The Alternative

Whatever happened to Horsehead?
Many fans have asked that question since the band disappeared in 2000, after three acclaimed albums, an EP and a dozen singles.
It was a sudden departure. There were no goodbyes, no press release and no farewell tour.
Its actually a simple story: After a show at Melbournes Armadale Hotel on May 20, 2000, Mick Vallance packed up his bass and declared hed played his final gig. After eight years, hed had enough. Horsehead, being a true band all for one and one for all decided that if one member didnt want to continue, the band was over.
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Fast-forward 12 years and singer Andy McLean and guitarist Scott Kingman got the itch to collaborate again. The five Horsehead members reunited for a rehearsal. It went well, and Andy and Scotty decided to create some new music.
Andy and Scotty had unfinished business, but they discovered a music world that was different. For a start, there was no iTunes when Horsehead rode off into the sunset. Things had changed.
What hadnt changed was Andy and Scottys knack for writing powerful, anthemic rock. Within 20 minutes of reconnecting, they had written Dont Dance. They recorded the song in one take (the take thats now the albums closing cut).
Thirteen years to the day after Horseheads final gig, Scotty launched a Pledge campaign, reconnecting with the horde of fans once dubbed Horseheadonists.
For fans, this album is some sort of closure, both a full stop and an exclamation mark. Andy and Scotty have crafted a record that respects and celebrates the legacy of a band that recorded an album at the legendary Sound City Studios in LA, played at Melbournes first Big Day Out, did showcase gigs for Madonna in the US, and toured with Metallica, Live and Alice Cooper.
As Ian McFarlane noted in The Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop, everything [was] delivered with force and conviction.
Its 15 years since Horseheads last album (1999s aptly titled Goodbye Mothership). Those 15 years have now been transformed into 50 minutes of music, hence the title: Fifteen to 50.
If theres a moment in my life everything changes, Andy sings in the opening track, let it be now.
There are many connections to the bands glorious past. Crush, Man At The Door and New Day were originally demoed for what would have been the follow-up to Goodbye Mothership. Horsehead drummer Max War plays on two tracks (One Thing Left and Better You), while guitarist Cam McKenzie provides the cello in Dont Dance.
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Elsewhere, the album features contributions from bass players Rick Grossman (Hoodoo Gurus, Divinyls), Paul Woseen (The Screaming Jets) and Kevin Hunt (Josie Jason and The Argonauts); drummers Paul Spyder Marrett (Virtue) and Mark Dragon McLeod; and violinist John Kendall.
The fire still burns. Its like a new day rising, Andy sings.
This isnt Horsehead. But its the next best thing The Alternative.
To be myself, and to be free
- Dont Dance