Equal Local were an Australian

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s b ...

band, formed in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Victoria in 1980. The original line-up was Dean Richards on guitar, Philip Jackson on synthesisers, trumpet and rhythm generator, Melissa Webb on synthesisers and piano, Bryce Perrin on double bass, and Mick Hauser on saxophone. Richards and Jackson were ex-members of electronic post-punk group Whirlywirld.

History

Equal Local formed in early 1980 and quickly attracted a cult following within Melbourne's Crystal Ballroom scene, appearing on bills alongside fellow synth-pop acts Essendon Airport and Tsk Tsk Tsk, and garnering acclaim from critics such as Clinton Walker, who called them "the best, most important band to emerge in Melbourne since The Birthday Party left for England."Walker, Clinton (26 June 1981)
"Equal Local"
''

Rock Australia Magazine ''Rock Australia Magazine'' or ''RAM'' (its acronym and popular name) was a fortnightly national Australian music newspaper, which was published from 1975 to 1989. It was designed for people with a serious interest in rock and pop, and was co ...

'' Equal Local created avant-garde instrumental music that combined a

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

edge with elements of cocktail music,

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

, among other genres. Using a computer designed and built for the band by member Robin Whittle, they were also pioneers in the use of programmable beat sequencing software during live performance, predating the release of

Fairlight CMI The Fairlight CMI (short for Computer Musical Instrument) is a digital synthesizer, music sampler, and digital audio workstation introduced in 1979 by Fairlight. — with links to some Fairlight history and photos It was based on a commerc ...

's "Page R" by a couple of years. When The Birthday Party returned to Melbourne in early 1980 to record their album '' Prayers on Fire'' with producer

Tony Cohen Anthony Lawrence Cohen (4 June 19572 August 2017) was an Australian music record producer and sound engineer. He worked with Nick Cave's groups the Birthday Party, and then the Bad Seeds from 1979 to 2001. In mid-1986 he followed Cave to Lond ...

, Jackson, Hauser and Ewart were invited by the band to contribute horns to two songs: the LP's first single "Nick the Stripper", and "Zoo Music Girl". Also in 1980, Equal Local provided the soundtrack for the documentary ''Punkline'', filmed in the Crystal Ballroom."Punkline"
ACMI. Retrieved 29 January 2024. Two songs by Equal Local, "Widespread" and "Barren and Wasted", appeared on the fifth edition of the cassette magazine '' Fast Forward'', released in 1981. That year, Equal Local released the EP ''Madagascar'' on Missing Link Records, and in 1982, Powderworks Records released their song "12 Ways to Go" as a single. The band toured interstate before disbanding in 1982. That year, a recording of their last ever show, held at the Crystal Ballroom on 29 May 1982, was released as a live album by the cassette label Rash (DECISIONS).

Discography

Live albums

* ''How Did We Miss These?'' (1982) – Rash (DECISIONS)

Extended plays

* ''Madagascar'' (1981) – Missing Link Records

Split singles

* "12 Ways to Go"/"Yank" (1982) – Powderworks Records

Bibliography

Books *

References

{{Authority control Musical groups from Melbourne Musical groups established in 1980 Musical groups disestablished in 1982 1980 establishments in Australia