After a long break from making music, Simon Juliff (The Roys) returns with a new LP, his first  solo LP titled Stars. And while he may not have been in the studio or on stage for a long while, Simon has spent the last few years dabbling away at writing tunes at his own leisure. Stars is a ripper LP and the first released on the revamped legendary Melbourne label Dog Meat Records. Produced by Joel Sibersher, Stars features some great powerpop and ballads, it so good it makes me hope it doesn’t take Simon another 16 years to put out another record. Munster: Is Stars your first release since the Roys, in 2007? Simon: it is. I was dormant for that time, I was just writing songs and occasionally thinking about doing something else, forming a new band or getting the old band back together. And not getting around to it, having kids and all that. Munster: so for all that time you were writing for your own enjoyment? Simon: yeah and I played songs my brother, and my friends, sometimes...

Combining elements of 60s garage, funk, soul and old time rock n roll showmanship, the Schizophonics are one of the hardest working bands you’ll see. And I mean that on stage. Singer/guitarist Pat Beers comes across like a mix between Jerry Lew Lewis and an eight year old kid on too much red cordial, the man never stops, while some singers take 5 to get a breath Pat keeps the party going with some amazing onstage moves that would score high in any Olympic gymnastics competition. While the bass often switches, Pat and Lety Beers are the core and soul of the group. The two of them, along with their beautiful dog Beanie, spoke to me via the zoom machine on the eve of their return to Oz Munster:   you guys are about to come down for your third Down Under tour, the first tour I saw you guys in a packed out room at the Tote, but the second tour was for many people there last gig before the pandemic. Lety: that was crazy. We started in New Zealand, then we went to Australia. Then we w...