THE STEMS

Announce

30TH ANNIVERSARY ‘AT FIRST SIGHT VIOLETS ARE BLUE’ AUSTRALIAN TOUR

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the release of their classic debut album At First Sight Violets are Blue, one of Perths most popular and iconic bands, The Stems, are set to return to the live scene, embarking on a national tour in November.

Original members Dom Mariani, Julian Matthews and Dave Shaw will be joined by Ashley Naylor (Even / RocKwiz OrKestra) and Davey Lane (You Am I) to perform the album in full.

The Stems epitomized 80s indie rock, giving it a wider currency. They are one of only a handful of bands (among them the Hoodoo Gurus and The Sunnyboys) that cracked the mainstream charts of the 80s with an indie approach. Making their debut in March 1984 playing alongside The Triffids and The Saints, The Stems released a series of independent records on Sydney’s Citadel Records, each of which reached #1 on the Australian alternative charts.

But it was their debut album First Sight Violets Are Blue, released in 1987 by Mushroom Records, that received national and international acclaim, becoming one of the best-selling Australian albums of that year despite an almost total lack of commercial airplay in those corporate FM dominated times. Rolling Stone named At First Sight one of the top 100 Australian releases of all time. It eventually went Gold and still continues to sell strongly today.