A brief history of the bastards
Beginnings…
The Bastards was formed in Hong Kong in 1990 and has gone through numerous permutations since. The idea for the band arose out of a conversation between drummer Nigel Pike and guitarist Mark Harrison at a party in Hong Kong in the late 1980s. Phil Wright came in on bass and Nigel brought in long-time friend Dan James on vocals. The Bastards was born out of the shadows of Nigel’s earlier band ‘the Five Os’…
The name?
Rhodie Loden, then the bar manager of seminal rock venue ‘The Wanch’, asked co-owner of Roland Hastings what the name of the band that evening was to be. Roland said he didn’t know and asked Rhodie to make one up. So, seeing Nigel drinking with other band members of the band she said to herself, it’s just Nigel Pike and those bastards… and that was that. So much for the Al Zymer band.
And then?
The Hong Kong music scene was hot at that time with numerous great bands and an audience to boot. Says Dan James, “We started out as a covers band — doing everything from punk to AC/DC. We played long live sets — four, five hours. We loved playing live and the audiences were great.After a while we just wanted to get our own music out there.”
Album ‘Welcome to the Royal’
First album ‘Welcome to the Royal’ was recorded in Hong Kong at Q-Sound with engineer Rob Porter on the desk.Says Dave Green, ‘We were a powerful live act by this time and the album reflects that feel — lots of music, lots of attitude.’
Album ‘Scheming in the Backroom’
The second album ‘Scheming in the Backroom’ was recorded to capture the vibe of a line-up that was coming to an end with the departure of Tony Greenwood and Jim Shorthose. Mark Harrison: “The music has more of a studio sound but still reflects who we are and the legacy of a strong live band.”
Next?
After two albums and hundreds of live gigs, the guys are working on new material. Dan James “We’ve got a whole store of new material — expect more from The Bastards”.