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)
Outta My Head
Spiderbait Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I should see the morning light
I should know what's wrong or right
I should be at home tonight
But instead I'm goin' outta my head
I should not be out tonight
I should be in bed by nine
I should be at home tonight
But instead I'm goin' outta my head
But instead I'm goin' outta my head
But I feel fine when I'm with you
Yeah I feel fine when I'm with you
I should not be out tonight
I should see the morning light
I should know what's wrong or right
I should be at home tonight
I should not be out tonight
I should be in bed by nine
I should try to stay inside
I should be at home tonight
But instead I'm goin' outta my head
But instead I'm goin' outta my head
But I feel fine when I'm with
Yeah I feel fine when I'm with
Yeah I feel fine when I'm with you
The lyrics of Spiderbait's song "Outta My Head" seem to chronicle a night out where the singer knows that they should not be out, but they cannot resist the lure of the person they are with. Despite the nagging feeling that they are doing something they should not be doing, and the fact that they feel they should be home, they are enjoying themselves and having a good time.
The repetition of the lyrics "I should not be out tonight, I should see the morning light, I should know what's wrong or right, I should be at home tonight" reflects the internal struggle of the singer, who is torn between what they know they should do, and what they want to do. In contrast, the feelings of enjoyment and contentment are reflected in the repetition of "But I feel fine when I'm with you".
Overall, the song seems to be about the tension between doing what is expected of us and what we really want to do. Despite our best efforts, sometimes we cannot resist temptation, and although there may be consequences, the pleasure of the moment outweighs the potential risks.
Line by Line Meaning
I should not be out tonight
I know it's not the best decision to leave my house today
I should see the morning light
I should be sleeping instead of staying out this late
I should know what's wrong or right
I should have a better understanding of what is right or wrong in this situation
I should be at home tonight
I know the best place for me to be right now is at home
But instead I'm goin' outta my head
But I can't help but feel like I'm losing my mind a little bit being out here
I should not be out tonight
I know it's not the best decision to leave my house today
I should be in bed by nine
I should be getting some rest right now
I should try to stay inside
I should resist the urge to go outside
I should be at home tonight
I know the best place for me to be right now is at home
But instead I'm goin' outta my head
But I can't help but feel like I'm losing my mind a little bit being out here
But I feel fine when I'm with you
But being with you makes me forget all my worries and feel happy
Yeah I feel fine when I'm with you
Being with you is the only thing that makes me feel okay right now
But I feel fine when I'm with
Being with you makes me forget all my worries and feel happy
Yeah I feel fine when I'm with
Being with you is the only thing that makes me feel okay right now
Yeah I feel fine when I'm with you
Being with you is the only thing that makes me feel okay right now
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: DAMIAN WHITTY, JANET ENGLISH, MARK MAHER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@MrRaymo88
These three are amazing!😙
@tonieleigh
First Spiderbait video I ever saw. Fell in love with them immediately.
@joh2
Spiderbait cover all the bases!!! - from the out of it nature of the guys to the poppiness of Janet's vox...
@HAZARDOUS88
I love this song!!
@selie7
all members in this group can sing....
@royceeveland1943
love this version/vid best.
@JC19seventy6
For sure, they are a great band, that's why i couldn't understand that person below saying they only have one good song, and are you from Australia?
@ExinerisLP
LOVE SPIDERBAIT
@tayaroki
Awsomly awsome song :) video ain't bad
@captDymov
That riff is so motorhead