A Band Down Under ~ Origin Story
When MTV first aired in August of 1981, a 12 year-old Nigel watched it every waking moment that summer, as if the new network were going to disappear from the family's cable television offering. It didn't, and for the years that followed, he enjoyed being introduced to bands like Men at Work, INXS, Midnight Oil, Divinyls, Pseudo Echo, Icehouse, The Church, and many more. It created a deep appreciation not only for music from Australia, but a fascination with Australia itself. In fact, in the 80's, much of America was fascinated with Australia. So much so that it became a little part of US Pop Culture. With the movie "Crocodile Dundee", television ad campaigns like "Fosters. It's Australian for beer, mate!", "Australian Toaster Biscuits... they make my mouth water.", and countless travel campaigns with Mick Dundee himself, Paul Hogan, pitching "The world of wonder... The land down under!", Australia seemed to be everywhere in the US!
Although that young Nigel never made it down to the southern hemisphere on holiday, he never lost the love of Australian bands, or the dream of someday visiting. In fact, it wouldn't be until February 2024, when he and his wife took that 15 hour flight down to Melbourne to see one of their favorite bands! Icehouse was headlining the "Red Hot Summer Tour" series, and they were a band not likely to play the States again. Visiting the Australian wine country of Victoria, watching mobs of kangaroos feeding at sunset from their AirBnB, walking along the Yarra River that flows through Melbourne CBD, and even a few days in Tasmania, cemented the need to finally start-up his Australian music review, A Band Down Under!
It would take well over a year to come to fruition. Different players came and went in the early days, but finally, by the end of 2025, he had the right line up for the first show. Some with the same deep passion for the vision, and others who just liked the idea of playing something different, fun, and worthy of performing!
First on board was fellow vintage synthesizer collector and enthusiast, John. They'd been "Facebook Friends" with a shared love of old Roland & Korg polysynths, but didn't meet IRL until John came to see Nigel playing his stack of synths with the Phoenix based Gary Numan tribute, The Numan League, performing at the Marquee Theater. John was also a fellow fan of Icehouse. A tour shirt from the concert in Yarra Valley, Victoria was the offering to secure the position of keyboardist in the Aussie start-up!
Next on board was, of all things, a neighbor in the condo community where Nigel's wife was a fellow board member on the HOA with Matt. A bass player with deeper ties to the land of wonder than Nigel, Matt had not only been married to an Aussie, but lived for a time down under. Being a "pretty decent bass player", Nigel had to have a rock solid rhythm section with a bassist that exceeded his own abilities and had a love of the music. Matt was not only that good, but also a longtime fan of Hoodoo Gurus!
And speaking of a rock solid rhythm section, the hunt for just the right drummer was lengthy, indeed! After numerous auditions, it would be a high school marching band friend of a friend of Nigel's that would fit the bill perfectly. Jason not only plays drums, he builds them too! With John & Nigel determined to use electronic drums, Jason was up for the challenge. His beautifully refurbished and custom finished vintage Rogers jazz kit was equipped with triggers and alas, A Band Down Under had a beat!
Then, along came Laura... again. A female voice would be a necessity to do anything from the Divinyls, but also her ability to do high harmony was a highly desirable attribute. Having played with Nigel in a Phoenix based tribute to A Flock of Seagulls, Aurora Borealis, their voices, personalities and ability to perform together made it a given. But was she into the Aussie thing? If they do "Physical", from Olivia Newton-John, then yes she was in. "Not exactly new wave or modern rock, but OK, twist my arm!"
If guitarists are a dime a dozen, then the band may have made a dollar or two in the early days. Another classic case of "it's not who you are, but rather who you know," that would bring Tommy into A Band Down Under. Fluent in both acoustic and electric guitar, but not as much with the "who's who" of great Aussie music, Tommy knew nearly every song in the set list. He just didn't always know who did it, or that they were even Australian. He may moonlight in a well known tribute, but his heart is all Aussie!
And finally, part of the "authentic instrumentation" that makes A Band Down Under sound so much like the original songs, is wind. Saxophone played a prominent part with INXS, Men at Work and Icehouse. And speaking of Men at Work, that same player needed to play flute for the "must play in every show" song, "Down Under." A Band Down Under is fortunate to have a few fantastic players on call for every show!
