TV Colours, previously known to some as Basketball Cards, is currently prepping his debut 7″ to come out on Dream Damage Records in the coming months. The Kids Are All Grown Up is the only track we have been able to get our hands on so far and it is easily the best thing we have heard all year. Peaked guitars and an overdriven drum machine back Bobby Kill’s depressing and nostalgic lyrics. Look out for big things from TV Colours this year.

TV Colours – The Kids Are All Grown Up

• Release Date: 2010
• Label: Dream Damage Records
• Genre: Punk, Punk, Punk

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Popularity: 38% [?]

Brisbane’s Kitchen’s Floor are currently out on an East Coast tour this month to promote their new self titled 7″ put out by R.I.P Society (hot shit). Fronted by Matt Kennedy, Kitchen’s Floor write pop songs wallowing in raw anxiety and heavy distortion. It’s a dank and dark trip. This EP was recorded back when the band was an acoustic two piece. These days they play with Glen from Marl Carx, another sweet Brisbane band. You can get both the 7″ and album, Loneliness is a Dirty Mattress, from R.I.P. Society Records.

Kitchen’s Floor – Kitchen’s Floor EP

• Release Date: 2008
• Label: Self Released
• Genre: Garage, Rock, Folk

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Popularity: 36% [?]

For the last 3 years Gangbusters, held at Bar 32, has been the most consistent and entertaining band night in Canberra, showcasing locals like Kasha and Assassins 88 and interstate acts from M.O.T.O (US) to The Witch Hats (Melb). March 10th Gangbusters returns for one of the more exciting lineups. The Fighting League make their long awaited live return after hiatus, supported by Beat Hotel and Super Best Friends. In celebration we chatted with the man behind it all, Warwick Smith, to discuss Canberra, Birds Love Fighting and Gangbusters.

How did Birds Love Fighting start?
Radge, if any of you remember him, ran a night called Manshandies. He asked me to help out on a show for Alps of NSW, then he moved to Sydney and I kept the dream alive and ran the show. It went so well and I saw the bright look in everyones eyes that this could happen again. And it has since, over and over.

Where does the name come from?
Prove me wrong. Look outside man. They are everywhere … waiting.

What has been your involvement in Canberra music and how long have you been around?
Ok, well my involvement in the Canberra music scene has been varied and hard to fit into a concise answer but I’ll try. I began in Horse Macgyver with Tim Dwyer, Brad Huvel, Simon Long and Leon Twardy. I had no idea what I was doing playing some noise guitar and was pretty naive, I fell under Tim’s spell and drank a lot of gin. A world of promises and excess. I then was part of supergroup, Mankilled, who explored the darker side of progressive doom, psych, space, rock and metal. Things kind of got blurry from that point. I was a member of other bands The Gashes, The Cherry Marines and You Hang Up; No You Hang Up and have played a few shows with Jonny Telafone lending him my guitar. My current projects are Cat Cat and JW Sparrow & the Miner Birds. I have a PA which I lend out to house shows and other gigs when I can, do a bit of mixing. Under the label I established Gangbusters at Bar 32, put on gigs at The Front, sometimes at The Phoenix, got kicked out of Transit (surprise?) and help out the ladies at I Trip I Skip with Grass Stains shows. Now I hope to further expand a little into releasing more Canberra gold.

What is your favorite show you have put on?
That Batrider show at Toast was pretty good, not many faithfuls came, it was double booked with some shit band at Transit Bar and everyone fucked up by going there instead.

What is your favorite show that you have played?
Mankilled played a show at the Jamieson Inn once, we were down a member, but it was really fun.

What is your favorite music venue in Canberra, past/present?
Awkward Bar. What happened? Best name ever.

Has Canberra music changed since you first started, for better or worse?
Yes it has changed. Better for some, worse for others.

What can people expect from Gangbusters in 2010?
You can expect more unheard music, like this music blog I hope to reveal more about Canberra. Last year we put on a lot of bands more than once and got things a little more established. This year it’s about opening minds again and experimenting.

Are there any plans for expanding outside of Gangbusters and the occasional front show? as in new venues or new nights?
I keep hearing about new venues, some are real, some aren’t … but after Thee Oh Sees show I would be very happy to do more shows at The Phoenix. If anyone has any ideas I’d love to hear them.

Gangbusters used to be fortnightly, why the change?
It also used to be weekly, it was over saturation and people stopped coming and the bands were strangely running thin.

Any new releases planned?
We have penned down From The South, Cat Cat, The Fighting League and JW Sparrow and the Miner Birds.

Is there anything planned for Cat Cat or J.W. Sparrow in the future?
New releases for both, and I’d love to organise some shows out of Canberra for Cat Cat.

Is it hard putting on shows in Canberra?
It’s easy to book one, but it can be tricky to organise it. It can be stressful, and people can disappoint you. But once you’ve been doing it for a while you come to expect certain situations and start to relax. I’ve been doing Gangbusters for three years almost and I’ve only just relaxed. I can predict when someone is going to call me freaking out that they don’t have a sound guy or a PA, it’s a gift.

The Fighting League are headlining the next Gangbusters, what can people expect? what is the progress of their album coming out on BLF?
The guys have recorded and are now in the progress of mixing, it’s hard not to say that this is the most anticipated release in Canberra’s history. People can expect that Dom will take his shirt off and give commands into the microphone, they are noisy, tight and a good party band. If you haven’t seen The Fighting League then you’re probably not reading this blog, but if you aren’t reading this blog then you should definitely come and see them.

Gangbusters is held on the first Wednesday of the month at Bar 32. $5 entry 18+ only

Popularity: 100% [?]

Bed Wettin’ Bad Boys were hoping to come through Canberra and play a show tonight but it was unfortunately cancelled. Total bummer so we decided to do the next best thing and stream a track off their new 7 inch Best Band in Sydney/Worst Band in Sydney. It is officially out Feb 25 along with the Kitchen’s Floor 7” and Royal Headache 7” through R.I.P. Society, easily Sydney’s best label. “Think indie rock before indie rock meant you were a sweater wearing nerd (aka Replacements, Meat Puppets) with a heavy dose of suburban punk, overdriven guitars and a rowdy Australia quality about it.” (R.I.P MySpace) The track here is “Waste of Time” and its a great angsty and thrashy number. Hopefully we can catch these guys on their next trip.

Bed Wettin’ Bad Boys – Best Band in Sydney/Worst Band in Sydney

• Release Date: 2010
• Label: R.I.P. Society
• Genre: Punk, Garage, Rock

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Popularity: 41% [?]

Jonny Telafone has a new EP out. The Rainbow Genesis is a mix of kraut instrumentals with quasi Prince sex joints. I’m so lazy these days so I decided to ask some questions to the man/myth/legend Jonathan Black.

Where did the name Jonny Telafone come from?
The name comes from my first band The Telafones.

How young were you when you first started playing music?
Got a bass when I was 12. Started recording Telafones songs when I was like 15.

A lot of your lyrics are about satan, hell and the occult, does this come from your religious background?
Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge cause they wanted to be like god and I’m really glad they did.

What is a lonely masturbator? How do you join?
A lonely masturbator is basically someone who didn’t lose their virginity till after their teenage years. It’s anyone who looked in the mirror, squeezed some pimples and said to their reflection, “today’s the day I’m gonna get with that girl.” But of course you never did cause she picked you correctly as a sexual pervert.

You used to play in Golden Buoy and Archeopteryx, what ever happened to them? What did play in them?
My role was writing dumb bass lines and not turning up to band practice. Those bands totally ruled hard though and if we still played I have no doubt we’d be so super rich by now.

Do you prefer playing a band or doing the solo thing?
I like playing in a band but playing solo you’re not letting anyone down but yourself.

How do you approach playing live as oppose to bedroom recording?
Playing live is unforgiving although it does provide a useful platform for some hate speech.

Your last live show ended in bit of a melt down, what happened and why have you decided to abandon the live set?
I was out of my mind for various reasons. My parents were there and I was on a bad trip and I totally lost my shit…thankfully I can’t remember most of it. But no I haven’t abandoned playing live at all. Actually got a show in Sydney coming up soon.

You came to Canberra for uni from Newcastle, how was that?
Terrible

Why did you move to Melbourne? How are you finding it there?
Not sure why I came here but it was an interesting mistake. There’s a very strict consumer fascist culture in Melbourne. Maybe it’s the same in any big city these days. Great buskers though. Yesterday I saw a tap-dance beatbox combo performed by some of the ugliest Asians I have ever seen. I think they were Thai.

You have a tape coming out soon, can you tell us a bit about Wherever the Wind Blows?
It’s a collection of heartbroken acoustic ballads about un-requited love, mental illness and werewolves.

The Rainbow Genesis is now available for download along with a brand new video for Stardate 2012.1221. Wherever the Wind Blows will be out this month when I get some money.

Jonny Telafone – Rainbow Genesis EP

• Release Date: 2010
• Label: Self Released
• Genre: Synth Drone, Alternative, Pop

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Popularity: 48% [?]

Local photographer Stella-Rae is launching her new zine We Are Not Obscene tomorrow night. She’s been working like crazy to get this together, I saw a bit of it a few weeks ago and it definitely looks the shit. This party is going to be huge!!!

Its at Bar 32. ASSASSINS 88, KILLING BIRDS and BEAT HOTEL will be playing. And NOTE: Stella will be selling the zine up stairs so bring $6 and buy your self a copy to take home and have some well earned “private time”. Its Free entry and I’m pretty sure cheap drinks which is killer!

Popularity: 36% [?]

Danger Beach is the side project of Assassins 88s L.A Thomas. A self confessed doo wop addict, he’s stripped back all of the the punk to write and record pop songs. He’s recently finished two new songs with Dominic Death and Jonny Telafone which should turn up somewhere soon. We asked him a few questions about the project.

What do you think separates Danger Beach to what you do with Assassins?
Assassins is aggressive and punk. There is no room to chill out and I wouldn’t want it to be like that. Danger Beach is like an experiment to make music that is in no way punk. It is music that I would want my girlfriend to listen to.

Do you think you can play this live?
I can play this live but I don’t know if I want to and I don’t think there is an audience for it. Shows are rare enough as is.

What are your main influences?
John Frusciante is the reason I like to play music. There is a youtube clip of him playing untitled 11 off Niandra LaDes in a drug den with his teeth rotting out. That is so fucked but so great. I’m pretty shallow with music so I usually gravitate towards singles.

How would you describe your sound?
Its definitely a throwback to old pop. I have a song I am doing with Jonny Telafone that has an Elvis in Hawaii quality. It’s delicate, jangly and pretty music. It sounds like I can’t play guitar properly or I was pissed when I recorded but it is intentional.

Do you think that the internet will be your main outlet for distribution or are you planning to release physically?
I have no plans for anything. If someone wants to share it that makes me happy but I don’t want to push it on anyone. Basically I am lazy.

Download other Danger Beach tracks HERE

Danger Beach – Milky Way

• Release Date: 2009
• Label: Dream Damage
• Genre: Pop, Instrumental, Tropical

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Popularity: 35% [?]

False Jesii’s self released internet EP “Ripped Jeans” dropped recently so we decided to talk to Daniel Morrison the boy behind False Jesii and Camera Kazi.

Is the name False Jesii from the Pissed Jeans song? Why that name?
I asked one of my friends what they thought would be a good name for a band, and she told me False Jesii. Eventually I downloaded the song and I really fucking hated it. I don’t even know what it means. I wish I’d named myself Weed Diamond or something.

How did you record your albums?
Ableton Live. I once tried using Audacity but I couldn’t handle not having a metronome. At first I had a cable straight from my guitar/drum machine into my computer but then I lost that at a house party so now it’s just a 15 dollar mic I got from JB Hi-Fi 3 years ago.

Is still being in High School restrictive on playing music?
I hardly ever actually play music. I once learnt two songs by Girls in a night and that was the most I’ve ever done. I doubt I’d play more music if I wasn’t in high school.

What do you do when not playing music?
Listen to it, or play pokemon on my computer.

We were told that you don’t remember how to play any of your songs. Is that because of the way you record?
Yeah, the only thing I actually write down is the lyrics and I’ve never made a proper attempt at structuring my songs. I don’t even think I could actually play a whole song in one take, because I record using loops. It’s not that I don’t remember how, it’s more that I never knew how.

Do you have any plans to play live or start a band when you return to Canberra?
Maybe if I relearnt all my songs or something, but it’s highly unlikely.

What was Camera Kazi? Why did it end?
Camera Kazi was me and Lital Elkobi, the friend who named False Jesii, attempting to be Crystal Castles, or if we were trying to be cool, Kap Bambino. It just kind of died because Lital didn’t want to record vocals anymore, I don’t really know why. Once that Brisbane band DZ asked if they could use ‘War’ in their DJ set and then they never replied to me, so I was pretty cut and decided to stop.

Camera Kazi was a completely different project to False Jesii, where do you see your music heading in the future? Is it all about this lo fi thing or is there another genre you would like to get into?
I wanna be the next Fungi Girls. But actually I’m really jealous of them, they’re like younger than me and have some sick pretentious blog and get to play shows with Abe Vigoda. At the moment I’m listening to more Boards of Canada than I used to, so maybe something like that. Also ///▲▲▲\\\ is rad. I’d like to make something that sort of mixes those two together along with Salem. Hopefully.

Why are you in China, how is it and when are you coming back?
Government family, but not an ambassador unfortunately. It’s great, and I probably won’t come back to Canberra to live.

What are the big influences on False Jesii?
Basketball Cards and Wavves.

How far removed from “Canberra” music do you feel?
Ask Google Maps. I’m grateful for Canberra music though, especially Basketball Cards. That shit is amazing. When is that 7″ coming out?

You seem to be a hit with music blogs, what are your thoughts on that?
It’s great. My favourite was the one from the Pigeon Post where he managed to simultaneously misspell my name and claim I redefined the “genre” of noise-pop.

Any internet albums coming up soon or do are you planning any physical releases?
Apart from this Ripped Jeans release I don’t really know, I haven’t written anything for a long, long time. A physical release would be great but I prefer letting people just download my music for free and I wouldn’t really be able to appreciate it anyway. Maybe I’ll do something electronic again, I wouldn’t mind that.

All of False Jesii’s releases can be found HERE

False Jesii – Ripped Jeans

• Release Date: 2009
• Label: Self Released
• Genre: Shoegaze, Punk, Lo-Fi

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Popularity: 36% [?]