Notion

ORIGINS: Baulkham Hills, NSW

GENRE: Metal, Nu-Metal, Alt-Metal

YEARS ACTIVE: 2000-2004

 

MEMBERS:

• Liam Willoughby - Vocals
• Nick Gabriellan - Bass
• Mark Huntingford (2000-2003) - Guitar 
• David Bleus (2004) - Guitar
  
• Paul Hancock - Drums (2000)
• James Gatt - Guitar (2003-2004)
  
• Ned Jankovic (DJ Feeder) - DJ (2000-2001)
• Brendan Hately - Drums (2001-2004)
  

RELEASES: 

• Demo (2001) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Upscale
• 2. Don't Hang Up
   
• Demo (2002) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Two Fingered Whore
• 2. Upscale
• 3. Doctors Tattoo
• 4. The Burden of You
• 5. 572
• 6. Winter in the Mirror
  

• Six Weeks at Your Heart (2004) - Download Here.
• 1. Lawless
• 2. Red Lines
• 3. Winter in the Mirror
• 4. Sapphire Eyes
  

SUMMARY: Notion began as a nu-metal band with a DJ, playing regularly in the Hills District. Galvanised by a slot on the Grounded Festival in early 2001, the band demo'd a bunch of tracks and worked hard. After the departure of DJ Feeder in 2001, Notion reinforced their sound with an alt-metal edge and played predominantly in Sydney and the Riverina region. The band underwent a few lineup changes across the next few years, did a Queensland tour with Polystigma in 2002, and eventually broke up when vocalist Liam moved away from Sydney in 2004.

 

First guitarist Mark

 

SHOWS: 

• Baulkham Hills High School Band Comp, Baulkham Hills - 13th October, 2000
  
• Hype Festival, Castle Hill - 2nd September, 2000
• Crestwood Fair, Baulkham Hills - 3rd September, 2000
• Grounded Festival, Museum of Fire, Penrith - 17th March, 2001
  
• Forest Inn, Bexley - 30th March, 2001
• Sodens Hotel, Albury - 20th April, 2001
• Condemned Festival, PCYC, Parramatta - 22nd September, 2001 
• Great Western Bar, Penrith - 10th October, 2001
• Great Western Bar, Penrith - 25th October, 2001
  
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 27th October, 2001
• Wastelands, Blacktown Masonic Hall, Blacktown - 24th November, 2001 
• Distorted '01, PCYC, Penrith - 2nd December, 2001
  
• The Excelsior, Surry Hills - 4th January, 2002
• Bat and Ball Hotel, Surry Hills - 18th January, 2002
  
• The Excelsior, Surry Hills - 23rd January, 2002
• Club 77, Sydney - 9th February, 2002
• Bat and Ball Hotel, Surry Hills - 18th February, 2002
  
• Maximum Dosage, Westmead - 23rd February, 2002
  
• Hay-Wire, Castle Hill - 15th March, 2002
  
• Lansdowne Hotel, Sydney - 23rd March, 2002 
• Grounded Festival, Museum of Fire, Penrith - 13th April, 2002
  
• Woden Youth Centre, Canberra - 28th June, 2002 (ACT)
  
• Frosti's Birthday, Werrington Youth Centre, Penrith - 5th July, 2002
  
• Bull and Bush, Baulkham Hills - 22nd August, 2002 
• Gravity, Parramatta Hotel, Parramatta - 14th September, 2002
• Hype Festival, Castle Hill - 15th September, 2002
  
• Rise for the Sick, The Kids Museum, Merrylands - 31st October, 2002
  
• Bega Day Out, Bega - 11th January, 2003
• Bull and Bush, Baulkham Hills - 27th February, 2003
• Bull and Bush, Baulkham Hills - 3rd May, 2003
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 13th September, 2003
  
• Great Western Bar, Penrith - 25th October, 2003
  
• Bull and Bush, Baulkham Hills - 11th November, 2003
  
• Bull and Bush, Baulkham Hills - 15th January, 2004
  
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 6th March, 2004
  
• The Roxy, Parramatta - 4th July, 2004

Artwork from website, 2004

ORAL HISTORY:

LIAM: I've been in bands since the age of 12. Grew up listening to and loving heaps of different styles of music, I was first into death metal from the age of 11 when I began singing in a borderline death metal band. From 14 to 15 I was in a Deftones cover band. Music to me is much more than a hobby, it's a way of life. 

Liam Willoughby (Vocals), Notion website, 2001 

 

NED: I was only a few years into playing guitar and was interested in joining a band. I think I looking in Drum Media and foudn their ad. I wasn't gelling well as a guitarist for them though. Linkin Park and Incubus were huge at the time, and the idea of going to the decks was flown about. So I just decided to give it a try. It was all self taught! I had absolutely nothing or no one to teach or guide me, but it was fun to experiment with sounds and beats. 

Ned Jankovic (DJ), Noise Levels correspondence, 2025

 

NED: We were all on ICQ chat thinking of what to name the band and my friend told me to update his info - so I did and his nickname was 'Notion'. I suggested this to the guys as a band name and they loved it. Some people say we got it from the Coal Chamber song but we actually got it off our friend (who also didn't get it off the Coal Chamber song).

Ned Jankovic (DJ), Obzine Issue 18, February 2001

 

Pic from Excelsior show, Obzine Issue 25, 2002

LIAM: Some of the band's influences are softer bands like Weezer, Far, and Smashing Pumpkins, as well as heavy rocking bands like Tool, Sevendust, Rage Against the Machine. Our music is unpredictable, pulsating, ear-throbbing... there's a lot of experimentation to it.

Liam Willoughby (Vocals), Obzine Issue 18, February 2001

 

NED: Thankfully Notion at the time was more towards nu metal so as long as I had some solid beats and scratched at the right times I was okay, haha. 

 Ned Jankovic (DJ), Noise Levels correspondence, 2025

 

PAUL: I'm a punk drummer, that's all I listen to, but the mad sounds Notion produce got me hooked on ensuring I was their drummer. Notion produce a unique sound which I have come to like and I love playing it!

Paul Hancock (Drums), Notion website, 2001

 

 

NED: We sent our demo to the Grounded Festival organisers and waited for a month - they heard our demo and loved it... We worked a lot on those songs - I'm fairly new to the decks, so it was difficult for me, but in the end we got a really cool demo which got us into the Grounded Festival.

Ned Jankovic (DJ), Obzine Issue 18, February 2001

 

NED: Our plan was to get to the Top 100 of the Channel V Leg Up competition so that more people would listen to the band. It worked as it helped us build a fanbase. I was a bit shocked because I didn't expect so many people commenting on our song and for them to like it so much. I'm really happy.

Ned Jankovic (DJ,) Obzine Issue 18, February 2001

 

Second guitarist James

 

NED: The Grounded Festival in Penrith will always stand out to me. It was my first festival and my first time playing to quite a big crowd. That show alone really got me hooked into music and pursuing it full time. After Grounded we did a few shows. I left after that.

 Ned Jankovic (DJ), Noise Levels correspondence, 2025

 

REVIEW: The songs sounded fantastic tonight. Everything really clear. They had some new songs as well and they really sounded killer. The drummer's got some great stuff on his toms, really gives the band a great dynamic. I like these guys! Liam's funny on the mic too. 

Review of Excelsior show by Warren Mills, Obzine Issue 25, February 2002

 

LIAM: Gatt is, of course, our new guitarist and our sound has progressed as a result.

Liam Willoughby (Vocals), Notion Website, late 2003

 

JAMES: I was in Vanity Star and got the opportunity to play after Mark, their guitarist, decided to leave. I was already good mates with Liam, so that's how I got in - which honestly was awesome because they were my favourite band before I joined them. I was in Notion for about 18 months before I left. I wanted to do something else, pretty much.

James Gatt (Guitar), Noise Levels correspondence, 2024

 

Third guitarist David, 2004

DAVID: My band Self is a Seed (called Self at the time) played our first gig with Notion at the Bull and Bush. I became friends with Liam (along with the other guys) so we were always hanging out and when they needed a guitarist I guess I was an easy choice. I was very familiar with their music and close with the guys in the band. So I was their guitarist in their final moments. Liam moved to Albury to work in his family's pub - booking music, etc. - and the band gradually fell apart after this because he was the driving force behind it. So it kind of fizzled out. 

David Bleus (Guitar), Noise Levels correspondence, 2025

RELATED BANDS: Lee'Mon, Cassette Kids, Casa Del Disco, Vanity Star, Cherub Mafia, Subnation, Caulfield, Awaken I Am, Redhook, Self is a Seed, Superb Lyrebird, Commander Arkipov, Swampash, Quadzilla, Ezekiel Ox and the Evidence, Coverpalozza, Killing Flaw

Paul Mernagh

Paul Mernagh

• The Shirkers (1997-2001) - Guitar
• Own Enemy (1999) - Guitar
• ADD Thrash (2001) - Vocals
  
• The Spitz (2002) - Bass
• Brand Loyalty / Brand Disloyalty (2002-2007) - Bass
• ROFL (2003-2004) - Vocals
  

REGION: Baulkham Hills, NSW

TUBbH

ORIGINS: Baulkham Hills, NSW

GENRE: Punk. Alternative

YEARS ACTIVE: 1994-1999

 

MEMBERS:

• Jono Barwick - Vocals (1994), Bass
• Adrian Griffin - Drums 
• Abram McEvoy - Guitar (1994-1997)
  
• Alistair Merriman - Vocals (1995)
  
• Morgan Coxell - Vocals (1995-1997)
  
• Krazy Dave - Vocals (1998-1999)
  
• Stu Smy - Guitar (1997-1998)
  
• Chris Maxwell - Guitar (1999)
  

RELEASES: 

• Live (1994)
• 1. Sodomised by the Angry Croissant
• 2. Slated Cupboard Doors
• 3. What

• You've Come to the Wrong House (1994) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Look to the Future
• 2. Cereal
• 3. Brain Dead
• 4. Wizz Fizz
• 5. Not Until You're Dead
• 6. Sludge Fudge
• 7. Funk Fresh Homey Jock Crew
• 8. Isolation
• 9. Fear of Handcuffs
• 10. Expanding Contracting
• 11. Majic
• 12. Le Donut Satanique
• 13. Soul Eaters
• 14. Security Guard Song

• No Thought at All?! (1995) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Funkey Fresh Homey Jock Crew
• 2. Sell Out
• 3. Dribbling Euphemisms of a Takeaway Food Item
• 4. Injecting Stupidity
• 5. If You Skate You Won't Grow Up to Be a Garbageman
• 6. Asparagus
• 7. Suburban Gangsta
• 8. Boomshanka (actually 'In My Eyes' - a Minor Threat cover)
  

• Self-Titled Demo (1997) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Fuck the Cause
• 2. Pigs Might Fly
  
• 3. The Price is Right
  
• 4. You Shouldn't Have

• Self-Titled Album (1998) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Look to the Future
• 2. Injecting Stupidity
• 3. Mockery of Hypocrisy
• 4. Suburban Gangsta
• 5. Floppy Flaccid
• 6. Vinnie Bin Raid
• 7. Wardrobe
• 8. TV As God
  

SUMMARY: Starting in March/April 1994, Abram and Barwick combined the sound of Baby Jesus Hitler with the songwriting talents of new band members to create TUBbH. They were soon playing a range of all ages shows, pubs, and parties, and built up a strong following via their involvement with Hornsby PCYC shows. The band rotated through 4 singers over their time, with bassist and founding band member Barwick initially providing vocals before focusing on just bass. TUBbH played several high profile shows in support of bigger acts and appeared on the youth-music TV show Ground Zero on Channel 10. Things eventually came to an end in 1999 with the two consistent band members (Barwick and Griffin) deciding to go their separate ways.

 

SHOWS: 

• Lewisham Hotel, Sydney - 24th June, 1994
• Punk and Disorderly Chapter 13, Street Level, Blacktown - 17th November, 1995
  
• Waterloo Tavern, Sydney - 9th December, 1995 
• Waterloo Tavern, Sydney - 9th February, 1996
• Collector Tavern, Parramatta - 20th December, 1996
  
• Punk Files 2, Lansdowne Hotel, Sydney - 30th August, 1997
• Jack's Island Cafe, Hornsby - 16th August, 1998
• Ground Zero, Channel 10 performance - October 24th, 1998
• Penrith City Festival, Regatta Park, Emu Plains - 14th November, 1998
  
• Iron Duke, Alexandria - 8th April, 1999
• Harvey Lowe Pavilion, Castle Hill - unknown date, April 1999
  

ORAL HISTORY:

ADRIAN: Jono and I were good friends at school but kinda hung out in different circles. He had his band Baby Jesus Hitler and I went to see the a few times at places like the Cow Shed and Hornsby PCYC. I mentioned that I would like to play for them at some point and not that long after Tubbh started as pretty much the same band as Baby Jesus Hitler but with me on drums (that old trick!)

Adrian Griffin (Drums), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

JONO: The band’s first rehearsal was basically a rehashing of songs by my previous band, Baby Jesus Hitler. After an hour or so we decided there would have to be a name change and the first word to pop into Adrian’s head was tub, Abram countered with a double B and I clarified the stupidity with the silent H. And so the name was decided. Many rumours were perpetuated for those two extra letters but it was not an acronym for Those Useless Bastards from Baulkham Hills nor did the extra letters stand for Baulkham Hills (our home suburb).  

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

JONO: Our first gig was at the infamous 'Haunted Castle' (the Lewisham Hotel) on a Wednesday night. A momentous occasion indeed, Adrian forgot his tom mount and had to gaffer-tape his tom to a mike stand. The world also found out how bad a singer I was and several of our friends found out about my fascination with food and bondage. All in all a classy night!

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

ADRIAN: My earliest memory of Tubbh shows is probably the Hornsby ones when we'd play with bands like Savage Cabbage and Stalin's Organ and heaps of others. The shows themselves were good because you'd have a bunch of different styles of music but with a common DIY thread. Everyone, including myself, got to hear new and different music and it wasn't just a bunch of bands in the same genre. Then at the next rehearsal we'd be inspired and write riffs like what we'd heard at those shows. I think we went down well. The early party shows were fun, people would get pretty loose.

Adrian Griffin (Drums), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

JONO: Recording our first demo, You've Come to the Wrong House, at Zen Studios was a marathon effort. In five hours we recorded three Baby Jesus Hitler-era songs live to DAT for prosperity’s sake and then 14 songs for the actual demo. We also mixed the whole thing and left with our own shiny DAT copy. We had Adrian’s mate Wayne Parry come in and drop some sax on our token ska track and generally had more fun than can be described. We got 100 copies printed on cassette with the dodgiest artwork ever seen (I draw as well as I sing). It took us a few months but we sold them all to friends and fans alike. We also did our first city gig shortly after with Mad Circle (now Mindsnare) and Gilgamesh at Feedback above Newtown station. (Big thanks to Tim Manton for getting us that show). Our friend Fran from Stalin’s Organ got two of the songs off the demo -Braindead and Inhale/Exhale - onto the Core Sessions 2 compilation.

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

ADRIAN: We'd recorded some really rough demos with a boombox to cassette at rehearsal and then the first proper recording we did 14 songs at the old Zen Studios in 5 hours (from load-in to final mix!)

Adrian Griffin (Drums), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

JONO: One night whilst at at my friend Michelle’s house for a bit of drunken debauchery, my friend Alistair Merriman mentioned how much he liked us and how he knew all the words to the songs, so of course we got him to sing for us. He was a shy little bugger but rocked the mic all the same. After he'd been in the band about four months we recorded our second demo, No Thought At All?!, at Noisegate Studio... Unfortunately, soon after we recorded the demo, Alistair decided to move to Melbourne.  

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

 

ADRIAN: We got to support some great bands. One gig that stands out was in Parramatta with The Superjesus and Shihad. We also played on a Channel 10 show called Ground Zero. Jackie O was working there before she was known as Jackie O. I'm not sure how it came about but I assume Jono tee'd it up somehow. We played one or two songs.  

Adrian Griffin (Drums), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

JONO: Morgan wasn't a bad singer but the reliability factor wasn't really there! At this stage we had hit our peak with support slots for Frenzal Rhomb and Tumbleweed and other great bands of the time. Things were looking good but they were also looking bad - with Abe showing less and less interest everyday. He still didn't actually own an amp after 4 years of playing in the band. So, as difficult as it was, we had to ask him to leave. Abe was replaced by the notorious Crestwood High westie Stu Smy. This dude was and still is the shred master. Six weeks and maybe 10 rehearsals later we made Stu play his first gig - in front of about 500 people! He ruled it through the help of his many pieces of paper with the arrangements written on them. This was definitely our best line up and we played our biggest shows at this time, including an all ages show that we headlined to about 600 people. At this point it was time for demo number 3. Only four songs, but they're probably our best four. We sold almost all of the first hundred in three weeks and did our first and only T-shirt run, which also sold out in double time. 

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

JONO: We were invited to put some songs on a compilation 7" box set so we once again headed into into trusty Noisegate to lay down two new songs, 'Vinnie Bin Raid' and 'With Drugs Like These Who Needs Friends?' I sang on the latter as it was a very personal song. If you listen closely when I sing the chorus you can here when I almost laugh because Stu held up a sign saying Motorhead as I was laying down the vocals. Unfortunately by the time this came out we had kicked Morgan out (or maybe he left?) He definitely wasn't at band practise since we passed his car on the way to a gig and he yelled out to use, "Have a good night", and drove off never to be seen again.  

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

 

JONO: With so many lineup changes we were beginning to lose focus. We finally decided to record our debut CD after a couple of successful shows left us with money with burn. This experience was a little unpleasant - Adrian and I had been fighting, and Stu was not digging Dave's voice. So, after laying down the music, we re-listened to it before we did the vocals and said 'fuck it', and started all over again. It sounded better but it was definitely Mike's fucking masterpiece, not ours. 

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

JONO: After the album, Stu said he no longer wanted to continue in the band, so we enlisted Chris Maxwell. He was a longtime friend and had long time given up playing guitar but who cared, he was still good. We did an album release show at the Annandale in August, 1998. We sold 3 copies that night - huge!

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

CHRIS: I've been good friends with Jono and Adrian since early high school and went to many TUBbH gigs for years before joining the band. I'd been playing guitar since I was 12 and I used to also go to TUBbH rehearsals basically just to hang out. My joining came just after helping record the album - I helped with some lyrics and did some backing vocals. I later recorded a few songs playing guitar after this, with Dave as singer, but these recordings were never officially released. 

Chris Maxwell (Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

CHRIS: My first show was alongside Stuart, who was lead guitarist, and my most memorable gig was my first one where I was the only guitarist, when Stuart abruptly left before our biggest gig ever - supporting Sprung Monkey from the US. There was a crowd of around 5000 people and Stuart said at the last minute that he wasn't coming. That was when he decided to leave. We had to do the whole show without any of the lead sections as I wasn't a lead or solo kind of player. I didn't know any of his more technical parts but we were heading in a heavier riff-based direction by then, where there was less need for solos.

Chris Maxwell (Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

ADRIAN: Towards the end I think we were all just a bit over it. Jono and I disagreed on things, our guitarist hated playing live, and I joined Quadbox, which I don't think went down too well with the band. We just kinda dissolved. 

Adrian Griffin (Drums), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

CHRIS: My last show was probably the one where a drunk guy turned off my distortion pedal mid-song and there was nearly a fight. I didn't want to play gigs much after that. And to be honest, the band was slowly coming apart by that stage. I was always nervous playing live and never really enjoyed it. 

Chris Maxwell (Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

 

Promo for TUBbH, newspaper, 1999

 , 199

JONO: Things began to fall apart with personal issues for certain members, as well as clashing egos. Also, my brother Mike was killed in a hit-and-run, causing me a wee bit of distress and TUBbH-wise, it didn't help one iota. After many arguments and carrying-on, Adrian and I decided the best thing to do was break up. We got Stu back and did two final shows - an Over 18s at the Iron Duke, and then our very final show at the Harvey Lowe pavilion at Castle Hill. The funny thing about this show was that the support bands were The Shirkers (my new band) and Quadbox (Adrian's new band) so, as well as being the end of an era, it was also an introduction to what we were going to do next. 

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

ADRIAN: We reformed for Jono's 35th birthday - a bunch of bands including Tubbh played at The Lansdowne. We've all stayed friends since the band ended, there was no bad blood at all. The reunion show was heaps of fun. We hadn't seen Stu the guitarist for years, so that was cool.  

Adrian Griffin (Drums), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

RELATED BANDS: The Shirkers, Quadbox, Baby Jesus Hitler, Domestic Clone Unit, Degeneracy, Hell City Glamours, Cruelty's Fun, Garrottes, The Flames of Love, AgagueFor, Salacius Crumb, Smash Alley, As If, 28 Days, Lo!, Burial Pit, Salmon Hater, Degeneracy 

 

EXTERNAL LINKS: The TUBbH bandcamp.

 

The Shirkers

ORIGINS: Baulkham Hills,  NSW

GENRE: Punk

YEARS ACTIVE: 1997-2001

 

MEMBERS:

• Luke Mernagh (Vocals, Guitar)
• Paul Mernagh (Guitar)
• Adam Lees (Vocals) [1997]
• Simon Gobbo (Drums)
  
• Craig McVea (Bass) [1997]
• Jono Barwick (Bass)[1998-2001]

RELEASES: 

 

• Original Pogo Verse (1997)
• 1. Billy Bob
• 2. Understand
• 3. Clone Me
• 4. Restraint
• 5. Refuse

• Anthems for the Shirking Class (1998) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Schmuck
• 2. Qu__rboy
• 3. Lyrical Inspiration
• 4. Gossip Gander
• 5. Gobbo's Song
• 6. Hey Hey It's Saturday
• 7. Growing Pains
• 8. Just a Shadow
• 9. Lonely Friend
• 10. Refuse

• Were the Blood [Split with The Blurters, The Rats, Death Before Dishonour, and Blurred Vision] (1999) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Never Goin' Back
  
• 2. The Kids
• 3. Sellout
• 4. Restraint
• 5. Punk Rock Holiday

• Alienation Within a Consumer Society (2000) - Download Here.
  
• 1. Rye New York
• 2. Screw Up
• 3. 40 Hours
• 4. You Make Me Pathetic
• 5. Discontent Be Content
• 6. 13 Years
• 7. Friendshit
• 8. Seventh Day
• 9. Filler (Minor Threat)
  

SUMMARY: Luke Mernagh formed The Shirkers while still attending high school, enlisting the involvement of his brother Paul, his school friend Simon, and a work experience connection Adam. Craig McVea joined the band on bass after responding to a Drum Media ad and they quickly set about recording their first demo. McVea and Lees left the band shortly after recording, leading to Luke Mernagh taking over vocal duties and Barwick joining on bass - just in time for the band's first proper show. After this point the band regularly played a range of shows in pubs and squats with bands such as The Last Hemeroids, Cult 45, Frenzal Rhomb, and H-Block 101. 

In 2000, when Frenzal Rhomb had to pull out of the Big Day Out, The Shirkers were offered a slot playing the festival. They used the money from this to fund their second album and then things came to an end shortly after this when Barwick and Gobbo decided to move on.

 

SHOWS: 

• Punk Files 4, The Globe, Newtown - 7th November, 1998
• House Party, Jay's House - 6th February, 1999
  
• PCYC, Parramatta - 18th April, 1999 
• Lane Cove Youth Centre, Lane Cove - 6th August, 1999
• Green Square, Zetland - 11th September, 1999
  
• Orange Blossom Festival Youth Expo, Castle Hill Showgrounds - 18th September, 1999
  
• Iron Duke, Alexandria - 20th November, 1999 
• PCYC, Hornsby - 22nd January, 2000
  
• Big Day Out, Sydney Showground - 26th January, 2000
  
• Harbour Cruise - 5th February, 2000 
• Iron Duke, Alexandria - 7th April, 2000
  
• Snail Trail Youth Festival, Council Car Park, Lane Cove - 8th April, 2000
  
• Grounded, Museum of Fire, Penrith - 17th June, 2000
• Kelts Bar, Blaxland - 7th December, 2000
  
• PCYC, Penrith - 22nd December, 2000
• Northpoint Tavern - 3rd March, 2001
  

The Shirkers at Grounded Festival

ORAL HISTORY:

LUKE: I always wanted to play music with my older brother and we shared a guitar. We would show each other riffs and that sort of thing. So we put some songs together. I convinced my mate Simon from school to learn drums as I noticed he was really good at tapping along to music and had a really good rhythm. We didn't know anyone who could sing or play bass... in fact, I wanted a bass but we ended buying the $50 guitar we shared instead. A few months later I had to do work experience for school and I ended up doing it at Phantom Records. There was another guy there my age doing the same. His name was Adam Lees and we got along really well. He was a great singer and loved Propagandhi. We started writing lyrics together. We always joked how we were kinda weaklings and not really punk rock, so we had ideas to call our band something like The Weaklings or The Wimps. We went with The Shirkers and started to rehearse.

Luke Mernagh (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

CRAIG: I think I wanted to do more Beastie Boys stuff and the rest of the band wanted to do more punk/ska stuff. I played a couple of shows and we did a demo. It was fun at the time but I wanted to do Clobassi so I left Shirkers within a year.

Craig McVea (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

Review of demo by Christina Myers, B.M.A, October 1998

LUKE: At a TUBbH gig my brother played the demo to Jono in the car tape deck and Jono wanted in. Jono really taught us how to do a band properly - how to get gigs, how to market yourselves, etc. We would not have gone anywhere but our rehearsal space had it not been for him.

Luke Mernagh (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

ADAM: Becoming a musician just snuck up on me. I started singing in bands in high school and started playing guitar when I was about 16. I sang for a couple of shows and on the first demo of The Shirkers but I was young and didn't get to write any lyrics or music for the band. For a number of reasons, it was best that we parted ways. I was getting better at playing guitar and songwriting so I wanted to start my own band and play my own songs. 

Adam Lees (Vocals), Bombshellzine.com, 2005, and Staying At Home website, 2002

 

LUKE: Adam kept cancelling practices and we mutually decided to go on without him. We had our first first big gig with The Last Hemeroids and H-Block at the Globe in the singer... and we had no singer. I ended up filling in and people thought it sounded okay so we never thought about replacing me on vocals. We all sang a song here and there, usually we sang the songs we wrote.

Luke Mernagh (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

 

LUKE: We wanted people to know we weren't a city band so we made a joke out of it and wrote 'Straight Outta Baulko' as our kind of slogan.

Luke Mernagh (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

LUKE: Being a part of that scene at that time meant having that feeling that every young person strives for - feeling confident that you are finally good at something. I met a lot of long-time mates and was able to connect with hundreds of wonderful people.

Luke Mernagh (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

Review by Con, Bar Code the World Issue 20, October 1999

 

LUKE: I found out we were playing the Big Day Out the morning after my last HSC Exams. My brother opened my bedroom door to tell me as I was sleeping-in on a beautiful Summer morning. I said: 'F_ck off, you're full of sh!t' and he was like 'Nah bro, I'm for real'. I got up and was so stoked. Went out the back and hugged my dog for ages and basked in the sun. I was very optimistic for what life would be like after school at that point. I actually couldn't afford a ticket to go see Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros at the Big Day Out so it was a dream come true. I got to meet Joe Strummer.

Luke Mernagh (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

 

JONO: Standout memories... playing the Big Day Out to a sh!tload of people and accidentally sconing someone in the face when I threw a CD into the crowd. Getting gastro on tour to Brisbane and almost sh!tting myself on stage. Gastro was honestly horrific, Paul ended up playing bass while I slept and shat and puked for three days.

Jono Barwick (Bass), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024

 

Review by Brad Moore of Kelts Bar show, Bombshellzine, December 2000

 

LUKE: We used the money from Big Day Out to self-fund a CD. We put it out and made it all ourselves. I designed and printed all the inserts and stuff. We then continued to play a few gigs but Simon lost interest and Jono too, so we just broke up a few months later. I was devastated. I had massive plans for us so I had to take a bit to think what was next for me. I had imagined that The Shirkers would be a band I would be in forever. So that was hard. As soon as I turned 18 it was, like, over. 

Luke Mernagh (Vocals, Guitar), Noise Levels Correspondence, 2024 

 

Click here for Additional Material. 

RELATED BANDS: Dagnabit, Own Enemy, TUBbH, Instant Mayhem, The Breakout, The Lock Ups, ADD Thrash, Stereo City, Black Jaw, Colytons, Baby Hitler Jesus, Domestic Clone Unit, Hell City Glamours, Fire@rms, Degeneracy, Cruelty's Fun, Garottes, The Flames of Love, Lungs, Staying at Home, Animal Shapes, Rocketboy, Oh Messy Life, Lightweights, Death Mountain, Clobassi, Fat Slinky, Carnage Flail, Scratch Habbit, Lucy and the Pheromones, Moonbombs, Brand Disloyalty, ROFL, The Spitz