The Spazzys were an Australian pop punk band, formed in 2000 by twins Katerina (guitar, lead vocals) and Lucy (bass, backing vocals) Ljubicic (AKA Kat and Lucy Spazzy), with their schoolmate Alice McNamara (Ally Spazzy) on drums and vocals. Their cover version of "My Boyfriend's Back" (February 2005) peaked at number 24 on the ARIA Singles Chart.
History Kat Spazzy Note: User may have to click 'Search again' and provide details at 'Enter a title:' e.g Action City; or at 'Performer:' Spazzys and Lucy Spazzy are twin sisters. For Years Nine and Ten they attended Melbourne Girls' College alongside Ally Spazzy (a.k.a. Alice McNamara). The Spazzys formed in Melbourne in 2000, after Ally's 18th birthday with Kat on guitar and lead vocals; Lucy on bass guitar and vocals; and Ally on drums and vocals. One of their influences were The Ramones,Herald Sun, 16 September 2004, "spazzys' pass marky" by Shane O'Donohue and in homage they each adopted the band's name as their performance surname.
Kat recalled that initially "we couldn't play, so we just did it. I was told I was the one who would be playing guitar – I didn't know if it was serious and I didn't want to spend any money, so I borrowed a guitar, and after six months I realized that maybe we could do this." The group played their first show as a support for fellow punk band, Mach Pelican.
Their first three singles, "Paco Doesn't Love Me" (April 2004), "Hey Hey Baby" (July) and "My Boyfriend's Back" (February 2005), all charted, with the latter reaching No. 24 on the ARIA Singles Chart. At a gig at the Gaelic Club they played in May 2004 with Marky Ramone on his Australian visit, Ally made way for Ramone on the drums.The Age, 10 May 2004, "Brain Surgery not a Part of this Brief" by Michael Dwyer Ramone also appears in their video clip for "Hey Hey Baby".Geelong Advertiser, 4 September 2004, "Fun-time Spazzys" By July that year the trio had supported gigs in Melbourne by visiting artists: The Buzzcocks, The Datsuns, The D4, Gerling and Blondie.
Their debut album, Aloha! Go Bananas (20 September 2004), entered the AIR independent chart at No. 1 and reached the top 60 of the ARIA Albums Chart. They received significant radio airplay – including on national youth radio station, Triple J. Their track, "Paco Doesn't Love Me", written about the drummer of an Italian punk band, Retarded, was listed at No. 75 in the 2004 Triple J Hottest 100. In 2005, Ally guest starred on the game show Spicks and Specks, and Kat appeared on RocKwiz.The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 December 2005, TV previews by Tony Davis
By late 2006 the Spazzys had recorded their second album, Dumb Is Forever. However its release was "severely delayed by some pretty serious legal issues." Kat later told Steve Bell of The Music that the dispute with their label and management began when they were asked to record it in Los Angeles. She reflected "we didn't want to go to LA, we were tricked into going to LA – I think our managers thought it would be a cool thing to do... and I think they wanted us to record there, which is the daggiest most '80s thing in the fucking world to do."
In 2007 Ally founded a children's music workshop, Kiddy Rock, where "she goes around to kindergartens and does music classes for all the little kids... get them all fired up, and then the teachers have to come along and give them their milk and settle them down." The Spazzys have played several major music festivals: the Big Day Out in January 2007, Falls Festival, Queenscliff Music Festival, Pyramid Rock Festival. They toured in support of Australian groups: You Am I, Grinspoon, Butterfingers and Hard-Ons. They also supported international acts such The Distillers, The Hives,RocKwiz Series 2: Episode 15 The 5.6.7.8's,FasterLouder "5.6.7.8s Bomb The Rocks Australian Tour!" and Marilyn Manson.
During their support of Manson for the Australasian leg of his Rape of the World Tour in October 2007, they were poorly received by some crowd members. Kat recalled "All those little Goths in the crowd were so funny! I thought they were going to raid the stage! A lot of them really, really hated us, but we came out in capes and stuff, and hopefully a few of them liked us by the end." Their biggest response was by asking the crowd for a "fuck you". The band frequently mocked the audience by announcing song titles such as: "My Parents Don't Understand Me So I'm Going to My Room to Cut Myself". Kat declared that Manson "loved us, and he was the one who asked us to do the tour."
In 2011 Kat was employed as a criminal lawyer after obtaining her Bachelor of Laws (First Class Honours) from Victoria University and Graduate Diploma of Legal Practice at Australian National University.
The Spazzys finally released Dumb Is Forever in 2011, which Graham Blackley of Beat Magazine opined "has been worth the lengthy wait." He described how the group "have clearly maintained their tight and sprightly musicianship. There are plenty of '60s tinged bubble-gum melodies and ferocious wall-shaking firepower and they still manage to diversify their sound." Dylan Stewart of The Music felt "fun and frivolous, and represents a flashback to another time... [with] a slight shift towards a poppier delivery compared to the brash punk sensibility they were then known for."
Madison Thomas, reviewing for Tone Deaf, praised the band's performance at the Tote in November 2012, saying "their set packs a punch."
In August 2021, The Age reported that McNamara had been posting Neo-Nazi and anti-lockdown propaganda using an online alias.
Members Kat Spazzy (guitar) Lucy Spazzy (bass guitar) Ally Spazzy (drums)
All three members contributed lead and backing vocals, although Kat was the lead singer for most of their songs.
Discography Albums + List of albums, with selected chart positions Title Details Peak chart positions AUS Aloha! Go Bananas Released: 20 September 2004 54 Dumb Is Forever Released: 2011 —
Extended plays I Met Her at the 7-11 The Sunshine Drive
Singles + List of singles, with selected chart positions Title Year Peak chart positions Album AUSPeaks of singles in Australia: "Paco Doesn't Love Me": "Hey Hey Baby": "My Boyfriend's Back": "Paco Doesn't Love Me" 2004 65 Aloha! Go Bananas "Hey Hey Baby" 53 "My Boyfriend's Back" 2005 24 "Divorce" 2006 — "Creep" / "Best Waves Ever" 2010 — Dumb Is Forever
References
External links Official Web Page
Marky Ramone playing with The Spazzys photos Sydney Morning Herald Young punks