Radio Birdman "Zeno Beach" 2006****

I've always been a big fan of these guys, for years their surf-punk anthem "Aloha Steve And Danno" has been the standard opener for my mix tapes. I never thought I'd get to see them live as they belonged to another continent (Australia) and time (the late 70's). But, inevitably, they succumbed to the trend of cult bands reforming to reap the rewards of posthumous fame. In 2006, with a brand new album in tow which almost nobody had heard yet, they played at the AN Club, a -literally and figuratively- underground establishment at Exarchia, my old neighbourhood which huffingtonpost has described a "punk disneyland", an entertaining but incorrect description. But if that analogy had any merit, AN would be among the main attractions. Lots of great concerts have taken place there. It has a low ceiling and the stage pits artists and audience within touching distance, which makes rock gigs an intimate experience. On the other hand it's extremely stuffy, especially since nobody in Greece observes the non-smoking regulation. That night the place was packed, literally no place to move. Well, not exactly true, you could move to the music in tandem with everyone else, but if you wanted to scratch your nose or something, it required contortionist's abilities. Great fun, nevertheless - a real rock'n'roll night of the kind you rarely experience any more, filled with tons of energy and excitement. With any doubts removed from witnessing this concert, I went ahead and bought Birdman's latest CD, which I'm reviewing today.

1976 is commonly regarded as punk rock's year zero, but Radio Birdman formed in 1974 (same year with The Ramones, albeit half the world away) which explains why they're usually described as proto-punk. The band's Australian core was augmented with Deniz Tek, a medical student from Detroit who had witnessed the fury of The Stooges, MC5 and Grand Funk first-hand, and who took it upon himself to transplant the Motor City's garage rock sound to his new home. Radio Birdman's music bristled with punk energy, melodic hooks and aggressive hard rock guitars but that only brought them local hero status, and they disbanded in '78. Unbelievably and unexpectedly, almost three decades later, they just pick up from where they had left without missing a beat. Rob Younger's singing may be less throat-shreddingly loud, but he can carry a tune better than ever, while Masuak and Tek's double guitar attack hasn't lost any of its power. Pip Hoyle's keyboards are more conspicuous than before, while he also wrote two of the album's best songs, the penultimate Blue Öyster Cult-like mid tempo rocker "The Brotherhood of Al Wazah" and infectious surf-punk closer "Zeno Beach". Opener "We've Come So Far (To Be Here Today)" functions like a statement of intent, exhibiting the frenetic pace, hooks and deft solos we had come to expect of the band at their peak. It is a recipe often repeated in the album, always with success. There are variations, of course: the glam stomp of "You Just Make it Worse", flower power of "Die Like April", Nuggets garage rock of "Hungry Cannibals", metal chug of "Locked Up" and Doors-like psychedelia of "Heyday". Never a dull moment with this album - I hope celebrated young guns like The Hives and Strokes are taking notes: watch and learn, boys: this is how you do it!

***** for We've Come So Far (To Be Here Today), The Brotherhood of Al Wazah, Zeno Beach

**** for You Just Make It Worse, Remorseless, Found Dead, Connected, Die Like April, Heyday, Subterfuge, Hungry Cannibals, Locked Up

*** for If You Say Please