The Boys Next Door 'Door, Door'

The Boys Next
Door Door, Door
The Birthday Party are regarded as one of the most influential bands of the 80's & helped to launch the substantial careers of Nick Cave, Roland S. Howard & Mick Harvey. Without going into any detail about these artists (for those who may not be familiar), I'd like to take a step further back in time when they were The Boys Next Door.

Nick Cave, Tracey Pew, Mick Harvey & Phil Calvert formed the band whilst still in high school cira 1975. Initially they had no formalised name & really were playing little more than 'high school' type gigs until 1977 when they left school. However, by 1978 they had become one of the best known Post-Punk/New Wave bands in the land.

This 1979 release was their first full album, although they had released an earlier single These Boots Are Made For Walking & were a part of the Lethal Weapons compilation.

The album is virtually in 2 parts: Side A recorded at Alan Eaton studios by Les Karsky (June '78) & Side B 6 months later (Jan '79) at the legendary Richmond Recorders by well known producer Tony Cohen, with the introduction of Roland Howard. This album contains one of Australia's greatest ballads Shivers. At the time of this release it was refused 'commercial' airplay because as I understand it the word suicide was used.

The Hee Haw EP (1979) was the last true release for The Boys Next Door. By 1980 the band prior to leaving for England played their final shows at Crystal Ballroom (St.Kilda, Melbourne) with a give-away single Happy Birthday/Riddle House proclaining the new name for the band.

It is said that even at the time of the Door, Door release, the band felt it to be a sound of the past & not worth pursuing as they were already exploring a more abrasive sound akin to early Birthday Party releases. So much more to write (I've tried to keep the details to a minimum), but I think I'll spare you the trip down memory lane. For those into Nick Cave this is a must have, for those interested in learning more about the Australian music scene of the time this is a definitive release & for those wanting to hear the original version of Shivers (I can't recall who did that lame cover recently) this album is essential. And to those who like this you'll find a bootleg posted a few months back.
http://tinyurl.com/oec8r