Various Artists - Flowers From The Dustbin

Looking back over Sydney fanzines from the '80s there was a hell of a lot of punk bands in the harbour city. A hell of a lot of bands who really didn't get around to documenting themselves. If it weren't for Bruce Griffiths' three Aberrant compilations even more of those bands would just be a faded memory. The first Aberrant compilation, and the first release by the Aberrant label. Hand-stamped numbered edition of 750. The cover is a large black and white 'poster' in the vein of releases on the CRASS label, featuring lyrics, band bios and over 160 photos. The run started with Flowers From The Dustbin in November 1983, its title inspired by a line in God Save The Queen. Setting out to capture some of the bands who had been playing around that year it was successful, but as Griffiths later noted "a month after release just two bands remained and one musician was dead." While The Kelpies, Positive Hatred and World War XXIV would have more stuff released by Aberrant, and Box Of Fish went on to put records out on Method, this was it for Velocette, Queen Anne's Revenge (who became CHAOS) and What?!! (who only ever played one gig anyway!). The foldout poster sleeve for this was a real labour of love, with over 160 band photos, posters, lyrics and band histories.

Flowers From The Dustbin bridges the gap between first-wave Australian proto-punk and the aggressive underground explosion of the early 1980s. Spearheaded by Aberrant Records founder Bruce Griffiths, this limited-edition release intentionally avoided the commercial mainstream to archive a gritty, highly localized scene. The sleeve artwork and title (a cheeky nod to a famous line from the Sex Pistols' "God Save The Queen") reinforce its position as a proudly defiant, street-level record capturing a distinct pocket of Sydney youth subculture.

Musically, the compilation functions as an chaotic, highly energetic showcase featuring seven distinct Sydney bands contributing tracks that swirl with melodic garage hooks, raw aggression, and avant-garde noise. The album is most famous for serving as the launching pad for iconic cult bands like World War XXIV, Box of Fish, and The Kelpies. Today, original vinyl pressings are considered a holy grail for collectors of global independent music, encapsulating a fleeting window where cheap production values and political friction spawned an incredibly unique musical movement.

Re-released by French label Ripost in a standard LP cover with different front cover artwork.

 

As a sonic snapshot of an era on the absolute edge of creative transition, Flowers From The Dustbin succeeds wildly where standard regional compilations often stumble. Instead of feeling like a random collection of mismatched leftovers, the track selection captures a remarkably unified atmosphere of tension, sweat, and community. It documents Sydney's bands as they began to reject the bluesier structures of traditional Australian pub-rock in favour of a much leaner, faster, and distinctly more aggressive musical framework.

The standout highlights of the compilation belong to World War XXIV, whose contributions were famously praised by contemporary zines like Maximum Rocknroll for their raunchy, heart-pumping vocals and infectious, sing-along "skunk" punk anthems. Their high-speed energy is balanced by the moody, guitar-driven post-punk stylings of Box of Fish and the driving, razor-sharp melodic hooks of The Kelpies. This continuous shifting between primal, rapid-fire hardcore and textured post-punk keeps the listener on edge and ensures the LP never suffers from stylistic monotony.

From a production standpoint, the record is an absolute triumph of low-budget, DIY engineering. Recorded entirely in makeshift local settings, the songs proudly feature clipping microphones, tape hiss, and completely unpolished drum takes. Rather than diminishing the quality of the album, these primitive sonic imperfections act as its greatest strength—delivering an authentic, time-traveling audio portal directly into the crowded, beer-soaked, and chaotic inner-city Sydney venues of 1983.

Ultimately, Flowers From The Dustbin is an essential, masterful artifact of global punk archaeology. It serves as definitive proof that the spirit of '77 did not die out, but instead mutated into something far heavier, stranger, and entirely localized within the Southern Hemisphere. For anyone wanting to trace the precise evolutionary roots of Australia’s celebrated alternative and noise-rock heritage, tracking down a copy of this brilliant Aberrant Records release is an absolute necessity.

Ripped to MP3

1. The Kelpies – "Television"

2. Positive Hatred – "In Tune With Living"

3. Queen Anne's Revenge – "Piracy"

4. World War XXIV – "Heart Attack"

5. Vellocette – "Woe"

6. Box Of Fish – "The Good, The Bad, The Ugly"

7. What?!! – "Toys Out Of Control"

8. Queen Anne's Revenge – "25 Hour Hoods"

9. Positive Hatred – "No One You Can Trust"

10. World War XXIV – "5 To 9"

11. What?!! – "Campbell's Song"

12. The Kelpies – "My Wall"

13. Box Of Fish – "Our Father"

14. Queen Anne's Revenge – "Cathode Ray Gun"

15. What?!! – "20 T-Bones"

16. Vellocette – "Black Cloud"

17. Positive Hatred – "Think About Tomorrow"

18. The Kelpies – "Truro Murders"