style of music. But such is the case with Melbourne, Australia, which over the past year has
consistently been churning out some of the best rock bands unheard in North America for more than a decade.
Leading the pack is Warped, a hard rock outfit whose sound is difficult to pin down in one word, but whose influences
are clearly grounded in punk-rock and metal made famous by the likes of AC/DC, The Sex Pistols and The Rolling Stones.
For the United States, a country that’s been bombarded with bands like Limp Bizkit, Creed and Blink 182, Warped are not
only a refreshing change, they are messiahs.
The saviors of rock music, it appears, hail from Down Under. Bands like Warped, The Cants, The Smallgoods and Drivaside
are turning Melbourne and New Zealand into the new Seattle and the major record labels in the U.S. are quickly taking
notice and trying to capitalize off the trend. Bands like New Zealand’s The Datsuns and Auckland’s The D4 have signed
lucrative record deals in the states and are slowly taking over the airwaves.
But it wasn’t until a virtually unknown Melbourne band called Jet signed a $1 million record deal with Elektra Records
in the states earlier this year that record labels started to pay closer attention to Melbourne in hopes of signing the
next big thing.
Many of these bands weren’t even born when artists they emulate, like The Stooges, first started making records, so why
are they so inclined to try and push this type of music into the mainstream?
Frustration and boredom with the current state of music are the easy answers. But more importantly, the music played by
bands like Warped reflects the attitudes of the working-class musicians who perform it. The music is an outlet and a way
to let off some steam. These guys are rock stars. They strut and swagger. They shake and shimmy. They put the fun back
into rock-n-roll.
The San Francisco Chronicle recently wrote that Melbourne and New Zealand “has the patina of overnight success.
“The Australian and New Zealand scenes' ascendance has been decades in the making. The new crop of bands can trace their
lineage back to the late-'80s, early-'90s Australian scene spearheaded by the Flying Nun Records label and groups like
the Bats and Straitjacket Fits. They, in turn, followed a precedent set by the likes of Radio Birdman, the Saints, the
Celibate Rifles and others inspired by Detroit rock and post-punk New York to play fast and loud in an era of
synth-pop.”
Craig Regan, a writer for the Australian garage-rock Webzine the I-94 Bar said ‘the influence of the Stooges and MC5 in
the mid-'70s was significant, if maybe a little overrated,” on bands coming out of Australia today. “Radio Birdman
certainly had a distinct touch of the New York Dolls about them but were also very Blue Oyster Cult and Rolling Stones
influenced. Melbourne took a more arty approach, evident in angst bands like the Birthday Party (Nick Cave's first
group) and a host of impersonators.”
Like Led Zeppelin once sang, the song remains the same. And so far it sounds pretty damn good.
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- Jason Leopold is an investigative journalist based in California, he is currently finishing a book on the California
energy crisis. He can be contacted at jasonleopold@hotmail.com. This story is available for republication, please contact the author by email.