The Dead Abigails
Pop Rock — Tasmania
The Dead Abigails were an Australian pop rock band who achieved brief success with a handful of stunning songs.
“This five piece band from Launceston write smooth rock songs with killer pop hooks. These guys are great friends and great musicians. Their song ‘The Wall’ starts with a punch and never lets go of you, with its catchy chorus and cries of ‘woah’ and ‘yeah’” – Triple J Unearthed, 2003.
Carl Fidler – vocals/guitar, Glenn Moorhouse – guitar/vocals, Jason Whatley – keys/vocals, Corey Gilham – bass, Randall Stafford – drums.
Their journey began in Launceston, Tasmania in the spring of 2000. Two mates met a singer, fresh from Sydney, called their old mate on bass, and their drummer/DJ mate from wayback was on his way home from Melbourne. Everything was falling into place.
In the summer of love, 2001, the party began. The Abigails spent three months jamming and songwriting on the deck, followed by three months of rehearsing the set in front of a wall to wall mirror before exploding onto the scene.
Armed with a 3 track EP and 1 tight set, they scored a slot at Gone South Festival which lead to selection for Music Business Adelaide’s Eat The Streets Festival, which is where the boys met their guru, Colin Seeger (Music Law).
Seeger and his crew secured a publishing deal with Shock and sourced the funds to record the Code EP (2003) and send the band to the UK for a summer of festivals and frivolity. Leading up to the UK tour, the boys got gig fit touring up the East Coast of Australia and supporting some of Australia’s finest including INXS, Grinspoon, Diesel, and The Whitlams. They were Triple J Unearthed winners, Oz Music Ambassadors (with John Butler and Motorace), received an ALMA for Outstanding Live Performance, and their music was played regularly on Big Brother, McLeod’s Daughters and Young Lyons.
In 2004 the Abigails were fortunate to record at the world class 301 Studios in Sydney to produce their debut album. The whole process was filmed along with a show at the Annandale Hotel and was released alongside the album as a CD/DVD package. Sadly, this was their last release.
In the autumn of 2005, Whatley grew weary of the fast life, the tours, hotel rooms and endless parties, and yearned for a simpler life. He wandered off into the mist never to be seen again.
In the long cold winter of 2006, The Dead Abigails called it a day. Their passion had been eroded by dodgy management and the loss of Whatley, the band’s main songwriter. The guys had all moved on to other projects; Fidler went for soul healing with Mayfield, latin lounge and electro with Hicksville; Moorhouse fell to angst with The Dog Line; Stafford went back to DJing; and Gilham as a session player for any band that moved.
Although their star shone brightly for only a short while, as Fidler says, “It was a hell of a ride”.
The Dead Abigails – CD/DVD – $25 [Buy]
CD TRACKLIST
Bonus tracks:
Anthem (Live acoustic)
Nothing About You (Live acoustic)
Stars (Live acoustic)
DVD TRACKLIST
Anthem
Nothing About You
Stars
Fantasy Filler (Live at 301)
Lampshade (Live at 301)
Whipping Boy (Live at The Annandale)
Fact’ry Floor (Live at The Annandale)
Pretty Way (Live)
Bonus features:
Interview
Photo Gallery