The Colytons

ORIGINS: St Marys / Colyton, NSW

GENRE: Punk

YEARS ACTIVE: 2002-2008, 2014-2017

 

MEMBERS:

• Timothy Obradovic (Vocals, Guitar) 
• Paul May (Bass, Vocals) [2002-2006]
  
• Mark Grech (Drums) [2002-2005]
• Tim Chillingworth (Drums) [2005-2006]
• Alex Sepansky (Bass, Vocals) [2006-2008]
  
• Ben McAtamney (Drums, Vocals) [2006-2008]
• Luke Mernagh (Guitar, Vocals) [2007-2008]
• Chester Steven (Bass) [2015-2017]
  
• Ben Johnson (Drums) [2015-2017]
• Adam Neuman (Guitar, Vocals) [2015]
  

 RELEASES:

• Donut Girl (2004)

• Shake 'Em Up (2005)

• Surfs Up Colyton Way (2006) 
  

• Colytons (2008)
• 1. Surfs Up Colyton Way
• 2. Colyton Beat
• 3. Love to Be in Love
• 4. Mel Doesn't Wanna Go to the Movies
• 5. I'm a No More
• 6. Common Sense
• 7. Deadbeat
• 8. The Radio is Trying to Kill Rock 'n' Roll
• 9. Oh Celena
• 10. I Want You Baby
• 11. Shake 'Em Up
• 12. Donut Girl
• 13. Falling Apart (Why'd You Leave Me?)
• 14. I Want Some
• 15. Jodie Doesn't Want Me
• 16. Someone Kill That Girl  

• From Basement With All You Need (2008) [Split CD with Cretin Boys and The Ratcliffs] - Download Here.
  
• 1. Surf's Up Colyton Way
• 2. Way I Feel
• 3. Perfect Day
• 4. Jodie Doesn't Want Me (Live)
• 5. The Radio is Trying to Kill Rock 'n' Roll (Live)

 

•  Promo CD (2015)
• 1. More and Even More
• 2. Down the Beach

•  Apples & You (2016) 
• 1. Apples & You
• 2. Lost on the Thought of You
• 3. More and Even More
• 4. Got You On My Mind
   

SUMMARY: The Colytons formed in 2002 as a trio from Colyton High School, practising in May's grandma's garage. By 2005 they had a new drummer, Tim Chillingworth, who owned the Faster Pussycat store on King Street in Newtown, and were alternating between practising at Sweet Leaf and Zen studios. Further line-up changes led to Obradovic leading an all-new four piece version of the band in 2007, and multiple tours to Melbourne before the band embarked on a USA tour in 2008 supporting The Queers and playing the Insubordination Festival. On returning to Australia the band began playing shows with bigger bands such as the Hard-Ons and Mach Pelican before parting ways. 

In 2015, Obradovic reformed the band with new members. Eventually, in 2017, they decided that their sound had changed so much that their name should too - and so they became known as 'Bad Earth'.

 

SHOWS: 

• The Empire Hotel, Annandale - Friday 4th November, 2005 
• Sandringham Hotel, Newtown - Saturday 29th April, 2006
  
• Half Moon Cruise, USA - Tuesday 24th June, 2008
  
• Tattersalls, Penrith - Saturday 5th December, 2015

ORAL HISTORY:

"It began with us telling girls at parties we were in a band until we had told enough people that we really felt we actually had to start a band... I took a guitar lesson to play Blitzkreig Bop by the Ramones and that was it. I was off! I taught Paul how to play bass based on what I learnt from my lesson."

Timothy Obradovic, Noise Levels discussion, 2024

"Writing punk songs was the most liberating experience for me. I swear I must have written a hundred songs... Our first gig was at the Great Western Bar's jam night in Penrith. I'll never forget the organiser's critique of the set. He said 'That was the worst fucking thing I ever heard in my life. That sucked." Well, I was gonna let a few harsh words get in the way of me conquering the world through rock 'n' roll."

Timothy Obradovic, Noise Levels discussion, 2024

"Our demo contained a song I wrote for Delta Goodram who had just been diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphona... I'm not saying she would have been better off with me than Mark Philippoussis, but Blair, her on-screen boyfriend on Neighbours, just wasn't right for her. I also wrote a song for Jodie from Home and Away called 'Jodie Doesn't Want Me'. Jodie is her real life name though... I used to see her at the Castle Hill Tavern on Thursday nights. She hated me."

Timothy Obradovic, Noise Levels discussion, 2024

 

"By 2007-2007 we were on fire. We were so tight and sounded great. We had three backing vocals and they were all harmonising... I should have stepped back from singing at this point and let Alex do lead vocals. That guy couldn't be out of tune if he tried. In fact, all three of them were better vocalists than me. Oh well, once you get a taste of being the front man it's hard to let go. Alex is the most musically talented person I ever met. He really turned the sound of this band into something great."

Timothy Obradovic, Noise Levels discussion, 2024

"I always loved Ramones/Screeching Weasel... Stereot City was on its last legs and I kept seeing the Colytons when we would play with them. I ended up having a beer with Alex and Ben and Tim one night after they played at Lewisham and they asked me if I'd like to join. After playing in The Breakout I felt it was always really good for me to play in bands where I wasn't the singer or writer. So I said yes. Why not hey?"

Luke Mernagh, Noise levels correspondence, 2024

 

"We managed to get ourselves a gig on the Insubordination Festival 2008 in the USA. A lot of our favourite bands were playing on that gig. The Queers were headlining. So I asked The Queers if we could jump on their tour leading up to the festival and they said yes!"

Timothy Obradovic, Noise Levels discussion, 2024

"What really occurred to me on the USA tour was how much better we were than the American local bands. We were so used to playing our hearts out at dive venues like the old Sandringham Hotel to 10 or less people that when we got a real audience we blitzed it. The talent of all the bands in the Sydney punk scene was so strong. None of us ever really had the stage or the audience big enough, there's not much to play between here and Melbourne and we all had to work 10 times as hard to get anywhere compared to bands in America."

Timothy Obradovic, Noise Levels discussion, 2024

"Luke and me got thrashed in pool by Vic from The Slackers at some bar in Brooklyn. We were also running around Philadelphia... in the middle of the night, searching for the perfect Philly cheese steak thingy. Fun times."

Alex Sepansky, Noise Levels discussion, 2024

"Recording the album... I just laid the tracks down, I wasn't in the band to make the decisions. Ben was a human metronome. Unreal drummer. Recording with Alex was amazing. He can do anything. And Tim had a great vision but it made us kind of confused at times."

Luke Mernagh, Noise Levels discussion, 2024

RELATED BANDS: Bad Earth, Extra Limb, The Notebooks, The Crunch, Dagnabit, The Shirkers, Own Enemy, Instant Mayhem, The Breakout, Stereo City, ADD Thrash, Black Jaw, Six O'Clock Swill