Remembering when INXS took a swipe at mass media with ‘Communication’
Australian rockers INXS are a fascinating subject. Formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales, they first broke through with a style that mixed new wave and pops before developing a more anthemic form of rock that drew on dance and funk elements, and it was with this latter format that they would become the world beaters we remember today, scoring their first number one hit in 1984 with ‘Original Sin’.
The band delivered numerous iconic moments during the height of their fame, ranging from ‘Need You Tonight’ to ‘Never Tear Us Apart’. Whilst the music speaks for itself, with many who were alive in their heyday remembering their brilliance vividly, most of the conversation around the band centres around their enigmatic frontman, Michael Hutchence. Tragically, the singer died of suicide in 1997, and his death’s impact remains one of music’s greatest tragedies.
A dynamic performer complete with a brilliant vocal range, Hutchence’s talent had a significant impact in helping the band to take over the world in such a resounding style. He was their poster boy and remarkably marketable, affording them the status they had enjoyed for the best of 20 years.
However, it wasn’t all Hutchence. His bandmates are fine musicians, and their back catalogue speaks for itself, which is enough to make the tragedy surrounding Hutchence’s death fade into the background. Before all else, they are also artists of note, and this shouldn’t be forgotten.
One of their best-beloved cuts is ‘Communication’ from 1992’s Welcome to Wherever You Are. A heady track, coming from the period when the band were trying to establish a new creative direction despite the dominance of grunge and alt-rock, it also comes complete with some of their most politically-charged lyrics, taking a swipe at mass media, with the chorus line, “Communication disinformation / So entertaining”, incredibly pertinent.
Written by INXS’ songwriting team of Hutchence and Tim Farriss, the piece discusses how corrupted news institutions make it a spectacle, a form of entertainment to keep audiences locked in and distracted from what’s happening.
Hutchence once described the song’s origins, saying: “It ended up being more about this guy, a crazed journalist not wanting to leave a scene he was reporting from in the Persian Gulf War. I mean, these people were standing there with gas masks on, reporting history as it happened. I don’t think it has been done before, quite like that. And then the ads would come in between, ‘Buy this and that,’ Weird stuff.”
As noted by Hutchence, the first Gulf War, which occurred between 1990 and 1991, was a defining influence on the track. The way it was broadcast in the new era of technology, with footage of air strikes shown not long after they had happened, alerted Hutchence to how media and its principles were changing. To the frontman, using the footage in this way made it feel like a video game, deliberately distracting from the financial motives behind the war, which his “bloody money” line denotes.
