from one of the most popular albums i have ever reacted to.. to easily the least popular! this reaction definitely made me more aware of my own taste - i gravitate towards punk, rock, grunge, rough & ragged. Nick Cave is easily my favourite Australian artist :)
They guitarist, Rowland S Howard, was a phenomenal guitarist and song writer. As well as other post B. Party projects, he put out 2 solo records before his unfortunate passing. Anyhoo.. those 2 records (Pop Crimes, and Teenage Snuff Film) are definitely worth checking out. I only found out about his work a couple of years ago. My mind was blown. It was sad that He and Nick, couldn't work together anymore.
This album is so abrasive but it clicked with me during the first listen, it's so awesome. I'm so glad that you're listening to it in full since no one else has a video doing so
The Birthday Party should make anyone nervous. They played it like they lived it: dangerous and on edge at all times. Bass player died in 1986 (epileptic seizure) and guitarist in 2009 (liver cancer). They were never a ‘fun’ bunch, alltgough their music was often astonishing. Check out their other records (they usually sound much better than ‘Junkyard’), ‘spcially ‘Prayers On Fire’ and ‘Mutiny’, and the live performaces around on TH-cam. Hot tip: after BP broke up their sadly late (that’s what happens when you use heroin) lead guitarist, Rowland S. Howard, released a couple of fantastic albums both solo and with his own band These Immortal Souls. Highly recommended ❤
Dark BRUTAL noise ROCK speed blasts of Dead Joe was TERRIFIED BY GIRLS back in the day in 82, now DEAD JOE of the 2020 girls SEES IT AS ROCK like I did in 82 and today as they also ROCK OUT to it as well as to The Dim Locator, Hamlet (pow pow pow), Big Jesus Trash Can, Junkyard, and so on.
Wow, I never expected to see a reactor tackle The Birthday Party, much less enjoy them as much as you did. Thumbs up! For more Australian punk, I'd say you should definitely check out Radio Birdman. They're not as noisy as the Birthday Party, but very influential. For more post-punk, I think the John Foxx-era ULTRAVOX! would appeal to you, as would the band Magazine. Look forward to more reactions.
This is so cute! I love the birthday party and to see a young lady hear it for the first time and get a big smile and groove like that is just endearing somehow
You'd probably enjoy listening to the The Cramps. The Birthday Party always reminded me of The Cramps meet Bauhaus. The Cramps took Rockabilly, mixed it with Surf Guitar, Schlock Horror themes, and Punk Rock attitude to create Psychobilly in the late 70s. A good entry point is "A Date With Elvis" the point at which they'd perfected the style.
Nick Cave went from straight violent punk to less punk but pretty heavy blues, with amazing lyrics, and a kind of religious undertone. He never passed through the new wave stuff that is so stereotypical of the 80s. That is I think what is so particular about their journey in the context of post-punk emergence.
As well have you ever checked out the Fall, Nick considered them his only peers in the post punk scene and him and Mark E Smith were long time friends. They pretty much released an album every year so there's over 30 in total and even the weaker efforts have 2 to 3 bangers. They are famous for being the favourite band of the legendary alternative DJ John Peel, as he said always different always the same
Was lucky enough to download the Junkyard song from the same album. The bass tone and the noisy rock. Glad to see the beautiful LP cover right beside you!
So glad to see you back to reactions! It's very different, but I'd love to see you check out some Blue Oyster Cult. They're a super eclectic band who incorporate a Lovecraftian mythos across their whole catalog of lyrics. Their sound ranges from light progressive rock to early heavy metal and I think their album "Fire of Unknown Origin" would be right up your alley.
This record completely changed my life discovering it as a teen in '83. Seek out the doc "Mutiny in Heaven". Their close band friends in England were The Fall and The Pop Group, both of whose discographies are also essential and mind-blowing.
They did a performance of Junkyard (the song not the album) on some German tv show and you should definitely check it out, I won't spoil it but it is absolutely insane.
Yes!!! This makes me happy. Birthday Party we’re so great in my opinion. Just lumbering, lurching , swinging madness. I love Rowland S. Howard’s brilliant spidery guitar - I hear echoes of it in some modern Australian bands like Tropical F*ck Storm.
this is one of my favorite albums! Love it! Your reactions are always thoughtful and I appreciate that. I can personally really hear a connection between the sound of the Birthday Party and the sound of The Cosmic Psychos. I have been thinking about your Bowie reaction and I wanted to say that his album Hunky Dory is the album that I think is actually the one that is mostly great from beginning to end. You would be doing yourself a favor by checking it out when you get a chance to. As always, a pleasure to see a new video.
Great stuff! Loves your reaction. They’re definitely a deep end band. Not easy for many to get into upon first listen. So many great Australian bands. Radio Birdman, The Saints, Hoodoo Gurus, Died Pretty, etc. There’s a great 2-disc compilation called Do The Pop that showcases a bunch Australian punk/post-punk/power pop bands. Also, in a similar Birthday Party vein, check out The Jesus Lizard. Their album Goat is a banger.
There's plenty more Australian post-punk for you to check out: The Scientists, Lubricated Goat, feedtime, and King Snake Roost come to mind right away.
Oh man, you're picking some amazing records! So cool seeing someone hearing this stuff for the first time. I love all his stuff but can't imagine what it's like only knowing Cave in the context of what he's like now and then experiencing the Birthday Party (you should check out live video from them, he was a fuckin' WILD MAN!). It's been great following his career; It was even money he's just self-destruct by 30 but no, he got his shit together in the coolest imaginable way and now he's closing in on Dylan-level status and I'm totally here for it.
For Australian bands maybe Spy vs. Spy? Also take a listen to earlier Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds like Tender Prey or The Good Son (or earlier :) if you haven't already.
Super surprised and happy to see you reacting to this! So many Bad Seeds albums you could also listen to and would likely love. Keep up the great work!
Thanks for reviewing this great album. Someone kicked my my vynil copy I'd bought when it came out, oh well. Last two songs are extras on RE-CD version. Give a listen to Prayers On Fire, their best release in my opinion. Cherio!
Really enjoyed your reaction so glad you got round to this I knew they wouldn't dissapoint. I'd suggest Mutiny in Heaven the transition into the Bad Seeds, still on the raw edge though.
@ "Junkyard" has remained one of my favorite records since it's release in 1982, you should check out THE BOYS NEXT DOOR that became THE BIRTHDAY PARTY they were around between 1978 and 1983, they had two albums "Door, Door" & "The Birthday Party" along with a few singles and an 12" E.P. £Hee Haw".
Nick Cave's first band The Boys Next Door then into The Birthday Party. In The Birthday Party Nick was influenced highly by 2 things. 1st The God of The Old Testament. 2nd Heroin.
I love your reactions to this!! I dearly love this band so it makes me remember first listening to them. It really takes a minute to understand their musical world but when you do there's nothing like it. Also I have a reissue of this record on vinyl from Drastic Plastic records and I'm really bummed my copy doesn't start with Blast Off! It for some reason starts with 'She's Hit'. Blast Off really is the perfect song to start this record off! Last thing - definitely check out the guitarist from this band Rowland S. Howard if you like his guitar playing on this album! He's got an amazing catalogue of music.
The original release in 82' starts with "She's Hit". "Blast Off", "Release The Bats" and the second version of Dead Joe were added years later in the cd release. (Actually "Blast off" and "Release The Bats" do not come from the Junkyard Sessions)
junkyard's one of my favourite albums of all time, i love the birthday party so much! i'm even wearing my birthday party t-shirt right now lmao tracy pew is one of my bass heroes, that cowboy could make any bassline sound threatening! if you're after some more great australian music to react to, definitely check out the first three albums by The Saints if you haven't already. they're my favourite band of all time and those three albums are the fucking best!
One of the most well known and best Australian punk bands were The Saints. Sadly we lost the singer, Chris Bailey, last year. Perhaps dip your toe in with "I'm Stranded".
I was lucky enough to be at the album release gig or at least the first or second after it.Many years ago excuse my memory. Nick Cave had a foot in plaster,if that offers a clue to those around at the time?About 80 in the audience in a London venue that held maybe 300.The title track came across brilliantly .A fantastic gig.
I've loved this album since the 80s and I really enjoyed seeing your reactions to it and I liked your comments. You should know that the track listing you played is not the same as on the original LP. The original album began with "She's Hit" and ended with "Junkyard". "Blast Off" and "Release the Bats" were released together as a separate single and were not on the album. The second version of "Dead Joe" was also not on the album. Those three tracks were added to the CD version of the album, which came out several years later. Much as I like those three tracks, I've always felt that the original sequence of the album was perfect, with its sleepy start and the climactic finale of "Junkyard". "Blast Off" is also a great way to begin the album, but I still think it sounds best ending with "Junkyard", as originally intended. The two tracks that follow it on the CD version sound tacked on to me, which they in fact are. Thank you for making this video.
I saw this band in a Coogee pub around this time and it was an experience; hypnotic, mesmerizing and slightly psychotic. Nick Cave really knows how to work a crowd and work them into a sweaty, swaying lump of humanity.
This is what the smart hardcore kids got into when hardcore started to get formulaic and embarrassing. Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, famous hot rod cartoonist, did the cover for this and a couple years later the Necros commissioned their "Tangled Up" cover from him. When they came through L.A. I went with them to meet Mr. Roth. He was a cool old guy but really wanted to make sure they weren't blasphemers like "that Birthday Party group"
Before the birthday party NC was in a band called Boys Next Door... listen to a song called shiver... proberly my all time favorite 3 minutes what a single....
If you liked this album I'd highly recommend a band from Ann Arbor, MI called Laughing Hyenas, specifically their You Can't Pray a Lie album, though Crawl and Life of Crime are all bangers as well
You might want to check out PJ Harvey. She and Nick Cave were in a relationship and the chemistry is evident on the video of Henry Lee. PJ Harvey tracks you might like include: Dress, Man Size, 50 ft Queenie, Sheela Na Gig You may also like an Anglo-French all-female band from around 2013-16 called Savages. Kind of arty post punk. Check out Shut Up, No Face, I am Here, She Will from their first album Silence Yourself.
Some other interesting 80's Aussie post-punk you might enjoy are Grong Grong, Slugfuckers, The Scientists, Fungus Brains, feedtime,The Celibate Rifles, Box Of Fish, Lubricated Goat, Thug and X (not to be confused with the L.A. punk band of the same name)
Oh and should check the mutiny ep as well as the peel sessions they are magnificent and again as good as anything he has ever done, love Tracey Pew's amazing bass and Rowland S Howard's guitars
Great that you described this as "off-sounding jazz". I've always heard a jazz influence on TBP, yet despite reading a lot about their various influences, very few jazz musicians seem to get a mention. Rowland's guitars sometimes remind me of Sonny Sharrock, and Ornette Coleman is another that may have influenced them. There were trumpets On Prayers on Fire (a better album for mine) and they basically influenced a whole slew of amphetamine-fuelled noise rock bands, particularly in Australia who often sported a saxophone (I guess it was the 80s!). Make sure you check out Y by The Pop Group to hear where TBP ripped some of their best moves from. An equally incendiary post punk blast of an album, albeit much more upbeat than TBP.
Australian Punk and Rock music is generally ace. Here’s a couple: The Saints, Radio Birdman, The Hard-Ons, Cosmic Psychos, Celibate Rifles. And probaly hundreds more. Sidney kids The Chats just released a great album called ‘Get Fucked’. Aussie kicks ass ❤
I have a number of Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds albums but I saw a VHS tape of The Birthday Party back in the early 80s and decided they weren't for me. It looked like the band needed an exorcism. I was much more likely to buy a Talking Heads or Keith Jarrett album at that time.
React to the most underrated band ever Monster Magnet. They are stoner, space, psychedelic, hard rock and have been around for 30 years. It's tough to pick an album, because they are all great. If you can find them in album form get either "Mastermind" (2010) or "Last Patrol" (2013). They will blow your mind.
You should give a listen to Jesus Lizard. Either the record Liar (perhaps their least challenging to listen to), or Goat. If you like weird, raw, intense, post-punky...
The Birthday Party were a big hit in The Batcave, a punk/goth club, in Charing Cross, London. Particularly Release the Bats. The Batcave also produced the band Alien Sex Fiend, who are fairly indescribable really. Very WEIRD. Worth a listen though.
THE BIRTHDAY PARTY are not an easy chow, you need some time to digest it. But the reward is very promising. Nick howls like his life depends on it, the bass lines are the best part of this organized chaos. I love everything Nick is doing, but i prefere the older stuff. BTW, TEX PERKINS is my favorite OZZY, CHASE THE DRAGON!
Ok, you should listen to Two Nuns and a Pack Mule by the band called Rapeman. Don't let the name put you off. They were actually feminists but it was a different time and being anti-PC was something that the Left was more involved in than the Right. They were commenting on the strangeness and decidedly non-Western attitude of a Japanese Manga comic that had that same name, but I digress. The band and the album were singular as far as post punk goes. The best produced, most beautiful, sparkly, smart, balanced noise rock ever made. And the drums! My god! The drums!
Pretty sure if you check the vinyl, Release the Bats won't be on it. Wasn't on mine.EDIT Or have I just forgotten? But don't think so. I think it was originally just a single.
Watch out for Fast Savannah - if you want something raw and different (in the Beefheart realm) try their "Qualms" album. They got long, good tempo songs cooking though. Shh...
Aussie punk rock is essential, even the earlly AC/DC sounded punkish, raw energy. THE SAINTS were the band that never got the recognition they deserved. The 80s were golden for AUSSIE underground, DIED PRETTY, LIME SPIDERS, BEASTS OF BOURBON...of course i love NICK CAVE,but i have no problem with INXS, i don't care about the genre if it's delivered the right way. Of course i like ROSE TATTOO better, but INXS were a great mainstream winners. Even if i like THE SCIENTISTS a waaay more. NEW ZEALAND is included, great isolation makes great creativity. Kudos to FLYING NUN, but there is more to explore
I am absolutely THRILLED to see you react to The Birthday Party. Even those folks I know what are incredibly Nick Cave fans rarely get into TBP, and even more rarely do they like it. It’s even rarer, unfortunately, I’ve noticed, for women to like TBP. I say unfortunately, because every woman I’ve ever met who DOES like TBP, we’ve become fast mates, usually for a long time, through thick and thin. Anyroad, congrats upon your initiation into TBP, and also upon your first noise-rock experience. It is my opinion that TBP and Steve Albini’s 80s noise-rock outfit Big Black are the two most malevolent rock bands of all time. I love them to death. I wish you many more years of fascinating musical discoveries.
Something I've never heard pointed out: Birthday Party had a lot of songs that SWING. Not so common rhythm in rock music, especially no so common in post punk or whatever the fug BP was.
from one of the most popular albums i have ever reacted to.. to easily the least popular! this reaction definitely made me more aware of my own taste - i gravitate towards punk, rock, grunge, rough & ragged. Nick Cave is easily my favourite Australian artist :)
His books are good too. His debut novel ‘And The Ass Saw The Angel’ is absolute legend. One of the biggest modern day poets there is IMHO.
I feel like this album is critically acclaimed by a certain brand of critic ... which may be the kind that is worth listening to.
this is definitely close to noise rock- no wave, it reminds me a lot of early Swans, Sonic Youth, Live Skull, maybe Big Black
A band that I think you might like is Foetus
If you're going for Australian Punk check out The Drones and Tropical Fuck Storm if you've not already
They guitarist, Rowland S Howard, was a phenomenal guitarist and song writer. As well as other post B. Party projects, he put out 2 solo records before his unfortunate passing. Anyhoo.. those 2 records (Pop Crimes, and Teenage Snuff Film) are definitely worth checking out. I only found out about his work a couple of years ago. My mind was blown. It was sad that He and Nick, couldn't work together anymore.
This album is so abrasive but it clicked with me during the first listen, it's so awesome. I'm so glad that you're listening to it in full since no one else has a video doing so
The Birthday Party should make anyone nervous. They played it like they lived it: dangerous and on edge at all times. Bass player died in 1986 (epileptic seizure) and guitarist in 2009 (liver cancer). They were never a ‘fun’ bunch, alltgough their music was often astonishing. Check out their other records (they usually sound much better than ‘Junkyard’), ‘spcially ‘Prayers On Fire’ and ‘Mutiny’, and the live performaces around on TH-cam. Hot tip: after BP broke up their sadly late (that’s what happens when you use heroin) lead guitarist, Rowland S. Howard, released a couple of fantastic albums both solo and with his own band These Immortal Souls. Highly recommended ❤
I got to see These Immortal Souls live -- ASTOUNDING!!! Rowland S. Howard was brilliant in his own right.
Reminds me of the Tamer aussie GG allin I love the birthday party :D
You definitely need to check out the album Fun House by the Stooges and Songs the Lord Taught us by The Cramps!
both masterpieces
_Psychedelic Jungle_ is my favorite Cramps album But _Songs the Lord Taught Us_ was one helluva debut.
Rolland S Howard guitarist (& song writing contributor) from this band had a great solo album you should check out. Pretty different style to this.
Dark BRUTAL noise ROCK speed blasts of Dead Joe was TERRIFIED BY GIRLS back in the day in 82, now DEAD JOE of the 2020 girls SEES IT AS ROCK like I did in 82 and today as they also ROCK OUT to it as well as to The Dim Locator, Hamlet (pow pow pow), Big Jesus Trash Can, Junkyard, and so on.
There's a video of The Birthday Party live on German TV doing "Junkyard" that is well worth a look. Their video for "Nick the Stripper" is also great.
Wow that video was insane. Cave is legend
Tracy Pew. Just giving it to that bass. In a pirate shirt and leather trousers. @@Jacksmusicshack
Wow, I never expected to see a reactor tackle The Birthday Party, much less enjoy them as much as you did. Thumbs up! For more Australian punk, I'd say you should definitely check out Radio Birdman. They're not as noisy as the Birthday Party, but very influential. For more post-punk, I think the John Foxx-era ULTRAVOX! would appeal to you, as would the band Magazine. Look forward to more reactions.
This is so cute! I love the birthday party and to see a young lady hear it for the first time and get a big smile and groove like that is just endearing somehow
this is such a joyful video! You remind me of me age 13 discovering this music for the first time
You'd probably enjoy listening to the The Cramps. The Birthday Party always reminded me of The Cramps meet Bauhaus. The Cramps took Rockabilly, mixed it with Surf Guitar, Schlock Horror themes, and Punk Rock attitude to create Psychobilly in the late 70s. A good entry point is "A Date With Elvis" the point at which they'd perfected the style.
Nick Cave went from straight violent punk to less punk but pretty heavy blues, with amazing lyrics, and a kind of religious undertone. He never passed through the new wave stuff that is so stereotypical of the 80s. That is I think what is so particular about their journey in the context of post-punk emergence.
Awesome! Birthday Party are Australian punk icons
As well have you ever checked out the Fall, Nick considered them his only peers in the post punk scene and him and Mark E Smith were long time friends. They pretty much released an album every year so there's over 30 in total and even the weaker efforts have 2 to 3 bangers. They are famous for being the favourite band of the legendary alternative DJ John Peel, as he said always different always the same
Was lucky enough to download the Junkyard song from the same album. The bass tone and the noisy rock. Glad to see the beautiful LP cover right beside you!
U .Might Like the Gun Club...Fire of Love
So glad to see you back to reactions! It's very different, but I'd love to see you check out some Blue Oyster Cult. They're a super eclectic band who incorporate a Lovecraftian mythos across their whole catalog of lyrics. Their sound ranges from light progressive rock to early heavy metal and I think their album "Fire of Unknown Origin" would be right up your alley.
This record completely changed my life discovering it as a teen in '83. Seek out the doc "Mutiny in Heaven". Their close band friends in England were The Fall and The Pop Group, both of whose discographies are also essential and mind-blowing.
They did a performance of Junkyard (the song not the album) on some German tv show and you should definitely check it out, I won't spoil it but it is absolutely insane.
Yes!!! This makes me happy. Birthday Party we’re so great in my opinion. Just lumbering, lurching , swinging madness. I love Rowland S. Howard’s brilliant spidery guitar - I hear echoes of it in some modern Australian bands like Tropical F*ck Storm.
Oh and watch this:
th-cam.com/video/3CgNymWt5_I/w-d-xo.html
this is one of my favorite albums! Love it! Your reactions are always thoughtful and I appreciate that. I can personally really hear a connection between the sound of the Birthday Party and the sound of The Cosmic Psychos. I have been thinking about your Bowie reaction and I wanted to say that his album Hunky Dory is the album that I think is actually the one that is mostly great from beginning to end. You would be doing yourself a favor by checking it out when you get a chance to. As always, a pleasure to see a new video.
Great stuff! Loves your reaction. They’re definitely a deep end band. Not easy for many to get into upon first listen. So many great Australian bands. Radio Birdman, The Saints, Hoodoo Gurus, Died Pretty, etc. There’s a great 2-disc compilation called Do The Pop that showcases a bunch Australian punk/post-punk/power pop bands. Also, in a similar Birthday Party vein, check out The Jesus Lizard. Their album Goat is a banger.
There's plenty more Australian post-punk for you to check out: The Scientists, Lubricated Goat, feedtime, and King Snake Roost come to mind right away.
Oh man, you're picking some amazing records! So cool seeing someone hearing this stuff for the first time. I love all his stuff but can't imagine what it's like only knowing Cave in the context of what he's like now and then experiencing the Birthday Party (you should check out live video from them, he was a fuckin' WILD MAN!). It's been great following his career; It was even money he's just self-destruct by 30 but no, he got his shit together in the coolest imaginable way and now he's closing in on Dylan-level status and I'm totally here for it.
For Australian bands maybe Spy vs. Spy? Also take a listen to earlier Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds like Tender Prey or The Good Son (or earlier :) if you haven't already.
Super surprised and happy to see you reacting to this! So many Bad Seeds albums you could also listen to and would likely love. Keep up the great work!
Prayers on fire the first album is even better up there with my favourite of anything Mr Cave has done
Thanks for reviewing this great album. Someone kicked my my vynil copy I'd bought when it came out, oh well. Last two songs are extras on RE-CD version. Give a listen to Prayers On Fire, their best release in my opinion. Cherio!
Do you know HTRK? They’re Australian and I looooooove them. Their album, Marry Me Tonight was produced by The Birthday Party’s guitar player
This was my favorite record when I was a senior in high school! Noisy and angry and dirty and Goth without any of that poseur quality.
Really enjoyed your reaction so glad you got round to this I knew they wouldn't dissapoint. I'd suggest Mutiny in Heaven the transition into the Bad Seeds, still on the raw edge though.
The second track with Nick's deranged singing! Love the reaction and love this channel. Thank you for the content.
saw them in london in late 1982. bought this the same week, took it home, put it on & the wallpaper all came off. damn.
@
"Junkyard" has remained one of my favorite records since it's release in 1982,
you should check out THE BOYS NEXT DOOR that became THE BIRTHDAY PARTY
they were around between 1978 and 1983, they had two albums "Door, Door" & "The Birthday Party" along with a few singles and an 12" E.P. £Hee Haw".
Nick Cave's first band The Boys Next Door then into The Birthday Party. In The Birthday Party Nick was influenced highly by 2 things. 1st The God of The Old Testament. 2nd Heroin.
I love your reactions to this!! I dearly love this band so it makes me remember first listening to them. It really takes a minute to understand their musical world but when you do there's nothing like it.
Also I have a reissue of this record on vinyl from Drastic Plastic records and I'm really bummed my copy doesn't start with Blast Off! It for some reason starts with 'She's Hit'. Blast Off really is the perfect song to start this record off!
Last thing - definitely check out the guitarist from this band Rowland S. Howard if you like his guitar playing on this album! He's got an amazing catalogue of music.
The original release in 82' starts with "She's Hit".
"Blast Off", "Release The Bats" and the second version of Dead Joe were added years later in the cd release.
(Actually "Blast off" and "Release The Bats" do not come from the Junkyard Sessions)
junkyard's one of my favourite albums of all time, i love the birthday party so much! i'm even wearing my birthday party t-shirt right now lmao
tracy pew is one of my bass heroes, that cowboy could make any bassline sound threatening!
if you're after some more great australian music to react to, definitely check out the first three albums by The Saints if you haven't already. they're my favourite band of all time and those three albums are the fucking best!
Junkyard and Prayers on Fire are the ones I have, plus every album from the Bad Seeds and Grinderman
One of the most well known and best Australian punk bands were The Saints. Sadly we lost the singer, Chris Bailey, last year. Perhaps dip your toe in with "I'm Stranded".
I dig your reaction to this. I love all things CAVE
I was lucky enough to be at the album release gig or at least the first or second after it.Many years ago excuse my memory. Nick Cave had a foot in plaster,if that offers a clue to those around at the time?About 80 in the audience in a London venue that held maybe 300.The title track came across brilliantly .A fantastic gig.
Also, anything by the Velvet Underground.
I have the Hair Shirt EP..from very early before the Birthday Party..when they were Boys Next Door 😊
I've loved this album since the 80s and I really enjoyed seeing your reactions to it and I liked your comments. You should know that the track listing you played is not the same as on the original LP. The original album began with "She's Hit" and ended with "Junkyard". "Blast Off" and "Release the Bats" were released together as a separate single and were not on the album. The second version of "Dead Joe" was also not on the album. Those three tracks were added to the CD version of the album, which came out several years later.
Much as I like those three tracks, I've always felt that the original sequence of the album was perfect, with its sleepy start and the climactic finale of "Junkyard". "Blast Off" is also a great way to begin the album, but I still think it sounds best ending with "Junkyard", as originally intended. The two tracks that follow it on the CD version sound tacked on to me, which they in fact are.
Thank you for making this video.
FRANZ KAFKA?... Really cool, im from czech republic and i love Nick Cave ... :D
I love this record!
More stuff like this please
My favorite reactor ever. Hope we get to Pantera soon !!
I got into this band last year.. why have i not listened to them years before.. ESPECIALLY HAVING THE LEGEND NICK CAVE AND TRACY PEW AND COMPANY!?
I saw this band in a Coogee pub around this time and it was an experience; hypnotic, mesmerizing and slightly psychotic. Nick Cave really knows how to work a crowd and work them into a sweaty, swaying lump of humanity.
This is what the smart hardcore kids got into when hardcore started to get formulaic and embarrassing. Ed "Big Daddy" Roth, famous hot rod cartoonist, did the cover for this and a couple years later the Necros commissioned their "Tangled Up" cover from him. When they came through L.A. I went with them to meet Mr. Roth. He was a cool old guy but really wanted to make sure they weren't blasphemers like "that Birthday Party group"
Release the Bats/Blast Off weren't originally on the album. They were added for later reissues.
Great to see you react to The Birthday Party...you must listen to The Jesus Lizard for more insane noise rock of the highest order.
Before the birthday party NC was in a band called Boys Next Door... listen to a song called shiver... proberly my all time favorite 3 minutes what a single....
Listen to the first album with The Friend Catcher. Glorious debut.
If you liked this album I'd highly recommend a band from Ann Arbor, MI called Laughing Hyenas, specifically their You Can't Pray a Lie album, though Crawl and Life of Crime are all bangers as well
You might want to check out PJ Harvey. She and Nick Cave were in a relationship and the chemistry is evident on the video of Henry Lee. PJ Harvey tracks you might like include: Dress, Man Size, 50 ft Queenie, Sheela Na Gig
You may also like an Anglo-French all-female band from around 2013-16 called Savages. Kind of arty post punk. Check out Shut Up, No Face, I am Here, She Will from their first album Silence Yourself.
Some other interesting 80's Aussie post-punk you might enjoy are Grong Grong, Slugfuckers, The Scientists, Fungus Brains, feedtime,The Celibate Rifles, Box Of Fish, Lubricated Goat, Thug and X (not to be confused with the L.A. punk band of the same name)
Oh and should check the mutiny ep as well as the peel sessions they are magnificent and again as good as anything he has ever done, love Tracey Pew's amazing bass and Rowland S Howard's guitars
Rowland S Howard the guitar player did some great stuff after TBP with his solo stuff being my favorite.
Great that you described this as "off-sounding jazz". I've always heard a jazz influence on TBP, yet despite reading a lot about their various influences, very few jazz musicians seem to get a mention. Rowland's guitars sometimes remind me of Sonny Sharrock, and Ornette Coleman is another that may have influenced them. There were trumpets On Prayers on Fire (a better album for mine) and they basically influenced a whole slew of amphetamine-fuelled noise rock bands, particularly in Australia who often sported a saxophone (I guess it was the 80s!). Make sure you check out Y by The Pop Group to hear where TBP ripped some of their best moves from. An equally incendiary post punk blast of an album, albeit much more upbeat than TBP.
you are so cute lol. their in concert recordings are even more menacing...
I love "The Birthday Party" and I highly recommend to check out the Nick Cave and Die Haut "Burnin' the ice". You'll love it!
If you want more of that guitar vibe, you should check out Rowland Howard's solo album.
Next reaction should be Einstürzende Neubauten - Halber mensch. Which features Blixa Bargeld who used to be in the Bad Seeds.... 🙂
Release the b-b-b-b-bats!!!
I love this band
Australian Punk and Rock music is generally ace. Here’s a couple: The Saints, Radio Birdman, The Hard-Ons, Cosmic Psychos, Celibate Rifles. And probaly hundreds more. Sidney kids The Chats just released a great album called ‘Get Fucked’. Aussie kicks ass ❤
I was lucky enough to see the birthday party in 83 they were scary on stage
I have a number of Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds albums but I saw a VHS tape of The Birthday Party back in the early 80s and decided they weren't for me. It looked like the band needed an exorcism. I was much more likely to buy a Talking Heads or Keith Jarrett album at that time.
"Release the Bats" was released as a single and is only on the reissue of "Junkyard"
🤘🏻🎱🤘🏻
Such a great album.
But long live mr clarinet & Friend catcher.
Hee Haw
Junkyard album is not punk as in Sex Pistols, its heavy dark noise rock.
You should check out Scratch Acid’s Greatest Gift compilation.
Nice one. Listening to the vinyl is a different experience though. No 'Blast Off', 'Dead Joe' (2nd version) or 'Release The Bats'.
React to the most underrated band ever Monster Magnet. They are stoner, space, psychedelic, hard rock and have been around for 30 years. It's tough to pick an album, because they are all great. If you can find them in album form get either "Mastermind" (2010) or "Last Patrol" (2013). They will blow your mind.
when i left home at 17, i moved into a squat with them in West Hampsted. I didn't know what to make of them...
You should give a listen to Jesus Lizard. Either the record Liar (perhaps their least challenging to listen to), or Goat. If you like weird, raw, intense, post-punky...
The Birthday Party were a big hit in The Batcave, a punk/goth club, in Charing Cross, London. Particularly Release the Bats. The Batcave also produced the band Alien Sex Fiend, who are fairly indescribable really. Very WEIRD. Worth a listen though.
THE BIRTHDAY PARTY are not an easy chow, you need some time to digest it. But the reward is very promising. Nick howls like his life depends on it, the bass lines are the best part of this organized chaos. I love everything Nick is doing, but i prefere the older stuff. BTW, TEX PERKINS is my favorite OZZY, CHASE THE DRAGON!
After this, for some reason I feel like we should listen to a Converge album around these parts.
Early Midnight Oil maybe? Head Injuries.
Fantastic, great album, great reaction.
Ok, you should listen to Two Nuns and a Pack Mule by the band called Rapeman. Don't let the name put you off. They were actually feminists but it was a different time and being anti-PC was something that the Left was more involved in than the Right. They were commenting on the strangeness and decidedly non-Western attitude of a Japanese Manga comic that had that same name, but I digress. The band and the album were singular as far as post punk goes. The best produced, most beautiful, sparkly, smart, balanced noise rock ever made. And the drums! My god! The drums!
Every time I hear the birthday party, as weird as this sounds, the next thing I wanna hear is Screamin’ Jay Hawkins. Also, vice versa
Pretty sure if you check the vinyl, Release the Bats won't be on it. Wasn't on mine.EDIT Or have I just forgotten? But don't think so. I think it was originally just a single.
Some later pressings include it on the lp itself .
Please review "Prayers on Fire" next! :-)
If this appeals you'll enjoy the first three Nick and the bad seeds albums 👍
Watch out for Fast Savannah - if you want something raw and different (in the Beefheart realm) try their "Qualms" album. They got long, good tempo songs cooking though. Shh...
They also sound NIck Launay-ish.
Phil Calvert and Tracy Pew!
I love this album, but Prayers on Fire & The Birthday Party Mutiny/The Bad Seed collab will change your life.
You can tell this is early Nick cave because he’s screaming like a madman that has run out of meds.
Aussie punk rock is essential, even the earlly AC/DC sounded punkish, raw energy. THE SAINTS were the band that never got the recognition they deserved. The 80s were golden for AUSSIE underground, DIED PRETTY, LIME SPIDERS, BEASTS OF BOURBON...of course i love NICK CAVE,but i have no problem with INXS, i don't care about the genre if it's delivered the right way. Of course i like ROSE TATTOO better, but INXS were a great mainstream winners. Even if i like THE SCIENTISTS a waaay more. NEW ZEALAND is included, great isolation makes great creativity. Kudos to FLYING NUN, but there is more to explore
I am absolutely THRILLED to see you react to The Birthday Party. Even those folks I know what are incredibly Nick Cave fans rarely get into TBP, and even more rarely do they like it. It’s even rarer, unfortunately, I’ve noticed, for women to like TBP. I say unfortunately, because every woman I’ve ever met who DOES like TBP, we’ve become fast mates, usually for a long time, through thick and thin.
Anyroad, congrats upon your initiation into TBP, and also upon your first noise-rock experience.
It is my opinion that TBP and Steve Albini’s 80s noise-rock outfit Big Black are the two most malevolent rock bands of all time. I love them to death. I wish you many more years of fascinating musical discoveries.
Check out the great bands .Feed Time and Cosmic Physcos
Something I've never heard pointed out: Birthday Party had a lot of songs that SWING. Not so common rhythm in rock music, especially no so common in post punk or whatever the fug BP was.
Mutiny in Heaven, by Birthday Party, please.
Dead Joe is about his Dad who was killed in a car crash when Nick was 16.
I think you might like Tom Waits, if you haven't listened to him yet.