2. Igloo
3.
She Said
4. Girl in My Dreams
5. Casualty of Love
6.
In His Shoes
7. Our Time at Last
8. Dream Away
9.
Talk Another Language
10. Living Vampyre
11. Colour Me Gone
12.
Don't Turn Away
Bones + Flowers is the most appealing effort by Australian combo Screaming Tribesmen -- a melodic pop album that resembles a muscular Let's Active. "I've Got a Feeling" was distributed internationally and featured on MTV's 120 Minutes at the time, and the Tribesmen's appearance in the midst of the Church's breakthrough with Starfish seemed to presage an Australian Invasion that never came to pass. Screaming Tribesmen might have better reached the "alternative" audience if they hadn't looked like a heavy metal band; likewise, the band's name and album art didn't come close to matching the mood of their music.
The Tribesmen didn't last long after the commercial disappointment of Bones + Flowers, but the album remains a sturdy collection of recordings, with the catchy, jangly "Girl in My Dreams" and "Dream Away" as highlights.
AMG
The Screaming Tribesmen was a band formed in Brisbane by Mick Medew, John Hartley Murray Shepherd. They took the Australian independent scene by storm with a series of singles on Citadel Records.
Their earliest hit "Igloo" was penned by Medew and Died Pretty frontman Ron Peno.
After relocation to Sydney, and a number of line-up changes the band settled on its most successful lineup of Medew, ex-Radio Birdman The Hitmen guitarist Chris Masuak, bass player Bob Wackley drummer Warwick Fraser (ex-Feather Hoi Polloi) who replaced Michael Charles after the recording of the "Date With A Vampyre" EP.
The "Vampyre" EP reigned at the top of the Australian independent charts for over 40 weeks, while the band toured constantly in support.
The follow up "Top of the Town" EP released on the boutique Rattlesnake Records label saw a change in direction for the band as it morphed into the sound of their first full length release "Bones and Flowers".
"Ive Got A Feeling" - Rage - 1988
The band toured the US on the strength of the album and at home they enjoyed a run of Australian Alternative #1 hits as well as gaining Stateside attention with regular airplay on the US College Radio circuit. Their 1988 single "I've Got a Feeling" featured heavily on US MTV's 120 Minutes, hitting #1 on the KROQ charts in LA and #7 on Billboard's modern rock chart.
There's nothing tribal about the sound of these Aussies, and they don't scream either. Their music is full of pop-song harmonies, including "oohh" and "ahh" background singing, jangle chords and repeated refrains. From beginnings as a post-Ramones punky ensemble (on the first four-track EP), they've gone through an assortment of members and sonic textures but all of their releases have been exercises in good old pop-rock.
Move a Little Closer, a compilation of the band's first two Australian singles ("Igloo" and "A Stand Alone") could easily mix and match with a stack of mod-revival albums, while the squealier and grungier guitar chords of Date with a Vampyre (also four songs) nudge their sound closer to garage territory.
Top of the Town contains six songs by a new lineup that reveals an ongoing transition towards more mainstream pop-rock. "You Better Run" is the most impressive track, and a fair precursor to the excellent Bones + Flowers.
The album launches the Tribesmen into a new international league, offering richly played rock-melody songwriting (by ex-Radio Birdman guitarist/pianist/producer Chris "Klondike" Masuak and singer/guitarist Mick Medew) that's got all the needed attributes for major stardom. Standouts: a new version of "Igloo," the wittily '60sish "Our Time at Last," the peppy Anglo-popping "Dream Away" and the Rockpiling "Living Vampire." The CD has two bonus tracks.
Despite the album's appeal and high commercial prospects, nothing much came of Bones + Flowers. By the time of the disappointing 1989 12-inch (five songs, including covers of Lou Reed and the Dictators), Medew was the only member remaining from the LP's lineup.
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