They’re the Eastern Anmatjerre mob family band making a case for rock being a little less dead and a little more deadly.
Mulga Bore Hard Rock
If you take a detour off the Highway to Hell, and head two hours north-east of Mparntwe/Alice Springs, you’ll find the remote central desert community of Akaye, and the home of Mulga Bore Hard Rock band.
This group of glam rockers began as a community band and have grown into a world-class act! They’re putting their community on the map, cranking out electrifying, riff-heavy rock that switches between Anmatyerre language and English.
“We first started in our neighbour’s house just jamming, playing music.”
The six piece of siblings and cousins are lead by singer, songwriter and guitarist Alvin Manfong, with Aiden Manfong on drums, Tryell Bird on rhythm guitar and vocals, Kirklen Bird on bass guitar and vocals, Talvin Bird on bass guitar and vocals, and Niara Tilmouth on vocals and tambourine.
Listening to Mulga Bore Hard Rock, their love of classic and glam rock shines through, citing the usual suspects like AC/DC, Metallica, The Angels and Guns N' Roses. They also attribute their sound to Indigenous family bands such as Southeast Desert Metal in particular.
However, if there’s any band that stands out from the rest in their influence on these especially eccentric glam-rockers, it has to be KISS. Inspired by their theatricality and classic sound, the Mulga Bore Hard Rock band have taken inspiration from the legendary glam rock pioneers, even adopting their own signature makeup looks and personas for performance.
“When I put the make-up [on], its like the war paint you put on”
Just like their idols, each band member has a matching character that they bring to life through makeup and the stage. Instead of 'The Catman' or 'The Spaceman', Alvin is Thunder Child, Kirkeln is Desert Demon, Aiden is Desert Dingo, Niara is Queen of Hearts, Tryell is Star Boy, and Talivn is Black Diamond.
In 2022, the band had the opportunity to open for their idols, heading out on tour to support KISS on the band’s final Australian tour date, with no prior released music.
Their single ‘Big Rain’ is just one example of the stadium-ready glam rock sound they’ve become known for since their first upload to the Unearthed website, when their youngest was just fourteen! Now all aged between fifteen-twenty years old, Mulga Bore show no signs of slowing, already rocking the socks off showcases like BIGSOUND, SXSW Sydney and Golden Plains.
“Mulga Bore Hard Rock – because we live in a community called Mulga Bore and we play hard rock.”
The namesake of Mulga Bore Hard Rock is at the heart of everything they do, with their music existing as a product of their community, made for their community.
That’s rock n roll!