At the start of 2007, in an op shop in cairns, far north queensland some friends and I came across this cassette in our usual crate diggin. The cover looked bad ass and the price was right (50c) so andrew, the dude who actually picked it up, bought the copy. We put it on when we got back into the car and got real excited, this tape fucking slayed!!! We read through the booklet trying to find out anything we could about this shit! we found out they were from BRISBANE in 83??? no way!!! Eventually I digitised the tape and started this page in an attempt to find out more about the band/spread the word after finding pretty much nothing but the mention of this cassette on punk trading lists on the internet. THEN a year later, with the help of rod from just urbain etc. we were put in contact with sebastian, the singer of pictish blood! He wrote this...
Pictish Blood started in late 1982 and disbanded in early 1984. Pitt and sebastian (aka Damien, Derek, Dwayne) were previously in Subversive Rash (who released the cassette Wage Peace Not War), Terry was in the Epaleptics (different spelling from the UK band) and Oscar was playing guitar for someone else (and switched to drums to join PB).
Brisbane was still anti-punk at the time and venues for original bands were hard to find. Pictish Blood started gigging and were quickly banned from most venues, because of their fans, and started gigging under the name The Indestructible Smile before reverting back to Pictish Blood.
They recorded two studio cassettes (The Indestructible Smile and Those Who Commit the Most Heinous Crimes Go Unpunished), a live cassette, and appeared on a multitude of compilation cassettes around the world.
The sound was in sync with the punk bands around Australia and England of the time, mixing socio-political commentary with humour. They had a slight industrial edge, using metal percussion (eg War Heroes) and angle grinders. One review described them as ‘great at getting drunk in short periods of time’. This was fairly accurate, although sebastian did not drink or do drugs but was also not ‘Straight Edge’.
They disbanded in 1984 with sebastian forming Bodycount (before Ice-T used the name), The Cheese Stands Alone, and Angry Candy (and releasing various tapes, records and CDs along the way). Pitt moved to the Sunshine Coast before moving to the Gold Coast and playing the Blues. Oscar moved back to the Netherlands, and then back To Australia, and then back and forwards between the two countries. Terry joined the Insane Hombres and then the Dreamkillers (who were very popular in the Brisbane area and released several records).
More upcoming Punkfest shows 17th October-4zzz Carpark gigs that rule-2pm-Free entry-All ages Presented by 4zzz Punk Show and Live and Local The Go Set[Melb] Dementia 13 Brass Razoo
17th October-Jubilee Hotel-$15-7.30pm-18+ The Go Set[Melb] Mouthguard Kimbo[Melb] Brixton Rockers The Clap Guildofiends
24th October-Jubilee Hotel-18+ The Reignators[Melb] One Night Band[Canada] Dan Potthast[USA] The Meaniacs
30th October-Clarence Cnr Hotel-Free entry-18+ Kamikaze[Adeliade] The Vaginabillies more tbc
We're playing our last show on december 6th in support of 4ZZZ's 33rd Birthday at the jube with some of brisbane's greatest bands. This will actually be our last show until we go on tour in march, and we'll be gone for most of the year. It's also LT's Birthday show, and I'm sure he'll be partying very hard. This show means a lot to us and we want you to be there. So cancel your plans, bring your friends and come party!
I've found another Pictish Blood track, this time on a compilation cassette. I think it was off our second tape. The radio station that put the compilation together, back in 1983, wanted something fast and noisy to contrast with the soft and pop sounds of the other bands. I gave them our noisiest song which, conveniently for them, was also very short. Download and enjoy.
haha oh ashleigh said "but don't crass apparently suck?". and i said "no" but then "but i havent heared them, thats just what everyone tells me, so i might hate them" and then the confusion set upon me.
haahh ok i read the bulletin. and gary said wha? gary spreads sick lies about me. i think i said something about it like it was a crappy 4 track recording (which is punx) and he assumed i said crappy. or maybe its that i said in my dads ute's stereo every song sounds the same. dunno. gary was drunx anywayz. man i hope hes coping melbz stylez.
People think they are l33t cause they've heard Slugfuckers and SPK, Pictish Blood is like 100000 times more l33t.
I think this tape is even better than the Effiel 65 and the Ike and Tina Turner tapes I got that day. Probably even better than the motorbiker boots I got.
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