Antiskeptic
Encyclopedia
Antiskeptic is a rock
band based in Melbourne
, Australia
.
The band enjoyed nearly 10 years of successful touring nationally, two full length albums, three EPs and two DVD releases. Antiskeptic were known for their energetic live shows and powerful performances as much as the uplifting and encouraging lyrical content of their songs.
In 2003, Sean Daly made the decision to leave the band and pursue other interests. He was replaced by Shane O'Keeffe. However, the then 18-year-old decided that the pressures of moving from Queensland to Melbourne were too great, and he also made the decision to leave. This left the band without a bass player for the already planned "Aurora Tour". Luckily, their friend Corey Sleap was able to fill in for them at this point in time, while they continued to search for a full-time replacement. Fortunately, at the beginning of 2004, it was announced that Sean had rejoined the band after temporarily filling in for the band in December 2003.
In September 2005, Antiskeptic played at Youth Alive
2005 in the Rod Laver Arena
, Melbourne and appeared on Rove Live on 19 September 2006 as the show's house band.
They have received generous airplay on national radio as well as several television appearances and features in street press, newspapers and magazines.
In March 2008 at Easterfest 2008, the band made a statement during their performance that the band was finishing up as of September 2008.
Their 'Goodbye Goodnight tour' was to be their last ever tour, with only one Adelaide show, one Sydney show and two Melbourne shows, the last of which was on the 20th of September 2008 to a sold out home crowd at the Hi-Fi Bar. In celebration of their career they recorded one final single entitled "I'll Follow", which was available for free download on their MySpace, and released a DVD called "Memoirs of a Common Band", which is essentially an overview of their career.
The final live performance was recorded and filmed. The concert audio was made available to the audience immediately after the performance on the bands final CD release titled 'Goodbye Goodnight - Live at the Hi-Fi’. A full-length CD/DVD of the performance with enhanced audio and features was released in 2011 through El Shaddai Records
.
In early November 2011, the band's complete reunion was announced, with the addition of new members Tavis Wardlaw and Ryan Mclerie. The band announced that former bassist Sean Daly would not be returning in the new line-up.
Antiskeptic has announced that they will be touring Australia; playing at Easterfest in Toowoomba (Queensland) in April 2012, and Victoria's Forest Edge Music Festival in March 2012.
The '60% Intentional' clip was a school project for a film production student and friend of the band. Shot over two days, one half on the streets of Box Hill in Melbourne and the other half in-studio at Box Hill TAFE. The clip was submitted to the ABC for viewing on RAGE and received several screenings which very fortunately coincided with spotplay on triple J. The band quickly gained attention from indie
labels, radio and industry professionals whilst touring on the back of this unplanned national exposure.
When Antiskeptic produced the clip for 'Called' it was to coincide with generous national airplay which the song had picked up and due to favourable attention from TRIPLE J, was included on the first TRIPLE J Hottest 100 DVD. Filmed in an underground carpark in St Kilda, Melbourne between the hours of 9pm-3am one Friday night the clip was put together on a meager budget of only $3000. It was also available on the CD single 'Four Seasons' as a CD-ROM component and on various give away/compilation CDs including Coke's M-One festival sampler.
'Four Seasons' was put together on an even smaller budget and shot in an upstairs graphic design/ photography suite in the Melbourne CBD. It featured images of Australian soldiers from the Vietnam War
about whom the song is written. This clip also received a generous amount of screen time with support from 'Fly TV' (R.I.P), a music focused youth program on Saturday mornings on ABC.
Another performance clip set in a warehouse capturing the energy and attitude of the aggressive and anthemic track. This video of the band shows Antiskeptic's second bass player Shane o'Keefe who performed in the band at the time of the single's release. His early departure left fans wondering who the person was they had seen in the video, the promotional photos and handful of gigs performed for this release. The clip received airplay on both Channel V and ABC programs during the 2 month national tour that followed its release.
Written and directed by Andrew Kitchen, this very clever and entertaining clip was shot over several days and locations in Melbourne during the summer of 2005. None of the members actually saw each other on the day of their filming because the camera follows the accidental travels of a soccer ball as it encounters the band members in different places.
DOTI is one of the four in-studio performances featured on the 'Monuments DVD'. The clip showed the band recording the song at Sing Sing Studios in Melbourne and gives an inside look at the recording and performance of the track whilst in the setting of a recording studio. Drums are in an isolation booth whilst free-roaming camera's catch the rest of the action in the main room.
The band later shot a commercial video clip for the song after the release of 'Monuments' mainly for TV, Internet and promotion. By far the most visually impressive clip produced by the band to-date, DOTI was filmed over 36 hours of straight shooting not including the digital post production and special effects. Initial production began in the morning at various locations across Brisbane for the story/narrative element which features a young woman fleeing from dark apparitions across a range of landscapes. After dusk the crew settled in for a long night time shoot of the bands performance at an unused correctional facility in Wacol, Brisbane.
The clip was aired on RAGE, Channel V and received generous attention through the bands MySpace
and YouTube
sites.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band based in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
History
Formed in 1999, the band was originally only a side project for Andrew Kitchen and Sean Daly who were at the time performing in another band 'Dispersia' which later broke up and gave way to Antiskeptic. Initially named 'TSP' an acronym for 'the side project', Andrew Kitchen came up with the bands name whilst treating an infected ear piercing. Andrew misread the label on a bottle of antiseptic and suggested it to the other members.The band enjoyed nearly 10 years of successful touring nationally, two full length albums, three EPs and two DVD releases. Antiskeptic were known for their energetic live shows and powerful performances as much as the uplifting and encouraging lyrical content of their songs.
In 2003, Sean Daly made the decision to leave the band and pursue other interests. He was replaced by Shane O'Keeffe. However, the then 18-year-old decided that the pressures of moving from Queensland to Melbourne were too great, and he also made the decision to leave. This left the band without a bass player for the already planned "Aurora Tour". Luckily, their friend Corey Sleap was able to fill in for them at this point in time, while they continued to search for a full-time replacement. Fortunately, at the beginning of 2004, it was announced that Sean had rejoined the band after temporarily filling in for the band in December 2003.
In September 2005, Antiskeptic played at Youth Alive
Youth Alive
Youth Alive is a not-for-profit multi-denominational Christian organisation dedicated to reaching the youth of Australia with the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is run on a state-based structure with offices in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, Western Australia and South Australia...
2005 in the Rod Laver Arena
Rod Laver Arena
Rod Laver Arena is a tennis stadium that is part of the Melbourne Park complex located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, and has been the main venue for the Australian Open in tennis since 1988, replacing the ageing Kooyong Stadium...
, Melbourne and appeared on Rove Live on 19 September 2006 as the show's house band.
They have received generous airplay on national radio as well as several television appearances and features in street press, newspapers and magazines.
In March 2008 at Easterfest 2008, the band made a statement during their performance that the band was finishing up as of September 2008.
Their 'Goodbye Goodnight tour' was to be their last ever tour, with only one Adelaide show, one Sydney show and two Melbourne shows, the last of which was on the 20th of September 2008 to a sold out home crowd at the Hi-Fi Bar. In celebration of their career they recorded one final single entitled "I'll Follow", which was available for free download on their MySpace, and released a DVD called "Memoirs of a Common Band", which is essentially an overview of their career.
The final live performance was recorded and filmed. The concert audio was made available to the audience immediately after the performance on the bands final CD release titled 'Goodbye Goodnight - Live at the Hi-Fi’. A full-length CD/DVD of the performance with enhanced audio and features was released in 2011 through El Shaddai Records
El Shaddai Records
El Shaddai Records is an independent record label founded in late 2006 and based in Melbourne, Australia. Shortly after the label began they announced that they had signed post-hardcore band House Vs. Hurricane and rock/hardcore band Forgiven Rival, publishing numerous releases for both groups...
.
Reunion
In March 2011 it was announced via the bands Facebook page that its members would reunite for a special one off performance at Melbourne's iconic punk/metal venue 'The Arthouse' to commemorate its closing. Tickets for the show sold out in minutes and the band was joined by fellow melbourne rock trio Horsell Common. The band played a brand new song titled ‘The Kids Aren’t Scared' and was also the first time people could purchase the full length CD/DVD 'Goodbye Goodnight - Live at the Hi-Fi 2008'.In early November 2011, the band's complete reunion was announced, with the addition of new members Tavis Wardlaw and Ryan Mclerie. The band announced that former bassist Sean Daly would not be returning in the new line-up.
Antiskeptic has announced that they will be touring Australia; playing at Easterfest in Toowoomba (Queensland) in April 2012, and Victoria's Forest Edge Music Festival in March 2012.
Current
- Andrew Ridley Kitchen – Vocals and GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
(1999–present) - Nick Coppin – DrumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
(1999–present) - Ryan Mclerie – Guitar and vocals (2011–present)
- Tavis Wardlaw – Bass GuitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
and vocals (2011–present)
Former
- Sean Daly – Bass Guitar and vocals (1999–2003, 2003–2011)
- Shane O'Keeffe – Bass guitar (2003)
- Corey Sleap – Bass guitar (2003)
Albums and EPs
- Antiskeptic EP – August 2000
- Change My Ways EP (Toupee / 88 Records) – December 2001
- Memoirs of a Common Man (Toupee / 88 Records) – June 2002
- Aurora (Toupee Records) – August 2003
- Live EP – December 2005
- Monuments (Communiqué) – August 2006
- CD-only pre-release – April 2006
- Goodbye Goodnight - Live at the Hi-Fi (Hi-Fi Live/Salt Studios)– September 2008
DVDs
- Monuments (Communique) – August 2006
- Memoirs of a Common Band (Pezwa Films) – September 2008
- Goodbye Goodnight - Live at the Hi-Fi 2008 (Pezwa Films / El Shaddai RecordsEl Shaddai RecordsEl Shaddai Records is an independent record label founded in late 2006 and based in Melbourne, Australia. Shortly after the label began they announced that they had signed post-hardcore band House Vs. Hurricane and rock/hardcore band Forgiven Rival, publishing numerous releases for both groups...
) – April 2011
Memoirs of a Common Man singles
- "Called" (Toupee / 88 Records) – July 2002
- "Four Seasons" (Toupee / 88 Records) – October 2002
Aurora singles
- "Nothing to Say" (Toupee Records) – July 2003
- "Clear to Pass (Online Single)" (Toupee Records) – September 2003
- "Beautiful in White" (Toupee Records) – March 2004
- "More Than Kind" – October 2004
Antiskeptic EP
- 60% Intentional
The '60% Intentional' clip was a school project for a film production student and friend of the band. Shot over two days, one half on the streets of Box Hill in Melbourne and the other half in-studio at Box Hill TAFE. The clip was submitted to the ABC for viewing on RAGE and received several screenings which very fortunately coincided with spotplay on triple J. The band quickly gained attention from indie
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
labels, radio and industry professionals whilst touring on the back of this unplanned national exposure.
Memoirs of a Common Man
- "Called"
- "Four Seasons"
When Antiskeptic produced the clip for 'Called' it was to coincide with generous national airplay which the song had picked up and due to favourable attention from TRIPLE J, was included on the first TRIPLE J Hottest 100 DVD. Filmed in an underground carpark in St Kilda, Melbourne between the hours of 9pm-3am one Friday night the clip was put together on a meager budget of only $3000. It was also available on the CD single 'Four Seasons' as a CD-ROM component and on various give away/compilation CDs including Coke's M-One festival sampler.
'Four Seasons' was put together on an even smaller budget and shot in an upstairs graphic design/ photography suite in the Melbourne CBD. It featured images of Australian soldiers from the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
about whom the song is written. This clip also received a generous amount of screen time with support from 'Fly TV' (R.I.P), a music focused youth program on Saturday mornings on ABC.
Aurora
- "Nothing to Say"
Another performance clip set in a warehouse capturing the energy and attitude of the aggressive and anthemic track. This video of the band shows Antiskeptic's second bass player Shane o'Keefe who performed in the band at the time of the single's release. His early departure left fans wondering who the person was they had seen in the video, the promotional photos and handful of gigs performed for this release. The clip received airplay on both Channel V and ABC programs during the 2 month national tour that followed its release.
- "Beautiful in White"
Written and directed by Andrew Kitchen, this very clever and entertaining clip was shot over several days and locations in Melbourne during the summer of 2005. None of the members actually saw each other on the day of their filming because the camera follows the accidental travels of a soccer ball as it encounters the band members in different places.
Monuments EP
- "Dancing on the Inside"
DOTI is one of the four in-studio performances featured on the 'Monuments DVD'. The clip showed the band recording the song at Sing Sing Studios in Melbourne and gives an inside look at the recording and performance of the track whilst in the setting of a recording studio. Drums are in an isolation booth whilst free-roaming camera's catch the rest of the action in the main room.
The band later shot a commercial video clip for the song after the release of 'Monuments' mainly for TV, Internet and promotion. By far the most visually impressive clip produced by the band to-date, DOTI was filmed over 36 hours of straight shooting not including the digital post production and special effects. Initial production began in the morning at various locations across Brisbane for the story/narrative element which features a young woman fleeing from dark apparitions across a range of landscapes. After dusk the crew settled in for a long night time shoot of the bands performance at an unused correctional facility in Wacol, Brisbane.
The clip was aired on RAGE, Channel V and received generous attention through the bands MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
and YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
sites.