The Passengers

The Passengers appeared in Sydney following the demise of Radio Birdman. Among the many bands who blazed bright in the post-apocalyptic era at the turn of the decade, The Passengers stood alone. Their music was compelling and different, and their following was fanatically dedicated. The Passengers were born from the Sydney inner city punk culture in 1979. They were the first band released by Phantom Records recording ''Face With No Name / Girlfriend's Boyfriend''. Taking their name from an Iggy Pop song, the band was fronted by Angie Pepper, and also included former Survivor and future New Christ Jim Dickson on bass, with Jeff Sullivan (later of The Flaming Hands) on guitar and Steve Harris on keyboards. Pepper's vocals and the sixties girl-group nature of the lyrics made an instant comparison to Blondie inevitable, but Harris's electric piano sound was substantially different from Blondie's approach. Unfortunately, the band was short lived, and they disbanded at the end of 1980. In 1990 French label Revenge Records released an album full of unreleased demos titled 'The Passengers with Angie Pepper'. [SOURCE: HISTORY OF AUSTRALIAN MUSIC FROM 1960 UNTIL 2000]