Writeup on The Suburban Reptiles
from the AK79 liner notes by Simon Grigg
The Suburban Reptiles
Jimmy Joy and myself were going to form a jazz band, but, in late 1976,
after reading a live review of the Sex Pistols in NME, decided that this
punk thing had more going for it. After original drummer Des Edwards left
to become a juggler, to be replaced by Buster Stiggs (formerly in After
Hours with Neil Finn), and guitarists Sissy Spunk and Shaun Anfrayd quit,
the hardcore lineup consisted of Buster, Zero, Jimmy Joy and Billy Planet,
with various add-ons and myself as manager. The first gigs, using gear
borrowed from Split Enz, were interesting. They got thrown out of the University
Quad, fired from a school ball after one song, sold out the Maidment Theatre,
reduced a fashionable party from five hundred to five in three songs, and
with the Scavengers and Masochists had a capacity crowd at the Uni Cafe,
where Billy Planet emptied the cafe's rubbish bags over the crowd. The
"punk rock horror" angle got them extensive coverage in various
Sunday papers time and time again, and on a trip to Wellington in August
1977, with The Scavengers, after a vigilante posse was formed to run them
out of town, they featured on the front page of a daily every day for a
week. In late 1977 they were signed by Polygram (rumour had it that the
A&R guy had a thing for Zero) who suggested that they should cover
English punk hits (Boomtown Rats etc), but this, thank god, never happened.
Only two singles were ever released, plus one track for the "Angel
Mine" film. An album was partially recorded but the tapes have long
since walked. In 1979 the remnants mutated into the Swingers.
Lineup: Zero (vocals), Jimmy Joy
(sax, vocals), Billy Planet (guitar), Bones Hillman
(bass on tracks 1&2 [Megaton & Coup D'Etat]), Buster Stiggs
(drums, rhythm guitar on track 16 [Saturday Night Stay At Home]), Tony
Baldock (bass on track 16), Phil Judd (guitar track
16).
Tracks: Megaton (Planet) recorded at Harlequin Studios,
1977. Released Jan 1978 on Vertigo 12" (first 12" released in
NZ). Produced by the band.
Coup D'Etat (Planet) a demo from mid 1977, recorded at Harlequin
and produced by Tim Finn. Remastered in 1993 from 4 track. Previously unreleased.
Saturday Night Stay At Home (Stiggs) recorded at Mandrill
Studios 1978. Released on Vertigo 7" 1978. Produced by Phil Judd.
