REPOST: Mondo Rock - Aliens (Mini LP) 1987

(Australian 1977–1990, 2007-present)
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Mondo Rock formed in February 1977, the band’s first single ‘The Fugitive Kind’ making Top 30 nationally and their debut album Primal Park making Top 40. After line-up changes in 1980 Wilson was back within three months with a new band, a new record deal and brand a new sound. Standing alongside him were guitarist Eric McCusker, a songwriter of skill and focus, James Black on keyboards, Paul Christie on bass and J.J. Hackett on drums - the definitive Mondo Rock formation. The band rapidly became one of the most popular in Australia; a powerful draw card on the national touring circuit.

At the heart of Mondo Rock's chemistry were the exceptional songwriting talents of both vocalist Ross Wilson and guitarist Eric McCusker who brought to the group diverse, but complementary ideas, along with James Black's inventive & compelling keyboard lines and Paul Christies rock solid bass.

Ross Wilson has given us ‘Eagle Rock’, ‘Come Back Again’, ‘Living In The Land Of Oz’, ‘A Touch of Paradise’, ‘Cool World’ and ‘Bed Of Nails’, providing a strong creative contrast to the more precise, pop-based McCusker, who focussed on personal relationships with ‘State Of The Heart’, ‘No One Comes Close’ and ‘Come Said The Boy’.

Eric's ‘State Of The Heart’ and Ross's ‘Cool World’ were immediate Top 10 hits, while the ‘Chemistry’ album shot into the Top 3. Two more hits were forthcoming from this landmark album; the title track and ‘Summer Of '81’. ‘Nuovo Mondo’ was another Top 10 album in mid 1982, yielding three singles ‘No Time’, ‘The Queen and Me’ and ‘In Another Love’.

Their fourth album ‘The Modern Bop’ went Top 5 spawning the enduring McCusker-penned ‘Come Said The Boy’ (a national #2 smash) and the Wilson-Black co-write ‘Baby Wants To Rock’. By 1984 Mondo Rock were at the forefront of Australian music on equal footing with the likes of Cold Chisel, INXS, Australian Crawl, Angels and Divinyls. So much so that the 1985 ‘best of’ ‘Up To The Moment’ went straight into the Top 10.

’Boom Baby Boom’ was a hit album in 1986 & the single ‘Primitive Love Rites’ achieved the prominence the band had become accustomed to. After the 1988 Aliens EP, Ross recorded a successful solo album, ‘Dark Side Of The Man’, before reuniting with McCusker in 1990 for ‘Why Fight It’, the final Mondo Rock album, recorded with American producer Waddy Wachtel.
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Ross Wilson's most recent solo venture is his brilliant 'I Come In Peace' which was released in July, 2010. To have a listen to the title track, just pop over to his Website and slect the MUSIC link.

Alongside Wilson and McCusker, the latest lineup of Mondo Rock features the celebrated Mondo alumni: Paul Christie (who enjoyed a #1 national hit with ‘He's Gonna Step On You Again’ as leader of the Party Boys), original keyboardist James Black, now also known as the maestro extraordinaire leader of the RocKwiz Orchestra and drummer Kerry Jacobson, a chart topper in his own right as a founding member of Dragon. All members are at the top of their game & eager to demonstrate just what a kick-ass outfit this is.

Mondo Rock recently released a 30 year commemorative edition of Chemistry in 2011. All touring and release info for Mondo Rock can be found at their website


This post consists of freshly ripped FLACs taken from my vinyl Mini LP. I have also included full album artwork, label scans and select photos of the band.

I really like this 5 track offering from Mondo Rock - the opening track kicks off with a rockin' / popin' original "A Woman Like You" collaboratively written by the three song writers in the band - McCusker, Hackett and Wilson. Next is an anthem type track (typical Wilson style) entitled 'Aliens', where the chorus spells out the word - A. L. I .E. N. - Very catchy indeed.
The flip side of this Mini LP starts with a Stones cover "I'm Free" which the Rolling Stones performed in the mid-60's. Mondo's version is better in my opinion. Next is the better known track "Primitive Love Rites" which was released as a single in November, 1986, however the version on this Mini LP is a different mix to the single (commonly referred to as the L.A Rhythm Mix), and is therefore worth grabbing if you are a hardened Mondo Rock fan.
The final track on this powerful Mini LP is "Working My Way Back" which features some nice Sax overtones by Ross, who also joins Wilson and McCusker in the song writing credits.
Overall, a great release by the Mondo's but its shortness leaves you wanting more.

        NEW IMPROVED RIP !

Track Listing
A1. A Woman Like You
A2. Aliens (Walk Among Us)
B1. I'm Free
B2. Primitive Love Rites (L.A. Rhythm Mix)
B3. Working My Way Back

Band Members:
Ross Wilson – Vocals
Eric McCusker – Guitar
James Gillard – Bass
Andrew Ross - Sax, Keyboards
John James Hackett – Drums
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Mondo Rock Link (133Mb)