"THE BALLISTICS" CIRCA 1984 . . . . ON TOUR, UNDER THE INFLUENCE, UNDER PRESSURE AND FALLING TO PIECES . . . . I'VE NEVER SEEN THIS SHOT BEFORE BUT LOOKING AT IT NOW THE END OF PHASE II WAS AT HAND . . . . REMINDED ME OF THE LOOK ON CURTIS' FACE IN THE FAMOUS CORBIJN SHOT, YOU CAN SEE IT IN OUR FACES . . . . TWO YEARS OF PLAYING SIX AND SEVEN NIGHTS A WEEK AND ALL THE SHIT THAT WENT WITH LIVIN THE LIFE . . . . WE WERE FUCKED.

Everyone thought we were making a million, huge shows, working with the best bands in the land and from overseas, killer P.A and lighting rig, truck, road crew, Tarago for the band, drink riders, hotels, free everything and heaps of it . . . . truth is we couldn't see the forest for the trees and it was all careering outta control, all the cash we made was going to all those around us, agents, records, managers, crew and we were at each others throats and in each others pockets, or too fucked up to care, it was a psychobilly psychosis of our own doing . . . . Rat, with black catepillars looking at the ground at left, my best mate at the time and co-founder, left soon after this shot for cleaner, greener pastures, Evan, our guitarist with the perfect quiff and on the right in the photo, who joined us as a tetotaller, left as a drug fucked pisswreck, he ultimately would walk off a highrise in '97 . . . . only Cam the drummer, standing on the rail, and myself survived to go out and recruit new players to pursue the ever more clouded vision . . . . by the turn of the decade I was completely screwed, jaundice, viral hepatitis and total dysfunction of the liver . . . . but that's a story for another time.

FROM LEFT STANDING ON THE PLINTH - DALE 'THE RAT' STEPHENS, CAM 'GRINNY' GRINSTEAD, YOURS AMBIVALENTLY, EVAN 'T-BIRD' MANNING.