REPOST: INXS - Inxsive 1980-82 (1982)

(Australian 1979 - 2012)
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INXS (pronounced "in excess", In-XS) were an Australian rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales.
Mainstays were Garry Gary Beers on bass guitar, Andrew Farriss on guitar and keyboards, Jon Farriss on drums, Tim Farriss on lead guitar and Kirk Pengilly on guitar and saxophone.
For 20 years, INXS were fronted by Michael Hutchence on lead vocals, whose "sultry good looks" and magnetic stage presence made him the focal point of the band. Initially known for their New Wave/Ska/Pop style, they later developed a harder pub rock style, including funk and dance elements. [extract from wikipedia]

The INXS story didn't start in 1979, when the band finally agreed on a name and began working in earnest towards their first record deal, but rather eight years earlier. 1971 was the year Kirk Pengilly and his best friend at school, Tim Farriss, formed their first band.

The band was called 'Guiness', laughs Kirk, 'and we basically had it for most of our high school years and about two years after we left. It was a band that meant a lot to me because I wrote all the songs and I was the singer as well. We actually auditioned Jon Farriss as drummer at one point but he was only nine years old so we kicked him out.'
'Guiness' eventually split up - but within a few months Tim Farriss contacted Kirk with an interesting idea: amalgamate the talents of Tim and Kirk with the best elements of his younger brother Andrew's band - Michael Hutchence, Carry Gary Beers and Andrew himself. The only factor needed to complete the line-up was a drummer, and although Jon was still very young - 16 by then - he was more successful at his second audition. In March 1977, the six-piece band that would become INXS was born.

'I absolutely believe that you create your own reality', says Kirk, 'but when look back on the way we came together it's just amazing. You know, Michael had been living in Hong Kong and LA for years and just happened to land in the same school class as Andrew. I'd moved from Melbourne, the Farriss brothers had moved from Perth. ....and we all just wound up in the same place like it was meant to happen.'

Michael Hutchence

In 1979, returning to Sydney, the group played their first inner city show as INXS, making their live debut on September, at the Oceanview Hotel, Toukley.

In May 1980, INXS released their debut single, "Simple Simon" on the independent record label 'Deluxe'. It was backed by "We Are The Vegetables". The single was only released in their native Australia and the song did not appear on their debut album 'INXS', except on the Australian version. The single was also released in France.
In October of the same year, their debut selftitled album 'INXS' was released in Australia, yielding the hit single, "Just Keep Walking". The group then toured the East Coast extensively (Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane), often playing seven nights a week.

In 1981, their Cross-Country touring of the homeland began in earnest. Fear And Loathing Tour, The Campus Tour, Stay Young Tour, Tour with No Name - some 300 shows altogether.  In May of same year, "The Loved One" was released as a single in Australia, a cover of the No.1 hit by The Loved Ones, a popular Melbourne band from the 60's. (INXS recorded the same song again in 1987 for their Kick Album)

In October, 1981 they released their second album 'Underneath The Colours'. A commercial and critical success, the album reached the top #15 in the Australian charts and included the anthemic single "Stay Young".  In January 1982, INXS toured New Zealand for the first time. Upon return to Australia, the band recorded "The One Thing", produced by Mark Opitz.
In April, Andrew, Michael and Kirk embarked on a pilgrimage to England and America for some R&R. Recording of their third album began in June, again with Mark Opitz producing. INXS finally left Deluxe records, and signed to WEA records in July. "The One Thing" was released as a single, and got into the Top 15 in the Australian charts. The album 'Shabooh Shoobah' was released in Australia in October of 1981 and hit the top five, becoming INXS's third gold album DownUnder.

Due to INXS's popularity in New Zealand, and a contractual commitment to deliver a third album for Deluxe records, a compilation album with tracks taken from their first two albums plus some unavailable tracks was released in New Zealand (and eventually in Australia) in response to the band's new found success [extracts from INXS: The Official Inside Story Of A Band On Tour, 1992  p8, 74]

The album was a 14-track vinyl LP called 'Inxsive' (1980-82), and included six tracks previously unavailable on  album - namely: "Prehistoria", "We Are The Vegetables", "The Loved One", "The Unloved One", "Simple Simon", and "Lacovocal".
This post consists of a new FLAC rip of the album, taken from a CD release and includes full album artwork. (my vinyl has a few annoying jumps on several tracks).
The track "Lacovocal" sounds like it was recorded on a faulty tape unit but is in fact a bizarre instrumental remix of "Stay Young". This album is a great snap shot of where INXS came from before they made it big in both Australia and the States.

Track Listing
01. Learn To Smile
02. Wishy Washy
03. Stay Young
04. Prehistoria
05. We Are The Vegetables
06. Underneath The Colours
07. The Loved One
08. The Unloved One
09. Simple Simon
10. Fairweather Ahead
11. In Vain
12. Big Go Go
13. Lacavocal
14. Just Keep Walking

Band Members:
Michael Hutchence (Vocals)
Kirk Pengilly (Guitars, sax and Vocals)
Garry Gary Beers (Bass)
Jon Farriss (Drums, Percussion)
Andrew Farriss (Keyboards)
Tim Farriss (Guitar)

Inxsive FLAC Link (334Mb)