High-profile first wave Auckland punk outfit (archivists declare them THE original New Zealand punk outfit) who actually evolved out of the 1b Darlings, a glitter and glam r’n’b cover act dating back to 1976 comprised of Michael Simmons (soon to be Mike Lesbian – vocals), Marlon Hart (Mal Licious – bass), Simon Monroe (Des Truction – drums) and Paul Cooke (Johnny Volume – guitar). During late ’76 and 77 the band laid low, practising and cultivating their attack on new zealand, with a slew of imported british singles as their inspiration.
With the explosion of punk in New Zealand in min ’77, they steeped forward into the limelight, bringing the punk spectacle to Auckland along with the Suburban Reptiles, and brought out a couple of singles (including the fantastic anthem ‘Mysterx’ – later used in a telecom ad!, and the even better ‘True Love’), featured on the AK79 compilation. In the early 80s the Scavs had a number of line-up changes, eventually renaming themselves the Marching Girls and then relocating to Melbourne – producing an underwhelming EP.
They eventually had an album produced post-humously (from their some-what limited recordings) in 2003 with their self-titled (Scavengers) release.
Discography
- Scavengers [2003 Zerox / Flying Nun Records]