The Triffids

The Triffids were an Australian rock band who achieved some international success in the 1980s. Formed in Perth in the late 1970s and disbanded in 1989, their best known songs are "Wide Open Road" and "Bury Me Deep in Love". Their vocalist and principal songwriter was David McComb (1962-1999).

The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) recognised The Triffids' importance on 1 July 2008 when they were inducted into the Hall of Fame.^[1][2]

Biography

Early years (1976-1981)

The Triffids began in Perth, Western Australia in the late 1970s, partly in response to the punk rock movement. In 1976, David McComb and Allan 'Alsy' MacDonald wrote and performed songs with Phil Kakulas (currently in Blackeyed Susans), Andrew McGowan, Julian Douglas-Smith, and later Byron Sinclair, Will Akers and Margaret Gillard. Originally called Dalsy, they soon became known as Blök Music, Logic (for a day) and then The Triffids, (taking their name from the post-apocalyptic novel The Day of the Triffids). Writing in his diary as a teenager, David McComb traced the band's emergence in Perth:

"On the night of November 27, 1976, a tape was made by Alsy MacDonald, playing a single toy drum, and Dave McComb playing acoustic guitar. The multimedia group 'Dalsy' had come into being. Dalsy went on to make several remarkable tapes (mainly of original material): The Loft Tapes, Rock 'n' Roll Accountancy, Live at Ding Dongs, Bored Kids, Domestic Cosmos, People Are Strange Dalsy Are Stranger, Steve's and the seminal punk work, Pale Horse Have a Fit.… Dalsy did paintings, sculptures and poetry, and wrote a book named "Lunch". They were tinny and quirky, obsessive and manic, versatile and productive. They were also immensely unpopular.... The members of Dalsy grew to hate their audience. They still do, and this hate is an integral part of their music. Dalsy split up towards the end of 1977…. They launched into 1978 as Blok Musik, with their famous Blok Musik tape.… In April, they played at the Leederville Town Hall Punk Fest, alongside Perth's punk rock contingent but, as usual, no one danced. After that they went home and metamorphosised into Logic. Within a day they changed their minds, and metamorphosised into the Triffids."^[3]

Between 1978 and 1981, the Triffids recorded (some were even recorded at home) and released six cassette tapes and in 1981 they released their first single, "Stand Up" / "Farmers Never Visit Nightclubs". The production of this single was the prize for the Triffids winning a song competition run by the Western Australian Institute of Technology (now Curtin University) Student Guild’s radio show on 6NR (now Curtin FM).

Early Recordings (1982-1984)

1982 saw the release of the Reverie four track EP. Around this time, due to the small population/market in Perth, the band started the long journey driving from Perth to Sydney, then Melbourne (and back again) to play shows and do some recording and to live for large periods of time, often in quite squalid conditions. For a mere $150 a night the Triffids’ services as a support band were procured by the likes of The Reels, The Sunnyboys, The Church, Hunters and Collectors and the Uncanny X-Men.

The Triffids signed to White Label in Melbourne and released a single "Spanish Blue" / "Twisted Brain" and the Bad Timing and Other Stories EP. The Triffids then signed on with Hot Records, which during its existence between 1982 and 1986 brought the Australian independent scene some much needed cohesion. They were one of the bands leading Hot’s drive into the overseas market, which is a part of what eventually led to the label’s demise.

Their debut album Treeless Plain was released in November, 1983,^[4] an album completely out of tune with everything else going on in the Australian alternative music scene at the time. All of the songs for Treeless Plain were recorded over twelve midnight-to-dawn sessions at Emerald City Studios, Sydney in August and September 1983.

Their line-up stabilised to David McComb (vocals, guitar), his brother Robert McComb (guitar, violin), Jill Birt (keyboards), Alsy MacDonald (drums), Martyn P. Casey (bass) and 'Evil' Graham Lee (pedal steel, guitar). Former Triffid Akers served time in jail after various drug-related convictions.

Their next single, "Beautiful Waste" / "Property is Condemned" and the Raining Pleasure 12” EP were released in 1984. By this time the Triffids had spent so much time traveling the 3000 miles between the west and east coasts of Australia (David McComb estimated that they made this trip between 12 and 16 times) that they decided to travel that little bit further and headed to Europe.

UK & Europe (1984-1989)

In late August 1984, the band flew to London with a small amount of savings and five return plane tickets scheduled to expire by Christmas. They gave themselves three months to make inroads in the UK. Appearing as a support act at their London debut at the LSE, they blew headliners The Monochrome Set off the stage. They succeeded to the point where they graced the first cover of 1985 of the influential UK magazine NME, which it predicted would be 'The Year of the Triffids'.

On November 6, 1984, the Triffids recorded the Field of Glass 12” EP mostly live at BBC Studio 5 in London and then returned for a brief tour of Australia. Apparently the "Field Of Glass" track was not released on CD because the master tape could not be found, although it was eventually discovered under David McComb’s bed.

During a brief return home the band acquired their final permanent band member, pedal-steel player ‘Evil’ Graham Lee, who had performed on the mini-album, Lawson Square Infirmary, a Triffids side project that was recorded in 1984, just prior to the band's first trip to England. Lee recalls

""I taught primary school, traveled and ended up in Sydney, where I met the Triffids and first sat behind a pedal steel (in that order actually).... I met Dave [McComb] through James Patterson, who played in a band in Sydney called JFK and the Cuban Crisis. My initial impressions of Dave were: slightly eccentric, driven, something of a perfectionist, very intelligent."

Together they recorded the 7” EP You Don’t Miss Your Water, the A-side a countrified version of a William Bell song "You Don't Miss Your Water", and were sent back to London.

The Triffids with David McComb
1985 Live on-stage in Deinze, Belgium

They toured Europe, featured again on the cover of NME, and were feted by the European press. The Triffids played in tiny clubs and stadiums (supporting the likes of Echo & the Bunnymen). A grassroots following soon appeared and they toured virtually every European country, finding specific pockets of popularity in the oddest of locations: Holland, Greece, Scandinavia, Ireland and Belgium. The band toured as part of the Summer Eurofestival circuit, performing at Glastonbury, Pinkpop, Waterpop, Seinäjoki, Roskilde (40,000), T&W Belgium (35,000) and den Haague's Parkpop (pushing 100,000).

Unable to raise a major record deal and with a lack of finances, Born Sandy Devotional was recorded in London in August 1985 with Gil Norton producing (fresh from working with Echo & the Bunnymen). The band released two versions of the "Wide Open Road" single ( a 7” version and a 12” version). The album reached # 27 on the UK charts and the single peaked at #26 on the UK charts while only reaching #64 in Australia.

Their critical success in the UK boosted their standing back in Australia where they recorded In The Pines in early 1986, still awaiting the release of Born Sandy Devotional, which eventuated in March, 1986.^[5] In The Pines was recorded on the McComb's family property in Ravensthorpe, south east of Perth, in a shearing shed on basic eight-track equipment. In the Pines took The Triffids deeper into folk and country music, with a lo-fi sensibility reminiscent of Bob Dylan's Basement Tapes. The band also backed Bill Drummond on his 1986 solo album The Man.

In 1986, the Triffids were on the bill of the Australian Made tour. Australia Made was the largest touring festival of Australian music talent that had ever been attempted to that point. Jimmy Barnes and INXS headlined and the rest of the line-up featured Mental as Anything, Divinyls, Models, The Saints, I'm Talking and The Triffids. The shows began in Hobart, Tasmania on 26 December and concluded in Sydney on Australia Day, 26 January 1987. A concert film of this event was made by Richard Lowenstein and released later that year.^[6] Apparently Michael Hutchence had insisted on the Triffids being part of the bill.^[7]

1987 saw the release of 3 tracks recorded for John Peel on May 5, 1985, The Peel Sessions.

The Triffids eventually landed a major record contract signing a three record deal with Island Records in the UK. Between April and August 1987 the band worked again with producer Gil Norton, in London, to record Calenture, their Island Records debut. The album saw the band explore themes of insanity, deception and rootlessness. The album title referred to the type of insanity which used to be suffered by seamen crossing the oceans. The nomadic Triffids, travelling back and forth from Australia to England to record a 'difficult' album, obviously related to the disoriented seamen.^[8]

As a result of their success the band graduated to the festival circuit where they played alongside Iggy Pop, The Ramones, The Fall, Anthrax and Echo & the Bunnymen. By 1988, their fame was such that NME invited the group to contribute to The Beatles tribute album Sgt. Pepper Knew My Father alongside Billy Bragg and Wet Wet Wet.

The Triffids wanted to record the next album in Australia, but after the Calenture experience Island Records wanted to keep the band nearby. The Black Swan album was recorded between September and October 1988 in Somerset, UK and produced and engineered by Stephen Street. It was well received, but the success was not overwhelming, which disappointed the band members. That, together with being tired from the constant travelling and touring, led to the band being dissolved. The group even made it to America in 1989 for a pair of New York dates before taking a much needed vacation – one which turned permanent.

We didn’t know they were final performances. Dave wanted to do a solo album and we were due to get back together after that. Much to his chagrin his solo album took longer than expected and he kept writing songs that sounded like Triffids songs. Domesticity snuck up on most of us, poor health snuck up on Dave, a planned ’94 reunion tour was put on hold, and the Triffids faded into the mist. - Graham Lee

The band's last Australian shows were towards the end of 1989, with the final show at the Australian National University in August, 1989.^[9] 1990 saw the release of the live Stockholm album, which completed the Triffids’ contractual obligations with Island.

Breakup and aftermath

Following the breakup of the band, Alsy MacDonald, Jill Birt and Robert McComb took "proper jobs" as a lawyer (currently with the Equal Opportunity Commission), architect and teacher respectively, with MacDonald and Birt marrying (Robert McComb currently teaches at Melbourne High School). David McComb and Lee continued to be involved with the Blackeyed Susans, a group David McComb formed as a side band during an earlier Triffids summer tour of Australia. Martyn Casey briefly joined the Blackeyed Susans and then became a permanent member of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.

In 1990, David McComb moved back to London with the aim of pursuing his solo career. In 1992, after no success, he returned to Australia to make some solo recordings for Mushroom Records (featuring both Casey and Lee) releasing just one solo album, Love of Will, in 1994. He also worked with many other musicians on various projects, including assembling a band, the Red Ponies, to tour Europe. Another project, costar, was formed when David moved to Melbourne, but due to his ill health they only played sporadically around Melbourne, although recordings had begun and a single was ready for a limited release.

Following the Red Ponies tour David McComb suffered substance abuse-related health problems, which ultimately resulted in him undergoing a heart transplant in 1996. Following a car accident in Melbourne, David McComb was admitted to St Vincents hospital. Only 3 days later he died at home, on February 2, 1999, just a few days short of his 37th birthday.

In February 2000, after the State Coroner of Victoria finally published his findings, The West Australian newspaper wrote: "[Coroner] Johnstone said McComb's mental and physical condition had deteriorated after his (car) accident but his death was due to heroin toxicity and mild acute rejection of his 1996 heart transplant."

2006 onwards

The Triffids back catalogue began being reissued in 2006. Graham Lee has taken on the role of guardian of David McComb's musical legacy. The Domino label in the UK is handling the reissues in Europe, while Liberation Music deals with Australia and New Zealand. An extended version of fan favourite Born Sandy Devotional came first, with staggered release dates in Europe, Australasia and North America between June and July, 2006. A joint release of In the Pines and Calenture followed in February 2007. In the Pines was given a full remix by Bruce Callaway, the original engineer, who had been looking after the master tapes for 20 years. The album was also extended with a number of tracks that were recorded during the sessions for In The Pines but held over for inclusion on Calenture because, in David McComb's words, “we have to keep something good for later.” (In The Pines was essentially a low-budget ‘holiday’ album, recorded while the band was still looking for a deal with one of the major labels.) Calenture was extended with B-sides from the same period, and with a second disc of demo recordings for the album.

Later stages of the re-issue programme will also include rarities, extended liner notes, remastering, a DVD and a live album. There is, currently, a selection of free downloads available on the official site, overseen by Lee.^[10]

David McComb was posthumously inducted into the WAM (West Australian Music Industry Association Inc) Hall Of Fame as a composer on 21 February 2006.^[11]

In June 2006, (in conjunction with the re-issue of Born Sandy Devotional) the band reformed to play three live performances, two concerts in Hasselt, Belgium and one in Amsterdam, The Netherlands with guest vocalists (including Mark Snarski (The Jackson Code) and Belgian, Harald Vanherf (The Hoodoo Club / Wicona Airbag) replacing David McComb. A huge collection of band memorabilia was also displayed, along with the airing of a Triffids concert film and question-and-answer sessions with the band members.

According to Lee the experience was, "more than I could have hoped for – a true celebration of the music, and an intensity from band and audience that I’ve rarely felt."^[12]

The five remaining members of The Triffids gave a series of performances on January 17 - 20, 2008, as part of the 2008 Sydney Festival celebrating the music and the memory of David McComb.^[13] The band were joined on stage by a number of Australian musicians including Mark and Rob Snarski (Blackeyed Susans), Toby Martin (Youth Group), Steve Kilbey (The Church), Mick Harvey (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds), Chris Abrahams (The Necks) and Melanie Oxley.^[14][15] A feature length documentary of these shows, It's Raining Pleasure, is proposed to be released in early 2009.

In May 2008, Liberation Music continued with the reissuing of The Triffids' back catalalogue, with the release of The Black Swan, which includes five songs which had previously been left off the album at the time of its initial release together with an encore. The album had originally been envisaged by David McComb as a double album. The re-released album also included a bonus disc of demos and unreleased material. Also released was Treeless Plain which has been re-mixed by the original sound engineer, Nick Mansbridge. The last of the re-releases was a collection of songs from various EPs, Raining Pleasure, Lawson Square Infirmary and Field of Glass, under the title Beautiful Waste and Other Songs (Mini-Masterpieces 1983-1985). The compilation album also includes the title song, "Beautiful Waste", together with "Dear Miss Lonelyhearts" and "Native Bride".^[16]

The Triffids repeated their 2008 Sydney performances, 'A Secret in the Shape of a Song', at the Melbourne Arts Centre on the 29 January, 2009^[17] and at the Perth International Arts Festival on the 20-22 February 2009. The shows included guest appearances by Mick Harvey (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds), Melanie Oxley, Mark and Rob Snarski (The Blackeyed Susans), Steve Kilbey (The Church), Alex Archer and Brendon Humphries (The Kill Devil Hills), Ricky Maymi (The Brian Jonestown Massacre), and Toby Martin (Youth Group) on stage with the remaining members of the band. After the Perth performances video artists VJzoo showed a selection of David McComb’s personal photographs live on screen to a soundtrack compiled from his mixtape collection.^[18][19]

Legacy

One of the most critically acclaimed bands from Greece, Raining Pleasure, took their name from the song "Raining Pleasure" by The Triffids.^[20]

ARIA announced in June 2008 that The Triffids would be inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame, upon the announcement Graham Lee commented that David McComb would find the accolade ironic, given that the band were hardly superstars in their home country, but would have appreciated the belated recognition.^[21] On 1 July 2008, The Triffids were inducted by Nick Cave into the ARIA Hall of Fame, former The Triffids members were joined on-stage by Rob Snarski as vocalist for "Red Pony" and Steve Kilbey as vocalist for "Wide Open Road".^[22]

Cover versions

• "Wide Open Road" has been covered by Bob Evans, Weddings Parties Anything, The Church and Perth folk-rock bands Carus and The True Believers, Not Enough Rope and Shanks Pony, as well as by fellow Perth outfit The Panics for Triple J's 'Like a Version' in 2007.
• "American Sailors" has been covered by Mick Thomas, and also The Blackeyed Susans
• "Bury Me Deep in Love" has been covered by Kylie Minogue and Jimmy Little
• "Raining Pleasure" was covered by Charles Jenkins (Icecream Hands) on his second solo album City Gates in 2005.^[23]
• "Beautiful Waste" was included on Paul Kelly's DVD Live Apples released in April, 2008^[24] and covered by Youth Group for Triple J's 'Like a Version' in May, 2008.

In the media

• "Bury Me Deep in Love" was used for the wedding of Harold and Madge in the internationally successful Australian TV series Neighbours.^[25]

Members

• Will Akers - bass (1980-1982)
• Jill Birt - keyboards, vocals (1983-1989)
• Martyn Casey - bass (1982-1989)
• Simon Cromack - percussion (1982-1983)
• Margaret Gillard - keyboards (1979-1982)
• Phil Kakulas - guitar, vocals (1978-1979)
• Graham Lee - guitar, pedal steel, lap-steel, vocals (1985-1989)
• Allan MacDonald - drums, percussion, vocals (1978-1980, 1982-1989)
• David McComb - vocals, guitar, piano, bass (1978-1989)
• Robert McComb - violins, guitar, keyboards, percussion, vocals (1979-1989)
• Mark Peters - drums (1980-1981)
• Byron Sinclair - bass (1978-1979, 1982)
• Jill Yates - keyboards (1982)

Discography

References

External links

• Official website
• ABC - Long Way To The Top - The Triffids
• Something Old, Something New website - Triffids profile
• Domino Records - Triffids profile
• Howlspace website - Triffids profile
• Domino re-release program
• Inner City Sound website - Triffids profile
• Nostalgia Central website - Triffids profile
• David McComb Obituary (1962-1999)
• The Triffids discography at MusicBrainz