- The Scavengers
-
The Scavengers 
Background information Origin New Zealand Genres Punk, Rock Years active 1977-80 Associated acts Dead Can Dance, The Marching Girls Past members Ken Cooke
Simon Monroe
Brendan Perry
Mike Simons
Marlon HartThe Scavengers were a New Zealand Punk Rock band, formed in 1977. In 1979 they moved to Melbourne, Australia, and became The Marching Girls in 1980.
Contents
History
Formed at Auckland Technical Institute by Graphic Design students, Ken Cooke, Simon Monroe, Mike Simons and Marlon Hart as "The 1B Darlings" in 1976, the band was heavily influenced by British R&B, Glam Rock and '60s US Garage Rock. In 1977 they renamed themselves The Scavengers, gave themselves punk stage names (Cooke as Johnny Volume, Monroe as Des Truction, Simons as Mike Lezbian and Hart as Mal Icious), and their style mutated in the direction of the US Punk rock and pre-Punk Rock acts.
Through much of 1977 they were, with The Suburban Reptiles, the only Punk bands in Auckland. In June 1977, with The Suburban Reptiles and The Masochists, they played New Zealand's first major punk gig at Auckland University. During this time their repertoire was mostly covers but by early 1978 they had written a set of original tunes. In late 1977 bassist Hart left to be replaced by Brendan Perry, who performed under the stage name "Ronnie Recent". He later reappeared in The Stimulators. In March 1978 they began a residency at new Auckland Punk Club, Zwines. Soon after Simons left (inspiring their signature song "Mysterex"), and Perry moved to vocals.
Two Scavengers tracks appear on the Ripper compilation AK79 and a posthumous album was released in 2003.
In 1979 The Scavengers moved to Melbourne, Australia and in 1980 renamed themselves The Marching Girls.
Legacy
Perry later formed Dead Can Dance and Monroe (aka Des Hefner) played briefly for The Birthday Party during the band's final tour of Australia and New Zealand. Monroe went on to play in a series of Melbourne-based acts including The Slaughtermen and Maurice Frawley. Both Cooke and Monroe are still working musicians in Melbourne.
The Scavengers were hugely influential in Auckland in the late seventies, inspiring a whole generation of young bands and their importance goes far beyond their few releases. They reformed in 2004 for a one off show in Auckland without Perry, and again at the AK79 reunion in 2008.
Discography
Date of Release Title Label Charted Country Catalog Number 2003 The Scavengers Zerox - New Zealand DZEROX 01 References
Eggleton, D. (2003). Ready to Fly. Nelson, NZ: Craig Potton. ISBN 1-877333-06-9
Dix, John (1988). Stranded in Paradise: New Zealand Rock'n'roll 1955-88. Palmerston North, NZ: Paradise Publications. ISBN 0-14-301953-8 ISBN 0-473-00638-3External links
Categories:- New Zealand musical groups
- New Zealand punk rock groups
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
