Radio Birdman featuring…

Rob Younger, Deniz Tek, Pip Hoyle, Jim Dickson, Dave Kettley, Nik Rieth

“There’s gonna be a new race
Kids are gonna start it up
We’re all gonna mutate
Kids are saying yeah hup

Yea-eah HUP”

So many legendary bands play Golden Plains and Meredith that sometimes I struggle to find the superlatives required to paint each one in the deserved right light. If you know Radio Birdman, I don’t need to say anything at all here.

If you do not, or have not experienced them live, suffice to say they are not only one of Australia’s all-time greatest bands, but their importance and influence on the international music world can’t be overstated. “Looking back at the correctional lens of history it becomes apparent that Radio Birdman were THE the most influential, precognitive and generally unrecognised rock n roll band of the 70s” – American critic/historian Byron Coley.

Radio Birdman is a mind-bogglingly magnetic concept. They emerged in mid-70s Sydney as an antidote to everything, with a supercharged, raw power. They unleashed destructive rock n roll that never forgot to Do The Pop; punchy, intense high-energy rock, (‘proto-punk’, ‘Detroit’) that was catchy as hell yet deeply satisfying, with at-times bizarre lyrics – as though Deniz Tek walked up and down a crowded bus and wrote overhead lines from twenty different conversations. He’s the top man in the language department. There was a cultish, uniform aspect (they kinda dressed the same and had an iconic logo) and yet there was a wild gonzo element to it as well – songs about TV shows and eskimo pies and non-stop girls, and an occasional hype-man on stage.

“Indeed, Radio Birdman was, for a moment, the greatest Rock n Roll band in the world. Birdman cranked the sound harder and faster and pushed every moment to its limit. Birdman never played at anything less than full intensity. They never played the same set twice. It was inspiring. It was, in fact, exactly what they tell you Rock n Roll is about but almost never is.” – Toby Creswell

They are Godfathers, and beyond their influence, the music more than stands up; it nods and struts and punches the air as some of the best rock music ever made. If you are a rock fan, and you don’t own Radios Appear you should (both versions, preferably).

Aloha Steve and Danno, Hand Of Law, New Race, Do The Pop, Burn My Eye, Man With Golden Helmet… hearing these iconic blasts of energy live is something everyone should do at some point. Like 9:30 Saturday Night at GP9.