#aussie rock

Had attended Swinburne Free School from which many key figures in the late 70’s Melbourne scene emerged.

Rowlands legendary band The Young Charlatans played only 13 shows before dissolving through internal competitiveness (Ollie Olsen being the other singer and writer).

He joined The Boys Next Door shortly afterwards, bringing with him a swag of great songs including “Shivers”, which 20 years on has come to be considered a classic.

With his addition the band took an enormous leap forward musically and Rowland began developing a guitar style as unique as the band would later become.

His influence on guitarists around the world has probably been as significant as The Birthday Party’s has been in general.

But Rowland was also a singer and frustrations with not getting to sing very often and Nick wanting to sing only his own lyrics became contributing factors in the internal breakdown of the group.

He has subsequently worked on many projects with Lydia Lunch and exercised his vocal chords extensively with These Immortal Souls.