Quick-fire Questions: 10 minutes with Radium Dolls
There’s more bite to Radium Dolls than a crocodile with a day-old baguette. These punks from Brisbane, Australia, have a bone to pick, and they pick it with purpose, punch, and a fair few belly laughs.
Their latest single, ‘Daddy’, sees them address the evils of entitlement in swaggering style. It’s old school in the best possible way. The frontman, Will Perkins, is even wearing a crisp white shirt. And while having a laugh is certainly part of their charming spirit, they also rather straightforwardly stamp out a problem with uerring directness and sincerity.
As Perkins explained of the song’s origin, “I was driving back into Brisbane and saw people on JetSkis parading around Australia flags in the river and being menacing to other people on the water. It turned out they were protesting some racist dumb shit, and I was pissed off, so this song goes out to those clowns and the rich white guy who organised it.”
Tactfully, they don’t give the bastard the airtime of naming him. They’re smart like that. They also know their way around a real catchy riff. Radium Dolls know how to make things land, even the music video makes that clear. “We have Hot Mess and Goliath studios to thank for this one,” they explained on that front. “The creative direction was all theirs, and we had fun acting out their visions.”
Perkins, a refreshingly retro lead frontman, more Kevin Costner than Timothée Hal Chalamet, continued, “I played the brat, so I got to eat heaps of doughnuts and lamingtons and whinge on camera. Thanks to them for hearing the song and making some funny visuals, no thanks to the entitled and dreary wankers who inspired it. Sovereignty never ceded, always was, always will be Aboriginal Land.”
Needless to say, they’re not afraid to use their voice. So, we thought we’d very quickly see what they had to say shortly after they released their new album, which came out on January 30th. They discuss AI, The Beatles, and Sasquatches below.
Quick-fire Questions with Radium Dolls:
1. What song would you want played at your funeral?
Bryce Equinox (drummer): “‘Contractor’ by Lamb of God – with some visuals of a skeleton riding a motorcycle into the sunset or something.”
Ewan Day (bassist): “‘An Ending Ascent’ by Brian Eno.”
Will Perkins (frontman): “Maybe ‘The Ship Song’ by Nick Cave.”
Thomas Perkins (guitarist): “‘Desperados Under the Eaves’ by Warren Zevon.”
2. What’s the weirdest show you’ve ever played?
Ewan: “We first started playing shows in the midst of the Covid pandemic, and had to do a few socially distanced, seated shows – that’s pretty weird as a punk band.”
Tom: “We also did a children’s acoustic show at the Triffid once with hundreds of very young kids going crazy popping balloons, but it was very fun.”
Will: “It’s always pretty weird in the Gold Coast.”
3. What’s one conspiracy theory you kind of believe in?
Ewan: “We have done our fair share of Sasquatch research thanks to Wild Bill’s Squatch Watch. Bill and the gang draw some pretty convincing arguments that would get anyone thinking.”
Will: “The simmy theory also makes some good points.”
4. What’s one begrudgement you have about modern music?
Tom: “The change to fully online subscription-based streaming, giving all the profits to huge corporations that invest it questionably.”
Will: “I think people write more of what they think will get them on the radio and less about their own experiences, which I dislike. And I think certain radio stations gobble it up.”
5. Who did you have in mind with ‘Daddy’?
Band: “That rich white dude who started a bunch of anti-immigration protests because he can’t get himself a job. I don’t know his name, and I don’t care to. People who feel like victims when they are really the oppressors. Anyone in Australia who has forgotten they live on stolen land.”
6. What’s one classic album you’d happily delete from history?
Will: “Anything by Morrissey.”
7. What album do you think you’ve listened to most as a band?
Bryce: “Recently, I Love People by Corey Hanson has been a staple front-to-back listen on long car rides.”
Ewan: “Harvest by Neil Young is always a big one for us.”
8. What album due out in 2026 are you most looking forward to?
Band: “It’s an EP, but Labour of Love by GIMMY. Took these guys on tour with us last year. We love ‘em. Or: Radium Dolls Volume 3.”
9. If you had a 30-word mission statement as a band, what would it be?
Band: “We just want to make good music and play it to as many people as we possibly can. We’ll do our best to excite you, if you promise to behave.”
10. What book do you think should be taught in schools?
Ewan: “Across the Top by Malcom Douglas.”
11. What’s the weirdest Australian subculture you’ve been privy to?
Band: “Byron Bay rich hippies. They don’t deal with their own shit, and then they start ‘healing centres.’ It’s whack.”
12. Which venue would you love to play?
Band: “Joshua Tree – desert vibes!”
13. Should AI be outlawed for music creation?
Band: “Nah, the world’s going the way it’s going, and we’re never gonna use it. Don’t really care what everybody else does. Let the robots try.”
14. Favourite song by AC/DC?
Band: “‘Let There Be Rock'”.
15. Are The Beatles overrated?
Will: “Probably not…I’m not a huge fan, but I’m cool with it. ‘Don’t Let Me Down’ is a great song. The other boys love ‘em, so yeah, probably not.”
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