The Bedridden
Encyclopedia
The Bedridden was an Australia
n cult
band that performed and recorded, somewhat sporadically, between 1989 and 2002. The Bedridden reunited for a series of concerts in 2005 to promote a live album that was recorded in 1998. The band were noted for regular break-ups and constant line-up changes. Song-writing and lead-vocal duties were shared amongst the members of the band, creating a somewhat eclectic style and an evolving sound due to the departure of key members. They created a strong fan base around the Australian pub rock
scene, especially in Adelaide
which was considered to be the home of the band.
and quickly moved to Adelaide
where the band remained until Baterz's death in 2002. The original members were Baterz (guitar
), David M. Lewis (guitar), Spaemen (bass guitar
), Kirsty Stegwazi (guitar) and Lillybub (cello
).
The group recorded their first album It's All Fun And Games Until Someone Loses An Eye later in 1989 and it was eventually released through the Adelaide-based label Round Records in 1990. The album introduced some of the groups most well-remembered songs, including Bateman's Bay, Stephen McKenzie, and the Sesame Street
tune Capital I.
With the release of their first album, the band toured the Australian cities of Canberra
, Sydney
, and Melbourne
, developing a stronger fan base. Their second album, Big Scary Cow, was released in 1992, again through Round Records. This second collection featured Bedridden favourites including 2/11/1968, Midget, and their second Sesame Street
cover, Born To Add.
Between 1993 and 1995, The Bedridden had their longest falling out. Some of the members pursued solo careers, most notably Baterz and Kirsty Stegwazi, and the band members were spread over several states within Australia
. This was the longest period of inactivity from the group during Baterz's life.
By 1996 founding band member Baterz had developed an important name for himself as a solo artist. He invested in equipment to set up his own recording studio
and label called Army of Nerds and, with recording gear in place, brought back various group members to record the third album as a band, I Told You it Wouldn't Work in 1998. The album had a much cleaner and defined sound, with stronger arrangements than seen before. The tracks included Agent of Satan, Darren Williams, and their most-recognised song The Drowning of the Daddo Brothers
.
In various incarnations, which featured Baterz, Benjow, Dave Wiffler, Dave Lewis, Lillybub, and others, The Bedridden performed sporadic shows in Adelaide
and Melbourne
, perhaps every few months until late 2001. March 2002 saw the release of a new Bedridden single, Inland Sea, which was to herald a fourth album.
The fourth album never materialised, due to the untimely death of Baterz at age 33. Baterz was a haemophiliac and, as a young teen, was diagnosed with HIV
, contracted through a contaminated blood transfusion. In 2002, his condition worsened and lesions were discovered in his brain, affecting his co-ordination and forcing him to give up performing. Baterz died in July 2002. Triple J
, the national youth radio network, broadcast a tribute to Baterz and his music on their Artery program. As Baterz was one of the main driving forces behind The Bedridden, the band stopped performing and the unfinished recordings were shelved.
In 2005, a new incarnation of The Bedridden performed a series of shows in Adelaide
, Ballarat, and Melbourne
to launch a live recording of the band - The Anthem Of The Crown & Anchor, a collection of live recordings from performances in July 1998 in Ballarat and Melbourne
.
This incarnation performed a series of shows to promote the release of the The Anthem Of The Crown & Anchor, a live album recorded by the 1998 incarnation of The Bedridden. Lillybub did not perform at the Melbourne
show.
Aside from performances, this incarnation released the Inland Sea, a 5-track EP.
Track 4 from Inland Sea, a live recording of The Drowning Of The Daddo Brothers was performed by this incarnation.
This incarnation released the album I Told You It Wouldn't Work. The live album The Anthem Of The Crown & Anchor, released in 2005, was recorded during this time.
This incarnation of The Bedridden released the Big Scary Cow album.
This incarnation recorded and released the first Bedridden album, It's All Fun And Games Until Someone Loses An Eye, in 1990.
According to the liner notes of The Inland Sea, Lillybub is "always occasionally around". He doesn't feature on the recordings for the years after 1992 but was playing shows and may be considered to be a member of all the incarnations.
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...
n cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
band that performed and recorded, somewhat sporadically, between 1989 and 2002. The Bedridden reunited for a series of concerts in 2005 to promote a live album that was recorded in 1998. The band were noted for regular break-ups and constant line-up changes. Song-writing and lead-vocal duties were shared amongst the members of the band, creating a somewhat eclectic style and an evolving sound due to the departure of key members. They created a strong fan base around the Australian pub rock
Pub rock (Australia)
Pub rock is a style of Australian rock and roll popular throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and still influencing contemporary Australian music today....
scene, especially in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
which was considered to be the home of the band.
History
The group formed in 1989 in CanberraCanberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
and quickly moved to Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
where the band remained until Baterz's death in 2002. The original members were Baterz (guitar
Guitar
The 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...
), David M. Lewis (guitar), Spaemen (bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
), Kirsty Stegwazi (guitar) and Lillybub (cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
).
The group recorded their first album It's All Fun And Games Until Someone Loses An Eye later in 1989 and it was eventually released through the Adelaide-based label Round Records in 1990. The album introduced some of the groups most well-remembered songs, including Bateman's Bay, Stephen McKenzie, and the Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
tune Capital I.
With the release of their first album, the band toured the Australian cities of Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, and 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...
, developing a stronger fan base. Their second album, Big Scary Cow, was released in 1992, again through Round Records. This second collection featured Bedridden favourites including 2/11/1968, Midget, and their second Sesame Street
Sesame Street
Sesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
cover, Born To Add.
Between 1993 and 1995, The Bedridden had their longest falling out. Some of the members pursued solo careers, most notably Baterz and Kirsty Stegwazi, and the band members were spread over several states within 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...
. This was the longest period of inactivity from the group during Baterz's life.
By 1996 founding band member Baterz had developed an important name for himself as a solo artist. He invested in equipment to set up his own recording studio
Recording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
and label called Army of Nerds and, with recording gear in place, brought back various group members to record the third album as a band, I Told You it Wouldn't Work in 1998. The album had a much cleaner and defined sound, with stronger arrangements than seen before. The tracks included Agent of Satan, Darren Williams, and their most-recognised song The Drowning of the Daddo Brothers
Andrew Daddo
Andrew Daddo is an Australian actor, author and television personality.Andrew has been a long time presenter on the Seven Network in Australia and has been involved in hosting many Seven specials...
.
In various incarnations, which featured Baterz, Benjow, Dave Wiffler, Dave Lewis, Lillybub, and others, The Bedridden performed sporadic shows in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
and 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...
, perhaps every few months until late 2001. March 2002 saw the release of a new Bedridden single, Inland Sea, which was to herald a fourth album.
The fourth album never materialised, due to the untimely death of Baterz at age 33. Baterz was a haemophiliac and, as a young teen, was diagnosed with HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
, contracted through a contaminated blood transfusion. In 2002, his condition worsened and lesions were discovered in his brain, affecting his co-ordination and forcing him to give up performing. Baterz died in July 2002. Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...
, the national youth radio network, broadcast a tribute to Baterz and his music on their Artery program. As Baterz was one of the main driving forces behind The Bedridden, the band stopped performing and the unfinished recordings were shelved.
In 2005, a new incarnation of The Bedridden performed a series of shows in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, Ballarat, and 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...
to launch a live recording of the band - The Anthem Of The Crown & Anchor, a collection of live recordings from performances in July 1998 in Ballarat and 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...
.
The 2005 incarnation
- David M. Lewis
- Kirsty Stegwazi
- Razz Mussen
- Alex Miller
- Lillybub
This incarnation performed a series of shows to promote the release of the The Anthem Of The Crown & Anchor, a live album recorded by the 1998 incarnation of The Bedridden. Lillybub did not perform at the 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...
show.
The 2002 incarnation
- Baterz
- David M. Lewis
- Razz Mussen
- Alex Miller
Aside from performances, this incarnation released the Inland Sea, a 5-track EP.
The 2000 incarnation
- Baterz
- David M. Lewis
- David Wiffler
- Razz Mussen
Track 4 from Inland Sea, a live recording of The Drowning Of The Daddo Brothers was performed by this incarnation.
The 1998 incarnation
- Baterz
- Benjow
- David M. Lewis
- David Wiffler
This incarnation released the album I Told You It Wouldn't Work. The live album The Anthem Of The Crown & Anchor, released in 2005, was recorded during this time.
The 1992 incarnation
- Baterz
- Benjow
- David M. Lewis
- Spaemen
- Kirsty Stegwazi (known as "Ebo")
- Lillybub
This incarnation of The Bedridden released the Big Scary Cow album.
The 1989 incarnation
- Baterz
- David M. Lewis
- Spaemen
- Kirsty Stegwazi (known as "Ebo")
- Lillybub
This incarnation recorded and released the first Bedridden album, It's All Fun And Games Until Someone Loses An Eye, in 1990.
Other members
Although he doesn't feature on any of the recordings, Andy Wiffler performed with the band for a period during the 1990s and is considered a member of The Bedridden.According to the liner notes of The Inland Sea, Lillybub is "always occasionally around". He doesn't feature on the recordings for the years after 1992 but was playing shows and may be considered to be a member of all the incarnations.
Releases
- It's All Fun And Games Until Someone Loses An Eye album (1990, Round Records)
- Big Scary Cow album (1992, Round Records)
- I Told You It Wouldn't Work album (1998, Army of Nerds)
- Inland Sea EP (2002, Army of Nerds)
- The Anthem Of The Crown & Anchor Live compilation (2005, Army of Nerds)