Dancing Under The Lights
1993 and in a cramped flat in Clifton Hill, Melbourne, we begin: a bass player, some lyrics, a violin, keyboards. Then guitars enter: three of them, more lyrics, some concrete ideas. Ramona Barry (keyboards and vocals) departs. April and a gig: three guitars, bass, violin, keyboards, spoken and sung vocals, no drummer, a wall builds and my brown Cortina konks out for the last time on the West Gate bridge.
Arch Law (ex-Huxton Creepers) joins and were swinging. Charles Barnett (ex-This Happy Greed) departs after the first gig. We rehearse at Quincy McLean’s Bakehouse, make a demo in a day, do a few gigs and by early 1994 both Law and guitarist/vocalist Craig Nenke have left the ranks. Described by Untitled Red vocalist Greg Day as a magnificent accident, this version dies quickly.
By 1995, vocalist Mary Doyle (The Late Mail) has joined and we launch Dancing Under The Lights to a good sized crowd in May 95 at the Punters Club. All our gigs are on the north side. We go to St. Kilda once.
The EP, beautifully recorded by Andy was full of chiming lush guitars but came with the query, Why doesn’t he sing those lyrics ? Onwards we gigged, before falling apart again in late 95 and deciding to call it a day. But when is the end of the mad rock dream?