NAKED CITY – THE DYNAMIC 80s REVISITED
With Coffin Ed
Back in the Sydney of the 1980s, nobody it seemed was complaining about the lack of live music venues, harsh lockout laws and the kind of overregulation that dogs so many clubs and pubs today. There was political and police corruption aplenty but when it came to entertainment an element of laissez faire prevailed.
Venues regularly exceeded their allowed number of patrons, closing times were often “fudged” and whilst there was the occasional noise complaint, residents living within earshot of pubs and clubs were nowhere near as litigious as the bright young things who have since moved in. Needless to say the filthy pokies were yet to invade the local pub scene and many hoteliers embraced the idea of having live music as a regular revenue raiser.
It was interesting to witness during the current Vivid Festival, some of the long held nostalgia that exists for this period in Sydney. Punters flocked to the highly successful Kings Bloody Cross series of talks in the World Bar whilst in the Kings Cross Hotel, there were packed screenings of the 1983 movie Going Down, which one reviewer described as “24 hours in the lives of four women living their life in the fast, seedy, lane, featuring bonus sex, drugs, booze, rock ‘n roll and vomit …”. Wow, were the 80s really that wild?
Amidst the mayhem of the this low budget flick is a scene set in one of the city’s thriving live music venues featuring a relatively unknown band at the time – The Dynamic Hepnotics. The exterior shot suggests the Manzil Room, but the interior was actually filmed in Sonia’s in the Leichhardt Hotel.
It was in pubs such as this in the 80s that bands such as the Hepnotics honed their musical skills and built their fan bases with weekly residencies that went on for month after month. Unlike today’s often manufactured pop stars and overnight sensations, bands in those days spent many years paying their dues in venues such as Sonias.
The Dynamic Hepnotics were once such combo but all that changed for them in 1984 when they released what was to become the hit summer anthem on the Australian airwaves – Soul Kind Of Feeling. The most played record on Australian radio it was a game changer for the band and saw them embark on three years of top level touring and recording.
Whilst the group officially disbanded in 1987, like many Australian bands of that era there was always the possibility of a reunion. It’s taken over thirty years but with the reissue of their back catalogue the band have finally agreed to a much anticipated reunion show. Sadly the band will be without drummer Robbie Souter who passed away a few weeks ago, but the concert is now seen as a tribute to the musician regarded as the heartbeat of the group.
If you were a part of the vibrant 80s culture or a millennial who perhaps would like to experience that vitality of that era then check out The Dynamic Hepnotics when they play The Factory Theatre in Marrickville on Saturday June 17.
