When you have as big a celebrity fan as Stephen King, you must be doing something right! The three-piece from Finley, New South Wales, Australia, often jump genres from disco-pop (Stevie, Calypso) to mutant dance (Arse Huggin' Pants) - in the course of a single album, no less. And yet, they still manage to rock like mofos (Shazam!, Outta My Head, and - of course - their cover of Black Betty).
The three band members Mark Maher or "Kram" (drums and vocals), Damien Whitty or "Whitt" on guitar and Janet English on bass/vocals come from the small town Finley in southern New South Wales where they jammed together in their youth.
The band moved to Melbourne, Australia where Kram was studying at the Victorian College of the Arts School of Music. The band played its first gig at a loungeroom for a friend's party. The band soon became part of Melbourne's punk scene playing gigs at venues like the Tote Hotel in Collingwood, Victoria. They released their first single Circle K on Au-Go-Go Records with an EP titled P'tang Yang Kipper Bang Uh! following in 1992. The band's first album Shashavaglava was released in 1992. 'Shashavaglava' means 'dickhead' in Croatian. This album featured the songs Old Man Sam and a cover of English comedians The Goodies' song Run.
Spiderbait signed with Polydor Records and released their first album with the new label, their second album overall, named The Unfinished Spanish Galleon of Finley Lake in 1995. The album reached #14 on the Australian charts with singles Monty and Jesus receiving extensive airplay on Triple J. The album title refers to an unfinished project by the Finley Rotary Club, which became a venue for teenage drinking in their home town.
Their third album Ivy and the Big Apples was released in 1996, reached #3 and sold over 180,000 copies in Australia. Their first single Buy Me a Pony received extensive airplay on Triple J resulting in listeners voting it as their favourite song of the year. The second single Calypso also achieved commercial airplay, and reached #13 in the Australian singles charts in 1997.
In 1998, Janet English and her then boyfriend Quan Yeomans of Regurgitator recorded an album as Happyland. Around the same time, Kram and Richie Lewis of Tumbleweed released their own side-project the Hot Rollers - so named as both member's mothers were hairdressers. The Hot Rollers only album (self-titled) was released through Polydor.
Spiderbait returned together in 1999 with the album Grand Slam which also debuted at #10 on the Australian album charts.
Despite good airplay for the Grand Slam singles Shazam! and Stevie, their 2001 album The Flight of Wally Funk was a commercial flop, only selling 20,000 copies. The album was recorded in Whitt's living room.
Spiderbait recorded the Tonight Alright album in Los Angeles with producer Sylvia Massy who had worked with acts such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, R.E.M., Tool, System of a Down and Skunk Anansie. The first single Black Betty was a cover version of the old Leadbelly song which became a hit in 1977 when covered by Ram Jam. The single reached #1 after 10 weeks in the singles chart in May 2004 (after debuting at #12), and stayed there for three weeks, becoming their biggest selling single ever. The film clip featured a hot rod similar to the car on the ZZ Top Eliminator. The song also made the soundtrack to the Electronic Arts video game Need for Speed: Underground 2. Tonight Alright was released on 28 March 2004, and debuted and peaked at #14. The second single Fucken Awesome debuted in the top 30 on June 28 2004. Interscope Records signed the band in 2004 to distribute Tonight Alright in the US and UK.
At the 2004 ARIA awards, Kram performed as part of the supergroup The Wrights, featuring members of many other Australian rock bands.
In September 2005 they released a Greatest Hits collection to reveal their back catalogue to younger fans who were caught up by Black Betty. This debuted at #6 and received a Gold Accreditation.
The band went on hiatus March 2005 after bassist Janet English gave birth to her daughter and planned a cycling tour across Europe. More recently Kram had announced plans of a solo album to be released sometime in 2006. On 18 November 2006 the band performed at the Queensland Council of Unions organised Rock the Vote! concert in Brisbane after a nine month hiatus from touring.
The band recorded a cover of "Ghost Riders in the Sky" as the main theme for the film Ghost Rider (2007), starring Nicolas Cage. A small excerpt is played during the film, and then in its entirety as the first song when the credits roll. The band's song "Glokenpop" is featured in the 2009 game LittleBigPlanet for the PlayStation Portable. Kram released his debut solo album, Mix Tape, in March 2009. In 2010, Magnapop's album Chase Park featured a cover of Spiderbait's song "Jesus" from The Unfinished Spanish Galleon of Finley Lake. In December of that year, they supported Guns N' Roses at a Sydney gig. The band recorded a cover of "Rock-a-Bye Your Bear" for the compilation ReWiggled - A Tribute to the Wiggles.[41]
2013–present: End of hiatus and self-titled album
In an interview with Triple J in February 2013, Kram announced that Spiderbait were in the studio, working on their first album in seven years, saying "We're doing a new record and we're about halfway through. We're just writing demos at the moment and it's coming along well. We're back in our Motorhead and Metallica metal phase—I'm all double kick at the moment."
The self-titled album, Spiderbait, was released on 15 November 2013. The band played a gig on the same day, for the opening night of the Jam Gallery, a new music venue in Bondi Junction.
On 11 March 2022, the band released "My Car's a A UFO", their first new song in nine years. The song was initially recorded for their fifth album, The Flight of Wally Funk and is the lead single from the band's third compilation album, 'Sounds in the Key of J, scheduled for released on 8 April 2022.
Studio Discography
Shashavaglava (1993)
The Unfinished Spanish Galleon of Finley Lake (1995)
Ivy and the Big Apples (1996)
Grand Slam (1999)
The Flight of Wally Funk (2001)
Tonight Alright (2004)
Spiderbait (2013)
Footy
Spiderbait Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
At two o'clock the siren sounds
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Umpy throws the ball in play
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
(Something)
I like footy, I like footy
I love footy, we love footy
I like footy, I love footy
I like footy, kick that footy
I like footy, I like footy
Ooh, yeah, footy, we like footy
I love my footy, he likes footy
I like footy, I hate footy
Big sticks standing tall and white
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Make, oh, what a pretty sight
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
The smell of blood is in the air
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
(Rival footy team)
Boys are scared
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
I like footy, I like footy
I like footy, we love footy
I love footy, he loves footy
I like footy, kick that footy
I like footy, I like footy
Ooh, yeah, footy, he likes footy
I love footy, I like footy
I like footy, I hate footy
(Someone)
Takes a specca mark
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Pay
(Something)
Pay
(Something)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Siren sounds we've won the day
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Grab a chick, let's hit the hay
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
I like footy, I like footy
I like footy, we love footy
I like footy, I like footy
Ooh, yeah, footy, kick that footy
I like footy, I like footy
Kick me the footy, he loves footy
I like footy, I like footy
Love that footy, chuck a specca
The lyrics to Spiderbait's "Footy" are about the excitement and passion that surrounds a game of Australian rules football in the small town of Finley. The song captures the various elements of the game, such as the opening siren, the umpire throwing the ball in play, the tall white goal posts, and the smell of blood in the air. The lyrics also depict the rivalry between the two teams and the tension that builds as the game progresses, with the boys on both sides being nervous and scared. However, the song ends on a high note as the team wins and the boys celebrate with girls.
Overall, the song celebrates the love of the game of footy, with its fast pace, adrenaline, and sense of community.
Line by Line Meaning
Footy day in Finley town
Today is the day of the football match in Finley town
At two o'clock the siren sounds
The match starts at 2 pm as the siren signifies
Umpy throws the ball in play
The umpire throws the ball to begin the match
(Something)
Unsure what this refers to
I like footy, I like footy
The person singing likes football a lot
I love footy, we love footy
The person singing and his friends enjoy football very much
I like footy, I love footy
The person singing reiterates his love for football
I like footy, kick that footy
The person singing tells someone to kick the ball as he likes football so much
Big sticks standing tall and white
Refers to the goalposts that are tall and white
Make, oh, what a pretty sight
It's a beautiful sight to see the ball pass through the goalposts when someone scores
The smell of blood is in the air
The aggressive nature of the game is palpable
(Rival footy team)
Unsure which team is being referred to
Boys are scared
The opposing team is scared of the singer's team
(Someone)
Unsure who is being referred to here
Takes a specca mark
A spectacular mark is taken by someone
Pay
Referee pays a free kick, most likely for a foul committed by the opposing team
(Something)
Unsure what this refers to
Pay
Referee pays another free kick for another foul committed by the opposing team
Siren sounds we've won the day
The match ends with the siren and the singer's team wins the game
Grab a chick, let's hit the hay
The singer wants to celebrate with his friends, wants to go out, and have fun
Kick me the footy, he loves footy
The singer wants someone to kick him the ball as they both love football
I like footy, I like footy
The person singing repeats that he loves football
Love that footy, chuck a specca
The singer loves football and wants someone to take a spectacular mark
Contributed by Grace E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Spiderbait
FOOTY! We are playing at Melbourne Reclink Community Cup 25 June 2017 @ Victoria Park Abbotsford. Tickets HERE: http://bit.ly/2pIXfYk
MrRaymo88
I love Janets voice and the dude on the guitar is awsome.
Nicholas Price
Damien whitty
darkhawk1979
Should be played at every Grand Final, replacing the national anthem!
HAL 9000
If the Demons don't win tonight, I HATE FOODY
QueenConsternation
I LOVE FOOTY!
Koen Maeyaert
I like Spiderbait!
lea Land
I LOVE FOOTY
Nick Nailher
Would make a great song for a music video using old footage
masterawesomeish
What a Rad song.