RADIO BIRDMAN
Ritualism
Label: Crying Sun (Australia)
Catalogue No: (CSR001)
Format: CD (jewel case)
Released: January 1997
Price: $ 15.00
Catalogue No: (CSR001)
Format: CD (jewel case)
Released: January 1997
Price: $ 15.00
January 1996 saw the reformation of Radio Birdman after an 18 year hiatus. The band themselves were as surprised as everyone else by this development. At the time there was no thought of an ongoing future, only a wait and see approach with the focus being solely on a successful completion of the tour. After all, this was the tour that should have taken place way back in 1978 after their well documented break up and they wanted it to be as good as possible with no damage to their mythology.
During the pre-tour rehearsal time, there had been discussion as to whether recording live material for strictly archival purposes should be considered but nothing definite agreed upon. When Melbourne's Radio Triple R approached the band's management regarding an appearance on their Caught In The Act live music feature, a window of opportunity opened. This was an workable way to obtain quality live material without the headache of organising a fully blown live recording. Although there were no specific plans for a release, things went well and Ritualism became the end result.
During the pre-tour rehearsal time, there had been discussion as to whether recording live material for strictly archival purposes should be considered but nothing definite agreed upon. When Melbourne's Radio Triple R approached the band's management regarding an appearance on their Caught In The Act live music feature, a window of opportunity opened. This was an workable way to obtain quality live material without the headache of organising a fully blown live recording. Although there were no specific plans for a release, things went well and Ritualism became the end result.
Tracklisting
- Burned My Eye (D Tek) (1:31 m:s)
- Smith And Wesson Blues (D Tek) (2:56 m:s)
- Anglo Girl Desire (D Tek) (3:02 m:s)
- Hanging On (D Tek) (3:36 m:s)
- TV Eye (The Stooges) (6:42 m:s)
- Revelation (D Tek / R Younger) (2:44 m:s)
- Aloha Steve & Danno (D Tek / R Younger / M Stevens) (3:33 m:s)
- Alone In The Endzone (D Tek) (1:59 m:s)
- 455 SD (D Tek) (2:42 m:s)
- Walk The Earth (C Masuak / D Tek) (5:04 m:s)
- What Gives? (W Gilbert / D Tek) (2:26 m:s)
- New Race (D Tek) (4:01 m:s)
The Musicians
Rob Younger - Lead Vocals • Deniz Tek - Guitar, Harmonies • Chris Masuak - Guitar, Harmonies & Percussion • Pip Hoyle - Organ & Piano • Warwick Gilbert - Bass • Ron Keeley - DrumsTechnical Details
Recorded by Dave Warner • Engineered by Tim Johnston • At Seed Studios, MelbourneMixed by Chris Masuak and Rob Younger at Electric Avenue Sydney • Mix Engineered by Wayne Connolly
Of Interest
Ritualism contains 10 new versions of standard Radio Birdman material as well as two new tracks, Revelation and Walk The Earth. The session was recorded over a six hour period at Seed Studios in South Melbourne on a day off between Melbourne shows. A small but lively audience of 25 hardcore fans attended, these being the winners of a Triple R phone in competition. They were stuffed into the corridor and control room of the studio where they were randomly captured by an overhead mike.The production was recorded fully live and without overdubs. No efforts were made to cover up mistakes or doctor the performances. If it sounds like only a dozen people yelling at the end of the song, that's because it is. The option to edit in a raucous crowd response was dismissed by the band as being misleading. Two days only were spent on mixing the tracks some months after the recording. Only two songs from the session didn't make it onto Ritualism giving some indication of the playing prowess of the group.
The album was initially packaged in an A5 Digibook format which was sold only at live shows and via mailorder. The cover shots were taken at the band's Metro show in Sydney while the accompanying 12 page insert contains shots 'grabbed' from a video of their Perth 'Big Day Out' appearance. There is also a reproduction of the 'Radios On' tour poster.