The
Exploding White Mice #1
This is the first feature on the Exploding White
Mice in NFH. It originally appeared in #19 in the summer of 1990...
This article is going
to be fun to write...not that most of them aren't, but there's a certain batch of bands
that really light you up, and for me the Exploding White Mice are one of them...they're
one group that I always can count on to deliver music that I can like with no
reservations. There's no question about "if you're in the mood for this sort of
thing, put them on" or anything like that. I'm ALWAYS in the mood for the Mice, and
you can put on any of their records and I'll be just about equally delighted. I've wanted
to do a feature on them for quite some time, and persistence has paid off in the form of a
LONG letter answering my countless questions from lead guitar player Jeff Stephens, which,
along with old articles from B-Side (the great Australian fanzine, not the British
poofter-rock rag from the US), Harry Butler's DNA, and Lemon are the main sources for what
follows.
The band started in
1983 in Adelaide when Paul Gilchrist (vocals) hooked up with Andy MacQueen (bass), Gerry
Barrett (guitar) and Craig Rodda (drums) for a one-off show at a party. Paul had never
been in a band before, while Andy had been in bands called the Deviants and the Crunch
Pets, and Craig was the drummer for the Screaming Believers. The set consisted of covers
of their favorite songs, the intent being only to have a laugh. But they had so much fun
that they decided to try to get a hotel gig, and they managed to get signed up for a
couple nights at a local establishment. One of these shows was attended by Giles Barrow,
who had played guitar for bands called Zippy and The Coneheads and Kaos. He ended up
joining as rhythm guitar player. By mid 1984 these five started playing a regular gig at
the Cathedral Hotel in the north of Adelaide. Towards the end of the year Gerry left and
was replaced by former Spitfire and Tombstone Shadow Jeff Stephens, who was a friend of
Giles.
The set at this time
was all covers; Jeff sent me a tape of early live stuff including material from October
1984 at the Cathedral; by his reckoning about five people were in the audience (one of
them being Liz Dealy, judging from the between song banter). From the sound of the tape,
the band were a powerhouse from the start; they played raging versions of songs like
"No Fun", "Born To Lose", MC5's "Shakin' Street", Gun Club's
"Sex Beat", "Bad Little Woman" (on the mini-lp), and "Burn My
Eye". December came and they were playing "Neat Neat Neat",
"Pills", "King Of The Surf" and "You're Gonna Miss Me" at
the Tivoli Hotel.
It would not take
long for news of a racket this good to reach the attention of Greasy Pop's Doug Thomas,
who wanted them to do a track for what was to become the first Oasis In A Desert Of
Noise compilation. On the way to making their cover of the Stooges' "Down On The
Street" they also recorded three other covers and two originals, which Doug liked
well enough to decide to finance a mini-lp. But in the meantime, the band had to come up
with a permanent drummer as they were still working with Craig on loan from the Screaming
Believers. The choice was another former member of Zippy and the Coneheads, David Bunney.
The band recorded one more original "Dangerous", with Bunney on the drums, and
put out 1985's A Nest Of Vipers. The record packs a powerful instrumental punch,
and there are many who argue that it's their best, but I prefer the tougher sounding vocal
job that Gilchrist does on subsequent records. Still, there's no denying that it's a great
record.
A Nest Of Vipers
got solid reviews world wide and gave the band a solid push to the front row of Adelaide
bands. The Sydney rock weekly RAM (now out of business) picked it as the top Australian
record of 1986 over competition like Died Pretty's Next To Nothing and Free Dirt,
the Eastern Dark's Long Live The New Flesh and the Screaming Tribesmen's Date
With A Vampyre ep, all classics in my book. In the US, the record was licensed by
Bigtime Records, a very unhappy experience for the Mice as has been related in the Greasy
Pop feature last issue. Aside from never paying a cent despite sales reputed to be in the
realm of several thousand copies, Bigtime altered the title of the record to In A Nest
Of Vipers. Says Jeff: "Bigtime could not organize a fuck in a brothel with their
cocks wrapped in $100 notes. To change the title of that record was a petty, pointless
exercise in showing us all "who's the boss". We weren't trying to get any sort
of meaning across in our title, but why did they change it? They didn't even do it
PROPERLY! On the spine of the cover and on the label it was still A Nest Of Vipers.
It doesn't take much to work out why Bigtime went bust, and NO we haven't seen a cent from
them (and are unlikely to.)"
This incident is
worth mentioning because although being flim-flammed out of the bucks for a few thousand
records may seem small in relationship to what mega-sellers like Guns'n'Roses make, for a
small indie band it can set back the next recording by several years, since most bands
have to recover their money from one recording session to pay for the next. It pisses me
off severely to think that there could be more Exploding White Mice records in my
collection if Bigtime had paid as they should.
At any rate, things
had gotten off to a fairly flying start for the Exploding White Mice, but 1986 and 1987
have to rate as years of consolidation in which they played fairly steadily both in
Adelaide and interstate to Melbourne and Sydney. In DNA #73 Harry Butler described one of
their shows in Adelaide with Bloodloss in July of 1987: "Yet another night when the
Mice exceeded all expectations - both their own and the audiences'. Although Bloodloss had
scored a fairly receptive response it was obvious that this was very much a rodent crowd.
The stage front area was crammed with a twenty row assemblage of eager bouncing bodies as
the band launched into a tight, punchy set. A big advance on some other shows I'd seen;
the main set had only three covers, matched against 14 originals which scored a better
response than the non-originals by and large. It was during the encores that people really
began exceeding themselves, and the look on Gilchrist's face when the crowd sang along on
"Bad Little Woman" was a sight to behold. The best show I'd ever seen the furry
ones do, and a crowd to match."
Two of the songs from
this show, "Blaze Of Glory" and "He's Gonna Step On You Again", wound
up on a single released in 1987. I'd rate it their most vital seven incher, given the
presence of two great crunching songs not available on lp. The A-side, written by
Stephens, is pretty close to my favorite all-time Exploding White Mice song, featuring
some great shouts and a punishing riff. It actually showed up on a US compilation called The
Bigtime Syndrome, buried with a lot of other bands that couldn't hold a candle to it.
But more important was the fact that this single showed that the Mice could write a song
as great as the covers they played so often, and for which they were starting to draw some
criticism. "Ramones jukebox" was the most common tag.
So 1988's Brute
Force And Ignorance lp was a critical point for the band, and on more than one front
as it turns out. It contains 11 originals of power and melody that will stand the test of
time. Doug Thomas swears it will be recognized in years to come as a classic, and all I
can add is that I don't care if it is ever considered a classic...in my book it's a
classic right now and there's no way you have a collection of Aussie records if you don't
own it. But there was a lot of agony that went into its making and a lot of frayed tempers
before it was done. Kim Horne, who had worked with the band on their previous records,
started as producer, but by the end the arguments were fierce enough so that Doug entered
the picture to help finish it up. According to Doug, a lot of the guitar tracks were
overdriven in getting them onto the original master tape, so that mixing was a frustrating
job of damage control. Coupled with the band's desire to get the ultimate guitar crunch,
the result was a tense session with everyone displeased in the immediate aftermath. In the
Lemon article, both Paul and David repeatedly express their disappointment in how it came
out.
But time heals many
wounds, and now Jeff reflects on all that with a broader mind. "I think that what
were really a couple of off-hand comments by Dave Bunney were blown out of all proportion
by a few people. Sure, we all think the production on Brute Force And Ignorance
could have been better, but everyone thinks that about their record. The production on A
Nest Of Vipers could have been better, too! I think that you don't get a true
indication of what a band thinks about its latest record if you ask them soon after it's
released - they're sick to death of hearing the bloody thing! Actually, I listened to Brute
Force a week ago and it sounded great! Any problems associated with that record
eventuated from too many opinions in the control room, and if anything, the lp was a bit
over-produced. But we were going for the loudest guitar attack possible, and I think we
came pretty close to getting it."
"Subsequent
recordings have been (thank god!) much more easy going, and I think the new LP sounds
great - sort of a cross between the crunch of Brute Force and the
"airier" sound of Vipers."
The lp also spawned
two singles, both of which are really only crucial to collectors as all the tracks are on
the lp. But the first, "Fear"/"Without Warning" is significant since
it pairs two of the best tracks from the lp. The A side is one of the slower things the
band have done, and despite being based on the simplest of riffs, it still is impressively
effective. The flip throws restraint to the wind and bashes away wildly. Great stuff.
The lp was not
without casualties, however. Giles Barrow, who had been managing the band in addition to
playing guitar and writing some of the songs, went on an extended sabbatical. At the time,
Dave Bunney said that the band had been pretty much riding on Barrow's back, and that he
had been fairly well worn ragged by the work load. Coupled with domestic (i.e.
girl-friend) problems, says Jeff, this "caused him to hand in his notice shortly
before the release of Brute Force, on the understanding that if the band found a
replacement we were happy with, then so be it. If not, he would offer his services after a
two or three month break."
As it turned out,
ex-Primevils guitar played Dave Mason was looking for a new band, and he was quickly fit
into the lineup, so Giles was gone for good. Jeff describes him as an "Afro-topped
disco devotee", which seems a strange moniker for a fellow who has played on songs
like the classic "Saw My Name Written On A Tombstone". The Primevils were a
noisier, darker band than the Mice, and Dave's style was correspondingly less influenced
by pop bands and more by noise groups.
Says Jeff: "His
guitar style brought about a marked change in the band's sound. Definitely more noise
oriented, whilst still being fast rock and roll. Dave was a very casual character who
displayed a healthy cynicism towards the whole "Rock'n'Roll Band On Tour"
syndrome one invariably falls into. This meant his time with the band was definitely
relaxed and good fun, but I think in terms of real progress we may have marked time a bit
(only one single in over a year)."
That single,
"Make It"/"Ain't It Sad" fits the pattern of the "Fear"
single...a moodier A side and a rampaging flip, both solid tracks, and both obviously
impacted by Mason's playing style. Live the impact seems to have been no less, as Harry
Butler reports from a May 1988 show:
"The big deal
tonight was that it was Dave Mason's debut with the band. A bunch of the unfortunate lad's
associates had gathered to heckle, and ex-rodent Giles Barrow had done his bit to
"help" by stomping all over Mason's effects pedals, thus dramatically changing
their settings. Out they marched and right from the opening bars of the first songs it was
apparent that not only does Mr. Mason fit in brilliantly, but he also brings the band a
whole new lease on life. This is not meant as an indictment of Giles, merely affirming the
fact that the act of bringing new blood to any band can help by revitalizing what's
already there. A bum note or two at a crucial point during the intro to "Fear"
didn't cause a major upset (although it did inspire a few laughs), although rumors that he
might continue to deliberately do it should not be dismissed out of hand. "First Time
Is The Best Time" was a real ripper (especially when Mason starting using his effects
pedals - see above). "Baby Sitter" struck me as being a bit turgid, but by and
large the only major fuck up was in "You're Gonna Miss Me" when Mason lost it
completely for a while. Still, he's not known as the Fred Astaire of the music biz for
nothing, and never before has such an inspired set of toe-tapping and on-stage bopping
been seen."
During the summer and
fall of 1989 Dave's work commitments were making it increasingly difficult for him to tour
interstate, and as he valued his job he parted ways with the band on friendly terms. In
October the band picked up Jack Jacomos to play guitar, Jeff says that with him the band
has "returned to its roots, soundwise, while progressing in the writing and playing
area. Jack's style is fast, loud, and tight, which is (hopefully) the way the band is
currently sounding."
A new lp entitled The
Exploding White Mice is finished and should be out as you read this (this being the
writers way of saying he ain't got it to tell you about it, but don't let that stop you!).
Jeff says that the band is really happy with it (that's a relief!) and he says some of the
songs will surprise a few people. It's got a studio side with six originals and a live
side recorded while on tour in Queensland. A single with "I Just Want To Have My
Fun"/"First Time Is The Best Time"/"Do The Crunch" is due to
support the lp, and I did get a tape of that...the A side is a light pop song for the
radio, while the B-sides are both live. A studio version of "Do The Crunch" is
on the lp; it's another brain-basher. The live side includes covers of
"Misunderstood" (Saints), "Meet The Creeper" (Destroy All Monsters),
"Bangkok" (an Alex Chilton song also covered by the Nomads), and "King Of
The Surf" (Trashmen). It's also got 4 other tracks that have been on past studio
recordings. The live side was recorded on a four track recorder, but according to Jeff it
has come out pretty well "warts and all!".
It's especially good
to see a new record on the way since judged only by their record releases, the Exploding
White Mice seem a bit sporadic; they fairly well burst onto the scene at the beginning and
since then have had a hard time making headway. "I guess that impression is
accurate", says Jeff. "Although it may seem to far-off observers that we haven't
really done much, we do play LOTS of gigs. I think we are definitely a LIVE band, and none
of the records we've put accurately reflects the energy and power we try to achieve live.
The main reason for the low output of records is that as songwriters we're not prolific
(although this is changing lately - Jack is writing at a furious rate)."
"The band seems
to play more often interstate than we do in Adelaide lately. Since 1985 we've played in
Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne many times and in Perth once. Sydney and Brisbane have
always been great for us, with really good crowds and good reaction. Melbourne was a bit
quiet, but our last couple of tours there have been WILD! I think that we're a bit taken
for granted in Adelaide (that certainly doesn't apply only to us, either), and we sort of
go through phases of being very popular followed by the complete opposite. I gave up
trying to work it out years ago. We've always played for our own enjoyment first, and if
people come to see us play, that's like a bonus."
By Jeff's reckoning
things in Oz are in a bit of a lull at the moment. "About two or three years ago it
was at a REAL peak with bands like the Hard-Ons, Massappeal, Hellmenn, etc REALLY popular.
There are a lot of good bands around, though - I really like the Proton Energy Pills,
Hard-Ons, the Meanies (from Melbourne), Horny Toads, New Christs, Rifles, etc."
There's a huge number
of bands in a similar vein coming out of Sydney and Melbourne, bands like the Horny Toads
or Splatterheads who are competent in their own right, yet still have a way to go to match
the power and tunefulness of the Mice, but the size of their city seems to help them to
reach much higher far more quickly than they otherwise might. I wondered whether the
Exploding White Mice had ever considered leaving Adelaide. But Jeff seems unconcerned by
the pace of others: "It certainly doesn't bother us that the bands you mentioned (and
others) are getting the publicity they deserve, but yeah, being in Adelaide does mean that
you have to yell and scream three times as loud to get noticed! All of the major
(mainstream) rock magazines are based in Sydney or Melbourne and their complete refusal to
even acknowledge any music from any other city is truly pig-headed and frustrating. In a
way it's made bands like us stronger and more determined, so that by the time Adelaide
bands (or Perth, Brisbane, or Hobart bands) get to play in Sydney or Melbourne, they're
usually REALLY fired up and consequently create a good impression. I think a reasonable
analogy is when the Celibate Rifles first played in London, people didn't know what hit
'em!"
"We've talked
about basing ourselves elsewhere, but nothing has eventuated, 'cos we LIKE living in
Adelaide, and Sydney and Melbourne are only a day's drive away. I think one of the reasons
we do so well in those cities is 'cos we're only there once every three of four
months."
I wondered if
overseas support meant much to a band like the Exploding White Mice, or if they even
noticed it at all. Jeff was pretty emphatic in response: "Overseas interest
DEFINITELY helps Oz bands - I'm POSITIVE that if bands like the New Christs, Hard-Ons or
Rifles couldn't tour overseas they would have split up long ago. Even though Oz is a huge
place, its population is tiny and a band can play only so often to the same crowd of
people. The prospect of new audiences is a LIFELINE to Australian bands."
Next up it's the
Mice's turn to realize that prospect and show Europe what an Aussie band can do, as
they're slated for a tour starting April 13th, including Norway, Sweden, Denmark, West AND
East Germany, France, Britain, Spain and on and on. The tour, which will have concluded by
the time you read this, has been slated for 8 weeks; VERY intensive, according to Jeff.
The Mouse back-catalog has been licensed in Europe through Normal in time for the tour.
There's also some
talk of touring Japan "but it's only talk at the moment", says Jeff. If that
happens, a US tour will be next. I'm pumped. Then by the end of the year, they hope to do
yet another lp (becoming positively prolific, as Mice will!). "And hopefully",
says Jeff, "no lineup changes! Really what we want to do is keep doing what we have
been doing, except to get BETTER at it and to INFLICT it on MORE people!".
I certainly hope they
get that chance. Aside from their powerhouse music, the Mice have a refreshingly honest
and realistic viewpoint of being in a band that I'm convinced can be heard in their
playing as well. Jeff says even now that one of the best side benefits of being in a band
has been that he's been able to meet some of his own heroes; he rattles off names like
Glen Matlock, Rob Younger, the Flamin' Groovies, Johnny Thunders and the Cramps, and then
immediately apologizes for name dropping! But the delight he shows in retelling the story
of how they gave Joey Ramone an Exploding White Mice shirt when they supported them in
Adelaide, and then finding that their friends had photos with Joey wearing it at the
Ramones Sydney show a week later shows that he's still a fan at heart, and you get the
distinct impression that placed in a similar position a few years from now, he'd return
the favor to some other oncoming band fighting to find a deserved place in the sun.
