The Bennies

The Bennies were an Australian ska punk band from Melbourne, Victoria. Self-described as "Psychedelic Reggae Ska Doom Metal Punk Rock From Hell,"[1] the band are known for their high-energy live shows[2][3] and their mix of genres including dub, punk rock and heavy metal. To date, the band have released four studio albums and two EPs.

The Bennies
Also known asMadonna (2009-2011)
OriginMelbourne, Victoria
GenresPunk rock, ska, reggae
Years active2009–2020
LabelsPool House Records, Poison City Records
Associated actsFoxtrot, LOSER, The Gun Runners, Super Duper, Hightime, Kimbo
Websitethebennies.com.au
Past membersAnty Horgan
David Beaumont
Jules Rozenbergs
Nick Williams
Graham Leach
Steve Lavery
Christos Salaoras
Craig Selak

History

The band originally formed in 2009 under the name Madonna.[4] Under this name, the band released a self-titled collection of demo recordings on CD in 2010[5] before changing their name to The Bennies the following year due to legal issues concerning the use of the name. Under their new name, The Bennies would release their debut album Party Party Party! on 3 September 2011 via Jackknife Music.[6] In 2012, the band underwent their first line-up change after guitarist Steve Lavery departed from the band and was replaced by Christos "Souv" Salaoras. Following a tour of Japan later that year, Salaoras also left The Bennies. His replacement was Jules Rozenbergs, who had previously played in Melbourne punk bands Kimbo[7] and The Gun Runners.[8] This line-up would remain intact for the next six years, with their first release being 2013's Better Off Dread EP on April 20, 2013.[9] This was followed by Rainbows in Space, the band's second studio album, which was released in November. It marked the band's first release with Poison City Records,[10] who would put out every Bennies release until 2017.

In 2014, the band released their second EP, Heavy Disco.[11] To promote the release, the band appeared on triple j's Like a Version segment in February 2015.[12] The band performed a stripped-back version of "Heavy Disco",[13] as well as a cover of TISM's "(He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River."[14] Damian Cowell, who was a member of TISM, gave his approval of the cover to the band and performed the song with them live in 2016.[15] The Bennies themselves would later contribute to Cowell's second studio album as Damian Cowell's Disco Machine, 2017's Get Yer Dag On!, featuring on the song "365 Lemmys."[16]

In 2015, a new single titled "Party Machine" was released.[17] The song ended up being their most successful single to date, and was voted into the Triple J Hottest 100 of 2015 at number 88.[18] The song was the lead single from their third studio album, Wisdom Machine, which was released on 25 March 2016.[19] The album spawned a further three singles – "Legalise (But Don't Tax),"[20] "Detroit Rock Ciggies"[21] and "Corruption"[22] – with music videos being made for the latter two.

The band released a single, "Get High Like an Angel", in late 2017, and toured Australia in support of it.[23] It would serve as the opening track on The Bennies' fourth studio album, Natural Born Chillers. The album was released on 2 February 2018 and was the band's first release through Pool House Records. In March 2018, it was announced that bassist, vocalist and founding member Craig Selak would be departing from the band following two remaining festival shows.[24] His replacement was Nick Williams, who the band had met years prior from touring with Williams' band Foxtrot.[25] Selak would go on to form LOSER, alongside former Apart From This frontman Tim Maxwell and former Smith Street Band drummer Chris Cowburn.[26]

The band continued to tour in support of Natural Born Chillers throughout 2018, releasing music videos for "Dreamkillers"[27] and "Trip Report."[28] In January 2019, the band announced that longtime friend Graham Leach – AKA DJ Snes Mega – would be joining the band on a permanent basis.[29] The band's first release as a quintet was a single, "Waiting for Dave", which was released on 11 January 2019.[30]

The band announced their indefinite hiatus in March 2020.

Band members
Final line-up
  • Anty Horgan – lead vocals, synthesizer (2009–2020)
  • David "Bowie" Beaumont – drums (2009–2020)
  • Julien "King Jules" Rozenbergs – guitar, vocals (2012–2020)
  • Nick Williams – bass, vocals (2018–2020)
  • Graham "DJ Snes Mega" Leach – turntables, backing vocals (2019–2020; occasional live shows 2014-2018)
Former members
  • Steve Lavery – guitar, vocals (2009-2012)
  • Christos Salaoras – guitar, vocals (2012)
  • Craig Selak – bass, vocals (2009-2018)

Timeline

Discography
Studio albums
  • Party Party Party! (2011)
  • Rainbows in Space (2013)
  • Wisdom Machine (2016)
  • Natural Born Chillers (2018)
EPs
  • Better Off Dread (2013)
  • Heavy Disco (2014)
Demo albums
  • Madonna (as Madonna) (2010)
Singles
  • "Highrider" (2013)
  • "Anywhere You Wanna Go" (2013)
  • "Knights Forever" (2013)
  • "Heavy Disco" (2014)
  • "Party Machine" (2015)
  • "Legalise (But Don't Tax)" (2016)
  • "Detroit Rock Ciggies" (2016)
  • "Corruption" (2017)
  • "Get High Like an Angel" (2017)
  • "Dreamkillers" (2018)
  • "Trip Report" (2018)
  • "Waiting for Dave" (2019)
  • "Green Mitsubishis" (2019)
gollark: Let us all resolve to call 10 "zeroteen".
gollark: C++ with words!
gollark: Esolang idea: A thing like Unary, but where the unary encoding is replaced with an English number.
gollark: What about Mars? Everyone knows it's a star.
gollark: The stars are unaligned.

References
  1. "The Bennies - triple j unearthed". triple j Unearthed. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  2. "LIVE REVIEW: THE BENNIES @ THE TRIFFID". AAA Backstage. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  3. Murphy, James. "The Bennies @ Adelaide Uni Bar Review". Scenestr.com.au. Eyeball Media. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  4. Young, David. "The Bennies - Beat Magazine". Beat Magazine. Furst Media. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  5. "Madonna (The Bennies) - Madonna". Bandcamp. Jackknife Music. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  6. "The Bennies - Party! Party! Party!". Discogs. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  7. "Kimbo - triple j Unearthed". triple j Unearthed. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  8. "The Gun Runners - triple j Unearthed". triple j Unearthed. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  9. "Jacknife Records To Release THE BENNIES "Better Off Dread"". Rest Assured Zine. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  10. "The Bennies Sign To Poison City". theMusic.com.au. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  11. "THE BENNIES ANNOUNCE HEAVY DISCO EP". Poison City Records. Tumblr. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  12. Tyeson, Cameron. "The Bennies Covered TISM For Like A Version, And It Was Genius". Pedestrian.TV. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  13. "The Bennies - Heavy Disco (live on triple j)". YouTube.com. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  14. "The Bennies cover TISM for Like A Version". YouTube.com. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  15. "The Bennies feat. Damian Cowell - (He'll Never Be An) Ol' Man River (Live TISM cover)". YouTube.com. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  16. "365 Lemmys featuring Henry Wagons and The Bennies". Bandcamp. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  17. Moskovitch, Greg. "Listen: The Bennies Drop Raucous New Single 'Party Machine'". Tone Deaf. Seventh Street Media. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  18. "1-100 List | Hottest 100 2015 - triple j". triple j. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  19. "THE BENNIES! Wisdom Machine album - Out March 25th!". Poison City Records. Tumblr. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  20. "EXCLUSIVE: The Bennies - Legalise (But Don't Tax)". theMusic.com.au. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  21. "The Bennies Release "Detroit Rock Ciggies" Music Video, Announce Tour Dates". New Noise Magazine. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  22. Williams, Tom. "Lindsay McDougall & Wil Wagner Star In The Bennies' Wild New Video For 'Corruption'". Music Feeds. Evolve Media. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  23. "THE BENNIES 'Get High Like An Angel' single tour". AMNplify. Australian Music Network. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  24. "All-round Legend Craig Selak Announces Departure From The Bennies". Oztix. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  25. Winters, Brian. "Interview: The Bennies". The Pier. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  26. McGahey, Joey. "LOSER // Not Just Another Aussie Supergroup". Hysteria Magazine. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  27. Likoski, Steve. "The Bennies release 'Dreamkillers', a song directed at all the people that try and tell you not to chase your dreams". Eat This Music. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  28. "The Bennies release new video 'Trip Report', tour starts this week". The Rockpit. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  29. "The Bennies Announce Australian Summer Tour & New Member". theMusic.com.au. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
  30. Webber, Harry. "The Bennies Drop New Single And Video 'Waiting For Dave'". Life Without Andy. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
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