Civic

From Melbourne’s enduring punk underground emerged the five-piece Civic, a high-voltage outfit whose sound echoed the Saints and Radio Birdman while relying on straightforward pub-rock drive. Downstroked guitars, swaggering vocals, straightforward melodies, and a forceful rhythm section powered their raw, classic-style rock & roll, quickly building them an international audience drawn to the band’s relentless live energy. Three well-received EPs in the late 2010s established their reputation, leading to the full-length debut Future Forecast in 2021; for the follow-up, Taken by Force, issued in 2023, the group enlisted Radio Birdman singer Rob Younger as producer.

Civic originated in 2017 when vocalist Jim McCullough encountered guitarist Darcy Grigg, another Melbourne punk veteran, at a Japanese bowling alley during McCullough’s vacation. Both agreed the local scene lacked enough groups in the vein of Radio Birdman, the Saints, and the Celibate Rifles. Once back in Melbourne they added guitarist Lewis Hodgson, bassist Roland Hlavka, and drummer David Forcier, then began rehearsing in McCullough’s warehouse-turned-arts-center space. After assembling several originals and playing an initial show under the name Diamond Dust, Hodgson proposed Civic as the permanent moniker. Blending ’70s punk, pub rock, and power pop, the band soon recorded enough material for an EP; issued on Billy Gardener’s Anti-Fade label, the seven-song New Vietnam EP arrived in 2018 and drew immediate attention, prompting a second four-track release, Those Who No, later that year.

In 2020 Civic issued the single “Radiant Eye” b/w “Making Time,” their first output for Flightless, the label started by Eric Moore of King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard. Flightless released the band’s debut album Future Forecast in March 2021, after which ATO Records licensed it for North America and the U.K. Darcy Grigg subsequently exited, with Jackson Harry, who had contributed to the Future Forecast sessions, taking over on guitar. Drummer David Forcier, by then residing in Canada, became unavailable for live dates when COVID-19 travel restrictions took effect, so Matt Blach stepped in for performances and also played on the sessions for Taken by Force. Rob Younger produced the 2023 album, while engineer Mikey Young—previously credited with work for Eddy Current Suppression Ring and Sonny & the Sunsets—handled mixing and mastering.