Kryptonics
Encyclopedia
Hailing from Perth
, Western Australia
, The Kryptonics were a tough, melodic pop punk outfit that existed between 1985 and 1992. They were contemporaries of celebrated Perth bands, The Stems
, The Triffids
& The Bamboos and were a popular local band of that time. They released a series of 7" singles and 12" vinyl EPs on a number of Australian independent record labels.
answered a drummer wanted classified ad. The Kryptonics spent eighteen months in rehaersals before their first public performance, supporting The Stems
in August 1985. Underwood however was not confident singing and playing guitar at the same time so Michael Reynolds was approached to perform lead vocals for the band. Shortly after the band recorded its first single, "Baby" / "Plastic Imitation" on local label, Cherry Top. On the eve of the single being released in January 1986 Pichler left the band to join another local band, The Bamboos. With the loss of Pichler, Underwood decided to go for an even bigger change with the band line-up, taking over the front man responsibilities from Reynolds and recruiting drummer Brett Ford, who had been spending time in England, and had just returned to Perth. In addition to Ford, they also had decided to add a guitar player, Peter Hartley, from a band called Lavender Disaster. With the new line-up the released their next single, "Land That Time Forgot" / "She's Got Germs", in 1987 on the Easter label and the flexi-single "Cyclops" / "Rock Me to Sleep" which came with issue #6 of Vortex fanzine. By this time, the band had reached the critical point where Perth bands either collapse or make the attempt at going the next step up, playing interstate. Playing interstate from Perth however is a different story than touring out of Brisbane, Melbourne or Adelaide. On their first trip, their van broke down in some little town in the middle of nowhere, and they spent three days trying to get rolling again with gigs waiting on the other end of the country. When they finally got up on a Sydney stage, things went much better. The band played well and audiences liked them, and they got to open for bands such as The Screaming Tribesmen and the Psychotic Turnbuckles. They also did some shows as headliners in smaller hotels. Chris Dunn from Waterfront Records
saw them a couple times on this tour and told them that if they ever wanted to make a record, to come see him at Waterfront. After a two week tour of Sydney the band returned to Perth but bouyed by the success of the tour they decided to try it again. The trip was a disaster, with Ford and Underwood getting arrested half way across the Nullabor, subsequent tour dates being cancelled or rescheduled, resulting in a split within the band. Webb, Ford and Hartley all left the band and they were replaced by Russell Hopkinson
and Greg Hitchcock both from The Bamboos. This line-up recorded the band's first EP
, Sixty Nine, which was released by Sydney-based label Waterfront in May 1989. Hopkinson and Hitchcock however left the band prior to the tour to promote the record, leaving Underwood to recruit his fourth lineup.
There were numerous changes to the drummer and bass player, before the line-up of Underwood (vocals and guitar), Tony Rushan (guitar), Peter Kostic (drums) and Jeff Halley (bass) was eventually finalised. The band issued the single "When It's Over" / "Oedipus Complex" on Waterfront in September 1989. A revised line-up of Underwood, Rushan, Kostic and Greg Brennan on bass recorded a new single for the Seaside label, "Bad September" / "Another Girl Another Planet" (live) / "Telephone Line" (live) which was released in November 1990. Richard Corey replaced Brennan in July 1990, and the band re-located to Sydney in August 1990 and toured heavily up and down the Eastern seaboard. The Kryptonics issued a 12-inch EP, Tonka Tuff, on the Zero Hour label in 1991 before parting company in mid 1992. They are remembered chiefly today for the number of ex-members who have gone to feature prominently in high profile Australian artists including You Am I
, Front End Loader
, Lubricated Goat
, Regurgitator
& The Chevelles
.
Underwood later formed Challenger 7 in Sydney in 1995, and recorded a mini album with the help of former Kryptonics members Greg Hitchcock, Peter Kostic and Richard Corey. He continued with that band under different lineups until its demise in 2002. He now runs Reverberation
, a Sydney based independent label and distributor with his former band mate Russell Hopkinson
.
In November 2007 Underwood, Kostic, Corey and Rushan reformed to play a one-off performance in Perth, where they were joined by former guitarist Hitchcock for a number of songs.
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, The Kryptonics were a tough, melodic pop punk outfit that existed between 1985 and 1992. They were contemporaries of celebrated Perth bands, The Stems
The Stems
The Stems were an alternative rock band formed in Perth, Western Australia in 1983 and were heavily influenced by 1960s garage rock and 1970s power pop. They broke up in 1987, reformed in 2003 and released a new album in 2007.-Formation:...
, The Triffids
The Triffids
The Triffids were a seminal Australian alternative rock and pop band formed in Perth, Western Australia, in May 1978 with charismatic, David McComb as singer-songwriter, guitarist, bass guitarist and keyboardist. They achieved negligible success in Australia, but greater success in the U.K...
& The Bamboos and were a popular local band of that time. They released a series of 7" singles and 12" vinyl EPs on a number of Australian independent record labels.
Biography
Guitarist, Ian Underwood first met Cathy Webb (bass guitar) at Balcatta Senior High School in 1982, forming a band, when drummer Shakir PichlerShakir Pichler
Shakir Pichler is an Australian drummer, singer, writer and actor.Shakir joined his first performing rock band, the WAMI award winning The Kryptonics in Perth, Western Australia in 1984 at the age of 17...
answered a drummer wanted classified ad. The Kryptonics spent eighteen months in rehaersals before their first public performance, supporting The Stems
The Stems
The Stems were an alternative rock band formed in Perth, Western Australia in 1983 and were heavily influenced by 1960s garage rock and 1970s power pop. They broke up in 1987, reformed in 2003 and released a new album in 2007.-Formation:...
in August 1985. Underwood however was not confident singing and playing guitar at the same time so Michael Reynolds was approached to perform lead vocals for the band. Shortly after the band recorded its first single, "Baby" / "Plastic Imitation" on local label, Cherry Top. On the eve of the single being released in January 1986 Pichler left the band to join another local band, The Bamboos. With the loss of Pichler, Underwood decided to go for an even bigger change with the band line-up, taking over the front man responsibilities from Reynolds and recruiting drummer Brett Ford, who had been spending time in England, and had just returned to Perth. In addition to Ford, they also had decided to add a guitar player, Peter Hartley, from a band called Lavender Disaster. With the new line-up the released their next single, "Land That Time Forgot" / "She's Got Germs", in 1987 on the Easter label and the flexi-single "Cyclops" / "Rock Me to Sleep" which came with issue #6 of Vortex fanzine. By this time, the band had reached the critical point where Perth bands either collapse or make the attempt at going the next step up, playing interstate. Playing interstate from Perth however is a different story than touring out of Brisbane, Melbourne or Adelaide. On their first trip, their van broke down in some little town in the middle of nowhere, and they spent three days trying to get rolling again with gigs waiting on the other end of the country. When they finally got up on a Sydney stage, things went much better. The band played well and audiences liked them, and they got to open for bands such as The Screaming Tribesmen and the Psychotic Turnbuckles. They also did some shows as headliners in smaller hotels. Chris Dunn from Waterfront Records
Waterfront Records
Waterfront Records was an independent record label based in Sydney, that released recordings by some of Australia's most influential bands of the 1980s and 1990s.-History:...
saw them a couple times on this tour and told them that if they ever wanted to make a record, to come see him at Waterfront. After a two week tour of Sydney the band returned to Perth but bouyed by the success of the tour they decided to try it again. The trip was a disaster, with Ford and Underwood getting arrested half way across the Nullabor, subsequent tour dates being cancelled or rescheduled, resulting in a split within the band. Webb, Ford and Hartley all left the band and they were replaced by Russell Hopkinson
Rusty Hopkinson
Rusty Hopkinson is the drummer for Australian rock act You Am I.Allegedly, Rusty was an occasional drinking buddy of You Am I while with his then band, indie act Nursery Crimes, around the turn of the 1990s...
and Greg Hitchcock both from The Bamboos. This line-up recorded the band's first EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, Sixty Nine, which was released by Sydney-based label Waterfront in May 1989. Hopkinson and Hitchcock however left the band prior to the tour to promote the record, leaving Underwood to recruit his fourth lineup.
There were numerous changes to the drummer and bass player, before the line-up of Underwood (vocals and guitar), Tony Rushan (guitar), Peter Kostic (drums) and Jeff Halley (bass) was eventually finalised. The band issued the single "When It's Over" / "Oedipus Complex" on Waterfront in September 1989. A revised line-up of Underwood, Rushan, Kostic and Greg Brennan on bass recorded a new single for the Seaside label, "Bad September" / "Another Girl Another Planet" (live) / "Telephone Line" (live) which was released in November 1990. Richard Corey replaced Brennan in July 1990, and the band re-located to Sydney in August 1990 and toured heavily up and down the Eastern seaboard. The Kryptonics issued a 12-inch EP, Tonka Tuff, on the Zero Hour label in 1991 before parting company in mid 1992. They are remembered chiefly today for the number of ex-members who have gone to feature prominently in high profile Australian artists including You Am I
You Am I
You Am I are an Australian alternative rock band, fronted by vocalist/guitarist and main songwriter Tim Rogers. They were the first Australian band to have three albums successively debut at #1 on the ARIA Charts, and are renowned for their live performances.-History:Tim Rogers formed the first...
, Front End Loader
Front End Loader
Front End Loader is an Australian rock band consisting of Davis Claymore , Bowden Campbell , Richard Corey , and Peter Kostic . Peter also drums for Regurgitator and The Hard-Ons.-History:...
, Lubricated Goat
Lubricated Goat
Lubricated Goat was an Australian noise rock band of the 1980s.They achieved brief notoriety for playing on a television program naked, wearing only their instruments and shoes...
, Regurgitator
Regurgitator
Regurgitator are an Australian rock band from Brisbane, currently consisting of Quan Yeomans , Ben Ely and Peter Kostic . The band formed in 1994, its original line-up consisting of Yeomans, Ely and drummer Martin Lee...
& The Chevelles
The Chevelles
The Chevelles are a power pop outfit from Perth, Western Australia. The Chevelles were formed in 1989 and over the last eighteen years have successfully toured Australia, Europe, the United States and South America.-Pre-Chevelles:...
.
Underwood later formed Challenger 7 in Sydney in 1995, and recorded a mini album with the help of former Kryptonics members Greg Hitchcock, Peter Kostic and Richard Corey. He continued with that band under different lineups until its demise in 2002. He now runs Reverberation
Reverberation (record label)
Reverberation is an Australian independent record label distributor. It helps distribute records from independent overseas records labels such as Alternative Tentacles and Eyeball Records, and also for small record labels such as Love Police Records and their own label Reverberation.Reverberation...
, a Sydney based independent label and distributor with his former band mate Russell Hopkinson
Rusty Hopkinson
Rusty Hopkinson is the drummer for Australian rock act You Am I.Allegedly, Rusty was an occasional drinking buddy of You Am I while with his then band, indie act Nursery Crimes, around the turn of the 1990s...
.
In November 2007 Underwood, Kostic, Corey and Rushan reformed to play a one-off performance in Perth, where they were joined by former guitarist Hitchcock for a number of songs.
Albums/EPs
- Sixty Nine — Waterfront (DAMP95) (May 1989)
- Tonka Tuff — Zero Hour (ZERO801) (1991)
- Rejectionville — Memorandum/Reverberation (MEM03) (14 May 2007)
Singles
- "Baby" / "Plastic Imitation" — Cherry Top (CT002) (January 1986)
- "Land That Time Forgot" / "She's Got Germs" — Easter (MR7029) (January 1987)
- "Cyclops" / "Rock Me to Sleep" — Vortex fanzine (1987)
- "Oedipus Complex" / "When It's Over" — Waterfront (DAMP117) (September 1989)
- "Bad September" / "Telephone Line" (live) / "Another Girl Another Planet" (live) — Seaside (PIP001) (November 1990)
Contributions
- Hometown Farewell Kiss — 6UVS (DT001) (1988) ("Dare")
- I Could'a Been a Contender (A Waterfront Compilation) — Waterfront (DAMP121) (1989) ("Land That Time Forget")
- Across the Nullabor (Triple J presents 16 Hot Bands from Perth) — ABC Music (838 975-1) (1990) ("Baby")
- This Ain't the Plimsouls — Zero Hour (ZEROCD 1001) (1991) ("I Want You Back")
- Bad Timing (A Perth Pop Retrospective) — Rubber/Idaho Music (RUB031) (1994) ("Land That Time Forgot" [live])
Members
- Brett FordBrett FordBrett Ford was a drummer and songwriter best known for his stint in Australian rock group Lubricated Goat. Throughout the 1980s, Ford played drums in a number of prominent Australian rock bands, including The Kryptonics and X...
— drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(1986–1987) - Peter Hartley — guitar (1986–1987)
- Shakir PichlerShakir PichlerShakir Pichler is an Australian drummer, singer, writer and actor.Shakir joined his first performing rock band, the WAMI award winning The Kryptonics in Perth, Western Australia in 1984 at the age of 17...
— drums (1985–1986) - Michael Reynolds — lead vocals (1985–1986)
- Cathy Webb — bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
(1985–1987) - Greg Brennan — bass (1990)
- Richard Corey — bass (1991, 2007)
- Brett Ford — drums (1986–1988)
- Jeff Halley — bass (1987–1990)
- Greg Hitchcock — guitar (1988)
- Russell HopkinsonRusty HopkinsonRusty Hopkinson is the drummer for Australian rock act You Am I.Allegedly, Rusty was an occasional drinking buddy of You Am I while with his then band, indie act Nursery Crimes, around the turn of the 1990s...
— drums (1988) - Peter Kostic — drums (1989–1992, 2007)
- Andrew Robinson — drums (1989)
- Tony Rushan — vocals, guitar (1989–1992, 2007)
- Ian Underwood — guitar, vocals (1985–1992, 2007)
See also
- Waterfront RecordsWaterfront RecordsWaterfront Records was an independent record label based in Sydney, that released recordings by some of Australia's most influential bands of the 1980s and 1990s.-History:...
- Lubricated GoatLubricated GoatLubricated Goat was an Australian noise rock band of the 1980s.They achieved brief notoriety for playing on a television program naked, wearing only their instruments and shoes...
- You AM IYou Am IYou Am I are an Australian alternative rock band, fronted by vocalist/guitarist and main songwriter Tim Rogers. They were the first Australian band to have three albums successively debut at #1 on the ARIA Charts, and are renowned for their live performances.-History:Tim Rogers formed the first...
External links
- Kryptonics MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
website - [ Kryptonics] @ Allmusic
- Kryptonics @ MusicbrainzMusicBrainzMusicBrainz is a project that aims to create an open content music database. Similar to the freedb project, it was founded in response to the restrictions placed on the CDDB...
- Kryptonics @ DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- Noise For Heroes Interview (1990)