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THE SAINTS

It's better to be a Saint than a sap. That's the Saints' motto. They live it. To be a Saint means living on the outside. To be a Saint means no compromise.

The Saints live in one of the most desperate areas of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Bounded by condemned buildings and railway yards, their neighbors are winos and derelicts. Their music reflects their surroundings. "It's machine music driving like a Mac out of control through the wastelands of hell," wrote Andrew McMillan in Ram, the local rock magazine.

The Saints were formed in late 1973 by Chris Bailey (vocals), Ed Keupper (guitar), Kym Brandshaw (bass), and Ivor Hay (drums). He played piano, but since no one else would join, due to either the music or lack of money, he changed to bass. It was felt it might be easier to fill just one vacancy. A drummer was eventually found, but he left halfway through the first date.

Disillusioned with this introduction to the glittering world of pop, they nevertheless decided to have another go. Their second drummer lasted almost as many gigs. Noticing newspaper ads for bass players Ivor was persuaded to change to drums. The new bass player left too. Finally they met present bassist Kym Bradshaw, the first fourth member to like their music.

"We used to do the most obscure wild stuff we could find," says Ed Keupper. "It's the same today, really. We do some nice stuff 'cos there is some beauty in the world, but basically we're just letting out a feeling and music is the best way of doing it. Rock 'n' roll is meant to be revolutionary, aggression is always there--we're just opening up. We're not a punk-rock group nor are we into glorifying violence, but we are realists."

The band on their own initiative recorded and pressed 500 copies of their first single "I'm Stranded" and forwarded samples to the major English music journals. The single received outstanding reviews, consequently putting the single in great demand. It was eventually voted single of the year by the English rock paper Sounds.

The Saints don't need hyping. The results speak for themselves, so does their first album, I'm Stranded. And remember, it's better to be a Saint than a sap.

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