Models

In the Australian music landscape, Models stood among the earliest trailblazers in post-punk and new wave. Despite failing to match the worldwide profile enjoyed by fellow countrymen INXS and Midnight Oil, the group secured multiple chart successes at home. The band originated in Melbourne in 1978 with an initial roster that included Sean Kelly on vocals and guitar, Pierre Voltaire on bass, Ash Wednesday on synthesizer, and Janis Friedenfelds on drums. Voltaire later gave way to Mark Ferrie; Wednesday departed in 1979, at which point Andrew Duffield joined as keyboardist. Live appearances had generated industry interest by 1980, prompting a contract with Mushroom Records and the release of the debut album Alphabravocharliedeltaechofoxtrotgolf. Models supported the Police on tour in 1981, an association that secured a worldwide licensing arrangement through A&M Records. Membership nonetheless remained unsettled: Friedenfelds exited in 1981 and was succeeded by Buster Stiggs. The following year brought further departures by Stiggs and Ferrie, leading to the addition of Graham Scott on drums, John Rowell on guitar, and James Freud on bass. The band simultaneously shifted toward a more dance-oriented style. Recognition arrived with the 1985 hit “Barbados,” which peaked at number two on the Australian pop charts. Its follow-up, “Out of Mind Out of Sight,” climbed to the summit of those charts and reached number 36 in the United States. One additional release, Models’ Media, appeared in 1986 before the group dissolved in 1988. Kelly and Duffield subsequently assembled the short-lived Absent Friends in 1990 and afterward formed the Dukes.