Still power hungry with VIRGIN SOLDIERS

Rob Boundy, drummer of Melbourne hard rock outfit flicks back his long golden mane and lets out a ban-shee-like scream. Holding the first issue of Juke for 1990 he has just discovered that his band's debut album has hit number one on the Metal charts. "It's only been out for a week," he exclaims Watching The World, although recorded over a year ago has finally made it to vinyl and it seems as if it didn't take the public that long to find out. It must be a great way to start the decade.
Suddenly Boundy sobers up. "It's a normal way to start the decade", he whispers. "This is when the rebirth happens. It must be the rebirth of something. It's the re-birth of an era that will see the appreciation of original compositions".
With this statement Boundy grabs his bag and we head out for the inner-city drum store that paid host to our rendezvous. Making our way to his car all questions about Watching The World are left unanswered and Boundy assures me that a surprise is waiting for me when we start driving. Weaving through peak hour traffic at breakneck speed, Boundy turns his tape deck on and smiles knowingly. "Listen to this,' he speaks.

All a sudden my eardrums explode too the sound of something incredible. Guitar’s wail and drums come to life. Vocals shriek:

"We're the last of the pack
We're the last of the brave
We're the last to survive
We're the last for freedom
Breaking down all the barriers
We're power hungry"

It's unmistakably the Virgin Soldiers but not a track off the debut album. "That's right," echoes Boundy. "It's one of our newer tracks called 'Power Hungry'" But what about the album? "The album's a preview of what's to come," he asserts, flooring the accelerator. Boundy is a man possessed. Having arrived at his house in one piece it took him two minutes to put on a Zappa video while cranking up the volume on his hi-fi so we could listen to Watching The World, check on his flatmate Greg’s cat, Stanley, and make coffee.
The lounge room starts to shake as the album is displayed in all its glory. Boundy is on the floor imitating guitar licks and executing perfect drum rolls in mid-air. The album is sheer one hour brilliance. "Only the strong will survive," emits Boundy almost irrelevantly. "The Soldiers have seen a lot of good bands come and go. The start of the 90's is sad because it has seen the end of what could have been a very creative 80's. The demon industry saw to that. You must be tough to survive. The Soldiers have been told that they provide incentive for other bands to start and keep hanging in there when things get tough."
This is an admirable trait about the band. They aren't rock stars, and they have had their share of hard times. On many occasions the yellow brick road has turned black, and Santa Claus has turned out to be just a fat arsehole in a red suit, but they persevered and have come up with one of the best local debuts ever.
"We're proud of the album" continues Boundy "because it's Australian. Audiences out there who enjoy music from the 60's to the 70's thought it had died, but it was just experiencing a rebirth. Music goes in 20-year cycles and it's being born again... We don't listen to what's viable but what's true. We can release an album of cliche rock but there's 150 million bands out there who have already done that."
Already established as one of the land's hottest live acts, the Virgin Soldiers will discover a whole new level of appreciation with the release of 'Watching The World'. And they deserve all they get because they've shot from the heart since day one.
As Boundy clutches the album cover of his first record I can't help noticing a newspaper headline that is stuck on his pinboard. It reads "We're not in this for a popularity contest". Says it all¹
- NIK GARIFALAKIS.

Bibliography
Garifalakis, Nik. "Still Power Hungry with the Virgin Soldiers." Juke (Interview), 1990.

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¹Nik Garifalakis, "Still power hungry with the VIRGIN SOLDIERS," Juke (Interview), 1990.