The Lime Spiders
The Lime Spiders formed in the Liverpool area of Western Sydney
(Australia) around a core of vocalist Mick Blood and guitarist Darryl
Mathers. From a one-off show in 1979 (which included rugby league great
Eric Grothe on guitar) the band finally emerged in 1981 with a six-piece
line-up of Blood, Mathers, bassist Dave Guest, guitarist Richard
Jakimyszyn, drummer Jeff Cleary and backing vocalist Bill Gibson, later
to shine with The Eastern Dark.
They progressed from practising in a local scout hall to gigs in the
competitive inner city Sydney venues, and climaxed 1981 with a New Years
Eve show on a bill headed by The Sunnyboys, The Hoodoo Gurus and The
Scientists.
Their powerful original compositions (along with energetic covers of
songs by The Standells, Mitch Ryder and The Chocolate Watch Band) were
already winning them fans, but the band broke up in early 1982. Mathers'
urge to record a single saw the band re-group late in 82, when The Lime
Spiders beat 64 other bands in a band competition at the Southern Cross
Hotel (later the Strawberry Hill Hotel) to win a recording contract
with local independent label Green Records, with former Radio Birdman
vocalist Rob Younger producing.
The departure of their rhythm section of Cleary and Guest also found
former Radio Birdman guitarist Warwick Gilbert sitting in on bass for
the recording sessions, along with guests Steve Rawles on drums and
Bruce Tatham on keyboards.
The resulting 25th Hour record was released in June 1983 in
the unique format of a double 7" set, including 25th Hour, That's
How It Will Be, Can't Wait Long and 1-2-5. The
record showcased a raw, energetic blend of powerpop, psychedelia and 60s
garage punk, and helped establish The Lime Spiders as a force to be
reckoned with.
Bassist Tony Bambach and drummer Richard Lawson then joined Blood
and Jakimyszyn, and it was this line-up that recorded the extremely
successful Slave Girl single for Citadel in 1984.
By late 1984 guitarist Gerard Corben was playing alongside Jakimyszyn,
the Slave Girl single had been released overseas and the
Spiders had successfully toured Melbourne. But they reverted to a
four-piece in 1985 when Jakimyszyn left to pursue other interests.
The band released the Slave Girl mini-album and the single, Out
Of Control, before disappearing until 1987 when they resurfaced
with the Weirdo Libido single, which appeared on the soundtrack
to an Australian film called Young Einstein, and a
belated debut album, The Cave Comes Alive.
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