Both are true bands, in it for the long haul and committed to creativity.
The Wreckery and Halfway – or Halfway and The Wreckery – separated by decades and kilometers though they are, share a fiercely independent and uncompromising spirit and a real dedication to their music.
The Wreckery and Halfway tour
Sat 17 Feb 2024 – The Great Club, Marrickville, Sydney – Tickets
Sat 24 Feb 2024 – Northcote Social Club, Melbourne – Tickets
Sat 2 Mar 2024 – The Old Museum, Brisbane – Tickets
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The Wreckery, from Melbourne, were a major presence in the mid-’80s. Scions of the same St Kilda scene that bred Nick Cave, Rowland S Howard and The Birthday Party – indeed Wreckery frontman Hugo Race was an original member of Nick Cave’s Bad Seeds – The Wreckery played dark atmospheric rock with a film-noir swagger and authentic renegade attitude, carving a loyal and true-hearted following. Their early recordings showcased the band’s creative fusion of swamp blues, noir-jazz and deadpan rock but tensions saw the band implode as they were reaching their peak with their 1988 album Laying Down Law. 35 years on, a brand-new album Fake is Forever, released just a few weeks ago, reveals the fire still remains, along with the band’s classic line-up.
Brisbane’s Halfway formed a dozen or so years after the Wreckery originally split, in a different city and climate (sunlit as opposed to overcast), yet they share the same DIY spirit and true musical passion. For nearly a quarter of a century now they have developed a unique style – based around the songwriting of John Busby – of Australian storytelling, combining indie rock, folk and country music. They have released eight studio albums (the latest being 2022’s On the Ghostline, with Hands of Lightning), all of which have received widespread critical acclaim. The band have received nominations for all major Australian music awards, including ARIAs, APRAs, AIR Awards, and Q Music Awards.
The Australian music family tree is vast, but a particular branch joins Halfway to The Wreckery via John Willsteed, the Halfway mainstay who joined The Go-Betweens in the late ’80s, around the time that The Wreckery were calling it quits. The Australian alternative scene was much smaller in those days and of course members of The Wreckery and The Go-Betweens crossed paths; indeed, Willsteed’s live first show with The Go-Betweens was on a bill with The Wreckery and The Bad Seeds on Feb 18, 1988, 36 years almost to the day from the first date of this short tour. The Wreckery’s Nick Barker strengthened the ties after first hearing Halfway early on.
“My connection with Halfway goes back to 2005 when we did a show together in Brisbane. I fell in love with the band and thrust my enthusiasm on them, wanted or not,” says Barker. “I became good friends with John Busby. I have done a whole bunch of stuff with Halfway since then. We’ve played some shows together and I have guested with them on vocals a number of times, most notably at Apollo Bay Music Festival. I also did a version of one of their songs on my Black Water Blues album from 2010.”
Two bands together who paint vastly different landscapes through their music but hold the same values, The Wreckery and Halfway – or Halfway and The Wreckery – join forces in February across three states and three Saturday nights. Who you come to see makes no difference – both bands deliver on a post-punk promise, and these three special shows will compel and inspire.
Tickets here.
