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Bodyjar.
 "I
did a tour of the Neighbours set a couple of weeks ago. I met
Lil, and I saw Harold and Skye doing a scene..." enthuses Bodyjar's
guitarist Tom Read, an avid Neighbours fan, before realising
that I was actually asking what the band had been up to over
the past six months. "Oh. We've been writing. We haven't stopped
writing, actually."
They are genuinely excited about getting back on the road supporting The Offspring. "Originally Unwritten Law were supposed to do it, but they pulled out," Read explains, "so I guess our relationship with them had a positive affect on the outcome [Bodyjar are signed to Dexter's label Nitro in the US]. We're very excited, we haven't played a show in bloody ages."
Unfortunately, drummer Ross Hetherington decided to call it a day before the tour.
"It wasn't a secret that he'd been talking about it a bit, but he was really good about it. We're still good mates so it's all cool. I think the touring has a lot to do with it: he's got a decent job now, and while we were on our break he settled down a bit. He's also a bit older so I guess he's realised that we're not going to become billionaires after the next album."
Read is the newest member of the band, so the news must have hit him hard. "I can't deny that the thought of Bodyjar being over didn't go through my mind, but we're not going to give it up. We've been through some shit the past couple of years, it defeats the purpose if we stop now. I'm in for the long haul."
Bodyjar have already been through the drama of a line up change, with co-founder Ben Petterson leaving in 1998. "[Cam Baines and Grant 'Gordon' Relf]'ve been through it before, so they were probably a little more relaxed than I was," Read shrugs.
"Ross's timing was perfect. You could see that he was really relieved, and it was good for everyone to resolve that. It's gotta be fun otherwise there's no point in doing it." The drumseat for this tour will be filled by Frenzal Rhomb's Gordy. "We're pretty excited about that 'cos he's such a champion. We're going to try and steal him from his band."
It's hard to stay on track with Read, his banter keeps me laughing and interested, but somehow I manage to steer the conversation in a different direction. "Tell everyone I hate Mercury 4. They're fucked. I want to bash them," he laughs. "And I've been listening to Burn The City. Haven't heard of them, have you? That's my new band. We're rock'n'roll. It's me, Granto [Relf], Matt Collins from Bloodduster and Adrian Burke from Tiltmeter. We'll no doubt test drive our band in Adelaide early on in the piece, so it's time for all these bands we've given shows to to repay the favour," he laughs. "There, now you have two scoops in one article."
The other scoop? Darcy is allegedly making a return to 'Neighbours.' Well, I did say he was a fan...
Lauren Conolly
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Bodyjar and Something Corporate support The Offspring at the Jubilee Pavillion on Sat 26 June.
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