In news that will hearten lovers of '90s Aussie rock, three of the country's finest purveyors of underground noise – Regurgitator, Custard and Front End Loader – will finally gather once more in Sydney this month for a one-off gig labelled 'A Live Pro Forma Show' – a show that has been postponed multiple times previously.
Regurgitator will also celebrate the 25th anniversary of their ARIA Award-winning debut album 'Tu-Plang' with two special concerts in Brisbane this May (that have also been postponed multiple times) with two other Brisbane indie legends: Screamfeeder and The Stress Of Leisure.Released 6 May, 1995, 'Tu-Plang' would introduce Australia (and the world) to the crazed yet progressive sounds and ideas of Regurgitator, a band that would (and still does) shape the Australian indie landscape for years to come.
Offering a template to explore any idea or musical suggestion with no rules, bucking the establishment at every opportunity, 'Tu-Plang' would generate such classics as 'I Sucked A Lot Of Cock To Get Where I Am', 'Kong Foo Sing', 'F.S.O.' and 'Blubber Boy'.
Recorded in Thailand (much to the chagrin of their then label Warner Music) with Magoo, 'Tu-Plang' would win the Best Alternative Album and Breakthrough Album awards at the 1996 ARIA Awards.
We get the lowdown from Quan Yeomans.
One of the band's early home fields was The Roxy in Brisbane; it was recently knocked down to make way for yet another high-rise building... how integral was that venue to the band's early success and can you share some memories from the many times you played there?
I remember thinking when we first got up on stage at The Roxy to a full house: 'This was it. If this was the height of our career I didn't care. I didn't need anything else.'
After the 15th show there it started feeling like it was a squat we were all living and hosting progressively stinkier house parties in.
The band managed to finally get on a live stage last month at Spring Loaded in Victoria; did it take a minute to remember what you were actually doing once on stage after two years away?
My imposter syndrome was only barely balanced out by the sheer amount of adrenaline surging through my blood at the time. From when we hit the stage, I think it took me approximately 55 minutes to remember what I was actually doing.
Aside from any early hiccups, how did it feel to get back on stage, reconnecting with fans, releasing pent-up energy and simply jamming with your mates?
At some point along the way I realised my voice was failing, probably because I had been constantly screaming at everyone and everything for the past 30 minutes.
It occurred to me that there was something quintessentially '90s about that. I'd also forgotten what it was like to scream before home schooling.
The band's Sydney March show at the Enmore has been postponed four times; is it fifth time lucky this month? And how do you cope with the constant disappointment these COVID times has generated?
I believe 'fifth time lucky' is the common phrase in times of pandemic, yes. I just keep my expectations super low and I'm rarely disappointed. Just happy to have played one show already this year!
When the show does go ahead you also have Custard and Front End Loader joining the action... it's like a mini Livid line-up... the nostalgia feels will be high, right?
It'll be cute. If you see us floating off into the middle distance part way through our set, we'll probably just be reminiscing about when we were young and none of this hurt quite so much.
Another postponed show of yours that looks likely to go ahead is the 25th anniversary Tu-Plang concerts in Brisbane... can you take us back to the mid '90s recording of the album in Bangkok (did things come together well or were there some hurdles to overcome)?
Well, apart from the mixing console being held together with toothpicks, the giant bat-sized moths swooping us, the packs of rabid dogs roaming the nearby swamp we transited with large, weaponised sticks each evening and morn, the rampant diarrhoea and the general self doubt that comes with writing and mixing an album anywhere, it was smooth as butter.
Is it true your label at the time, Warner Music, were not pleased you'd decided to record the album overseas?
Not sure. I think some might not have been. I believe our key dude was into it.
The response the band received from the industry after 'Tu-Plang' won Best Alternative Album and Breakthrough Album at the 1996 ARIAs... was it welcoming? Reason for asking is that indie, underground music in the '90s was but a blip on the radar of mainstream compared to today.
It was surprising and I felt very fortunate to be a part of it.
I must say there was a bit of a weird 'tall poppy-sell out' factor associated with any kind of breakthrough success in the indie scene at that time, so it came with some odd flavours in both our own mouths and possibly the mouths of others.
The 'Tu-Plang' shows will also feature two more Brissie indie legends Screamfeeder and The Stress Of Leisure who'll each be playing an esteemed record from their respective back catalogues. It's a significant night for Queensland's underground; as the years roll by, do you appreciate these kinda of moments/ nights more seriously?
I am so happy to have both those bands play with us at any given night but if you knew me, you’d know I could never take this sh.t seriously!
You posted recently online that a UNIT25 tour could be in the works later this year; can you elaborate on any plans that may be coming together on that front?
Well, basically we'd be milking another nice semi-round number for the sweet, sweet nostalgia bucks.
But that doesn't mean it won't be a good show, oh no – it'll be f...ing bullsh.t good for a bunch of 50-plus year olds like us and we promise to dress our mutton like lambs.
Given the band's longevity and constant stream of new material (across most of those years), can you envisage Regurgitator still trundling along in another 10-20 years time (if not longer)?
I can certainly envisage that, if only because we love doing what we do so much and as long as people still really have fun watching us do it, then we'll continue to do it.
We have informally asked our manager's daughter to take his place when he dies, so we could be good for as long as another 25 years I reckon.
Speaking of new material, anything you can share about new Regurgitator songs?
The only meeting we've had about new material basically confirmed that the next one was going to be '90s AF.
Regurgitator 2022 Tour Dates
Fri 11 Mar - Flood Benefit @ The Brightside (Brisbane)Sat 12 Mar - Spring Loaded (Brisbane)
Sun 13 Mar - Miami Marketta (Gold Coast)
Thu 17 Mar - Enmore Theatre (Sydney)
Thu 19 May - Tu-Plang Redux @ The Princess Theatre (Brisbane)
Fri 20 May - Tu-Plang Redux @ The Princess Theatre (Brisbane)
