INXS (album)

Last updated

INXS
Inxs.jpg
Studio album by
INXS
Released13 October 1980
Recorded1979–1980
StudioTrafalgar (Annandale, New South Wales)
Genre
Length33:23
Label Deluxe, Mercury
Producer Duncan McGuire, INXS
INXS chronology
INXS
(1980)		 Underneath the Colours
(1981)
Singles from INXS
  1. "Just Keep Walking"
    Released: October 1980

INXS is the debut studio album by Australian rock band INXS, released on 13 October 1980, by Deluxe Records. The album showcases a new wave and ska style the band soon abandoned in favor of post-punk, and later, pop rock. [1] INXS recorded the album in midnight to dawn sessions during 1979 to 1980 after performing, on average, two gigs a day at local pubs around Sydney. All tracks are credited to band members, who co-produced the album with Duncan McGuire (ex-Ayers Rock).

Contents

The album was exclusive to Australia and New Zealand for four years, with an international release not coming until 1984. INXS peaked at No. 27 on the Kent Music Report albums chart, and spawned the single, "Just Keep Walking" (September 1980), which became their first top 40 hit in the country.

Background

The Farriss Brothers, an Australian progressive rock band, formed in 1977 with a line-up of Garry Gary Beers (bass guitar and double bass); brothers Andrew (keyboards and guitar), Jon (drums, keyboards) and Tim Farriss (lead guitar); Michael Hutchence (lead vocals); and Kirk Pengilly (guitar, saxophone and backing vocals). [2]

The band changed its name to INXS, a phonetic play on "in excess", [3] at the request of Gary Morris, manager of pub rock band Midnight Oil, and transitioned to a ska and punk influenced sound. The band performed its first song with the name on 1 September 1979 at the Ocean Beach Hotel in Umina, [4] then signed a five-album record deal with a Sydney independent label, Deluxe Records, run by Michael Browning, a former manager of AC/DC. [5] [6] [7]

INXS released their first single, "Simple Simon"/"We Are the Vegetables", in Australia and France in May 1980. [8] [9] [10] The single had its debut TV performance on Simon Townsend's Wonder World . [11]

Recording

The self-titled debut album was recorded at Trafalgar Studios in Annandale, Sydney. It was co-produced by the band and Duncan McGuire (ex-Ayers Rock), with all songs attributed to the entire band, at the insistence of Murphy. [12] [13] Deluxe gave them a budget of $10,000 to record the album, so to keep within the budget they had to record from midnight to dawn, usually after doing one or more performances earlier that night. [13] Later Hutchence recalled working on INXS: [14]

I'm not a great fan of the first album. It's naïve and kinda cute, almost. It's these young guys struggling for a sound. All I can hear is what was going to happen later and it's probably an interesting album because of that. "Just Keep Walking" was the first time we thought we'd written a song. And that became an anthem around town. It's funny, I remember kids in pubs saying it and hearing it on the radio the first time. We'd never heard that before.

Tim Farriss remarked that the lyric "Shove it, brother / Just keep walking" from the song "sort of summed up our attitude. We took on an 'angry young man' status because we were working our guts out and still starving." [15]

Musical style

XTC, an English rock band compared to INXS XTC bandphoto.jpg
XTC, an English rock band compared to INXS

INXS is primarily a new wave, [2] [16] ska, [2] [16] and pop album, [2] that shifts the focus among keyboards, sax and guitar during its 33 minute and 23 second run time. [17] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic described the album as a "variation on droning new wave synth pop," with only traces of R&B and dance that defined the band's later work. [18]

Alicia Kennedy of Stereogum summarized the ten songs as "ska-infected", with "Doctor", "Jumping" and "Body Language" best demonstrating the sound, while opener "On A Bus" leans towards pop rock and "Newsreel Babies" is closer to new wave. [1] Christopher Thelen of The Daily Vault compared the album to the early works of XTC, another band who combined new wave and Jamaican ska beats, but is less heavy on the latter. [19]

The band's second studio album, Underneath the Colors (1981), while also influenced by post-punk, ska and new wave, [20] is the beginning of their transition to rock music, [21] with a sound that leaned more toward punk-funk, [22] and is seen as setting the band up for mainstream success. [1] This success came on the band's third studio album and first internationally, Shabooh Shoobah (1982), which ditched ska entirely in favor of post-punk. [1]

Release

INXS was released on 13 October 1980, by Deluxe Records. The album, exclusive to Australia and New Zealand, was an instant success in both countries, peaking in the Top 30 of the Kent Music Report in the former, [23] [24] [25] and was certified gold (selling over 35,000 units) by the ARIA, but it took a number of years to do so. Its first and only single, "Just Keep Walking", was released the same month. The single, exclusive to Australia and the United Kingdom, proved to be their first Top 40 single in the former, [23] [25] but was unsuccessful in the latter, a theme for the band in the early 1980s. [26]

These early records demonstrated their new wave/ska/pop style, and were followed by near constant touring with almost 300 shows during 1981 as the band developed their status as a live act. [27] [28] In 1981, they signed Gary Grant as their tour manager, who then became co-manager a year later. [29] Between touring commitments, the band released their third single in May 1981, "The Loved One", which was a cover of a 1966 song by Australian group The Loved Ones. The song was recorded at Studios 301 in Sydney; [29] it was produced by Richard Clapton [30] and peaked in the Top 20. [27] [31] [32]

After the success of the band's third and fourth albums, Shabooh Shoobah (1982) and The Swing (1984) respectively, their self-titled debut album and Underneath the Colors were released outside Australia and New Zealand in 1984, by Atco Records. The four albums had local chart success, but also appeared on international charts, with INXS peaking at No. 164 on the Billboard 200. This allowed the band to find worldwide success on their fifth album, Listen Like Thieves (1985), peaking at No. 48 in the United Kingdom. While its reviews were mixed, this was a first for INXS, who had been ignored in the country. [7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [18]
(The New)Rolling Stone Album Guide Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [33]
The Daily VaultC+ [19]

AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine was not impressed by INXS "playing a competent but unremarkable variation on droning new wave synth pop," and while Hutchence "already exuded a powerful vocal charisma," the album is only worthwhile when hinting at the "R&B and dance roots that would form the basis of their biggest hits." [18]

The Daily Vault's Christopher Thelen observed "a group not quite certain of where they wanted to go musically" on the album, and contrary to AllMusic's review, feels Hutchence's performance is a mixed bag. Despite this, he feels comparisons to the band's later work, such as 1985's Listen Like Thieves and 1987's Kick , is unfair, and adds "it does show signs of promise," but loses momentum by the end, with "Doctor" being particularly bad. [19]

Trouser Press's Ira Robbins declared the album is "dull rock that sounds like a less musical Joe Jackson or a no-soul Graham Parker," as the band struggles to write music appealing to an American audience. She is also indifferent to 1981's Underneath the Colors, with its "underwhelming songs" and poorly mixed drums, but confesses the audio quality is "much better." Robbins opined 1984's The Swing is the first INXS album of "real significance." [17]

Stereogum ranked INXS in tenth place on their list "INXS Albums From Worst To Best" with Alicia Kennedy describing the album as "unbalanced" and "ska-infected" as Hutchence gets comfortable with his voice." She wrote "he's often doing a very campy, Adam Ant–type accent" but there are good moments, such as "In Vain" and "Learn To Smile" [1]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Garry Gary Beers, Andrew Farriss, Jon Farriss, Tim Farriss, Michael Hutchence & Kirk Pengilly [34]

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."On a Bus"3:49
2."Doctor"2:37
3."Just Keep Walking"2:43
4."Learn to Smile"4:55
5."Jumping"3:21
Side two
No.TitleLength
6."In Vain"4:26
7."Roller Skating"2:47
8."Body Language"2:05
9."Newsreel Babies"2:41
10."Wishy Washy"3:51
Total length:33:23

Personnel

INXS [2]

Production details

Artwork

Charts

Chart performance for INXS
Chart (1980–1981)Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [35] 27

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Kennedy, Alicia (14 July 2015). "INXS Albums From Worst To Best". Stereogum. Retrieved 21 June 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop. Allen & Unwin. ISBN   1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  3. ↑ "Levels of language & pop group names. Analysis of the popgroup name, INXS)". Lancaster University . Retrieved 9 June 2025.
  4. ↑ "INXS bio". Take 40. Archived from the original on 7 September 2008. Retrieved 17 November 2008.
  5. ↑ McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop . Allen & Unwin. ISBN   1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  6. ↑ Nimmervoll, Ed. "INXS". Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music. White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd (Ed Nimmervoll). Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  7. 1 2 St John, Ed (1998). Burn : The life and times of Michael Hutchence and INXS. Bantam Books, Sydney. ISBN   0-7338-0182-X.
  8. ↑ McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop . Allen & Unwin. ISBN   1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  9. ↑ Bozza, Anthony (2005). INXS Story to Story: The official autobiography. Bantam Books, Sydney. ISBN   0-593-05517-9.
  10. ↑ St John, Ed; INXS (1992). INXS: The Official Inside Story of a Band on the Road. Mandarin. p. 74. ISBN   1-86330-207-7.
  11. ↑ Jenkins, Jeff; Ian Meldrum (2007). Molly Meldrum presents 50 years of rock in Australia. Melbourne: Wilkinson Publishing. ISBN   978-1-921332-11-1 . Retrieved 17 November 2008.
  12. ↑ St John, Ed (1998). Burn : The life and times of Michael Hutchence and INXS. Bantam Books, Sydney. ISBN   0-7338-0182-X.
  13. 1 2 Bozza, Anthony (2005). INXS Story to Story: The official autobiography. Bantam Books, Sydney. ISBN   0-593-05517-9.
  14. ↑ St John, Ed (1998). Burn: The life and times of Michael Hutchence and INXS (doc). Bantam Books, Sydney. ISBN   0-733-80182-X.
  15. ↑ McGee, David (June 1983). "Inxs: Angry Young Men at Work". Record. 2 (8): 3, 30.
  16. 1 2 Luber, Trenton (22 February 2021). "Michael Hutchence: Gifted, Troubled, Mystified Mind". Roots Magazine. Retrieved 20 June 2024. The record's new wave, ska style found its place in the pop market in their native Australia.
  17. 1 2 Robbins, Ira. "INXS". Trouser Press . Retrieved 20 June 2025. INXS is dull rock that sounds like a less musical Joe Jackson or a no-soul Graham Parker.
  18. 1 2 3 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "INXS – INXS". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation . Retrieved 18 March 2012.
  19. 1 2 3 Thelen, Christopher (22 January 2017). "INXS: INXS". The Daily Vault. Retrieved 21 June 2025.
  20. ↑ Tran, Caz (7 February 2022). "INXS's third album really set their world-beating career in motion". Double J. Retrieved 21 June 2025.
  21. ↑ Strong, Martin (10 October 2006). "INXS". The Essential Rock Discography. Canongate Books. pp. 526–529. ISBN   1-84195-860-3.
  22. ↑ "40 Years Ago: INXS Heighten Expectations With 'Underneath the Colours'". 19 October 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  23. 1 2 McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop . Allen & Unwin. ISBN   1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  24. ↑ Holmgren, Magnus; Shaw, Julian; Meyer, Peer. "INXS". Australian Rock Database. Passagen (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 12 December 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
  25. 1 2 Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 . St Ives, Sydney: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6. NOTE: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting until ARIA created their own charts in mid-1988.
  26. ↑ "Official Charts > INXS". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  27. 1 2 McFarlane, Ian (1999). "Encyclopedia entry for 'INXS'". Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop . Allen & Unwin. ISBN   1-86448-768-2. Archived from the original on 30 September 2004. Retrieved 16 November 2008.
  28. ↑ Nimmervoll, Ed. "INXS". Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music. White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd (Ed Nimmervoll). Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
  29. 1 2 St John, Ed (1998). Burn : The life and times of Michael Hutchence and INXS. Bantam Books, Sydney. ISBN   0-7338-0182-X.
  30. ↑ Holmgren, Magnus; Shaw, Julian; Meyer, Peer. "INXS". Australian Rock Database. Passagen (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 12 December 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
  31. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 . St Ives, Sydney: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6. NOTE: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting until ARIA created their own charts in mid-1988.
  32. ↑ St John, Ed; INXS (1992). INXS: The Official Inside Story of a Band on the Road. Mandarin. p. 74. ISBN   1-86330-207-7.
  33. ↑ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. p.  406. ISBN   0-7432-0169-8.
  34. ↑ "'On a Bus' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original on 28 September 2013. Retrieved 18 March 2012. Note: To search for other titles click on Search again and enter track name.
  35. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 149. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.