Prodigal Sons
 When Prodigal Sons formed in Wollongong, Australia, in 1985, they
were known as Instant Party (named after the flip side of The
Who's Substitute single) and rehearsed in an old
house surrounded by used-car dealerships, in a room with egg
cartons stuck to every wall.
Establishing a strong local following
under that name, they began to play regularly in Sydney (where
they were known as Prodigal Sons) and for a while functioned with
the dual identity.
Relocating to Sydney in 1986, the Instant Party moniker was
discarded, as too was their original guitarist Ian Chafer. His
replacement was Adam Knapp.
For the next 18 months they performed
all over Sydney (even venturing as far afield as Bathurst on one
memorable occasion), and gained a strong following in the inner
city area.
The Proddies were part of the new exciting reaction to an
ageing "alternative" scene that stopped progressing
with Joy Division.
But the Prodigal Sons stood out from the
crowd. At long last here was a power pop outfit not derived
from the 1960s Merseybeat/paisley fallout. No, not a
Lambretta or suede jacket in sight. The Proddies owed far more to
the great masters of pop; people like Nick
Lowe, Eric Carmen, The
dB's, The Shoes, The
Rubinoos, Television and early
Elvis Costello.
They are probably best remembered for the song Human
Hamburger Madness which became their signature.
This song was
composed as the theme to the local classic splatter film of the
same name (directed by Cindy Mikul) which was screened as part of
the Sydney Super-8 Film Festival in 1986, and in which the band
made a cameo appearance.
Lead vocalist, bassist and chief songwriter, Dave Turner, was
possessed of a powerful emotive voice and had an ear for a melody
that lingered in your head for days. The boy had no trouble
penning catchy, quirky pop songs.
A number of originals stood out
- Songs such as That Girl, No Secret Place, Sorry
But I'm Saved and the aforementioned paean to cannibalism and
Mormonism (!), Human Hamburger Madness.
 The Prodigal Sons understood melody, guitars, hooks, and
middle-eights. Lead singer Dave Turner unashamedly wrote for
teenagers - too young to remember punk let alone the 1960's; kids
for whom jangly guitars, energy, break neck speed and manic
dancing were new.
Their message rang loud in three-part harmony and power chords.
Fast and tuneful music to complement the quest for fun and
adventure. Prodigal Sons played music to dance, drink, live and
fall in love to.
Naive and fresh, yes, but so was their audience.
Their music wasn't meant for tired old neo-hippies bogged down in
the boring electro funk avant-garde of the early Eighties.
And praise be to God for a band with a sense of humour - that
laughed at itself and the audience. No obsession with paisley
mysticism or solemn streetwise.
Instead of the serious young
artist posturing of many young bands, these guys sang lyrics
bristling with satire.
Their songs were punctuated with gags
galore, and Dave Turner obviously revelled in his role as showman
and master of ceremonies. Me, I laughed!
If, like me, you wanted
to go out for a fast, sinful night and dance to a real song, you
couldn't go past the Prodigal Sons.
For a band that were together such a relatively short time,
Prodigal Sons were exceptionally tight and confident.
An
impressive string of support acts under their belts, they set
about headlining their own gigs before sadly breaking up all too
prematurely on Saturday 4 April 1987.
The band resurfaced briefly in 1989 with a new guitarist and a
new name. Now known as Brigid Rang, Turner and Lane were joined by
new guitarist and vocalist Shaun Wilson.
The band played a handful
of concerts, unveiled a swag of terrific new songs
(including Face Of The Nineties, Postcards Of
London and You Haunt This Town), recorded two
tracks, and then promptly broke up following a disastrous gig at
the Revesby Roundhouse in Sydney's outer West.
The
Suede Messiah
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