Local Aussie Band’s Gig Posters Allegedly Censored By Council

We’re not exactly going out on a limb by saying that the Australian music scene has something of a contentious relationship with local councils. By all accounts, the two just can’t seem to get along, much as we’d like them to.

Whether it’s Soundwave promoter AJ Maddah claiming Adelaide City Council tried to kill off the festival’s South Australian leg or local publicans holding council red tape responsible for NYE punters trashing a park, the two are often butting heads.

This latest, uh, ‘interaction’ between Aussie music and local government is sure to ruffle a few feathers. According to a recent Facebook post, Melbourne City Council have been censoring posters by local band Fuck The Fitzroy Doom Scene.

The band recently took to Facebook to share a piece of correspondence from fan Liam Matthews, who posted a snap of a pair of posters advertising the band’s upcoming gig at the Ding Dong Lounge on Friday, 5th June.

As readers can see below, the two posters have apparently been censored, with the word ‘Fuck’ blacked out of the band’s name. What’s more, according to Mr Matthews, the ‘edits’ were performed by a member of City Council.

“Just saw a guy from Melbourne City Council taking photos then doing some editing. ‘Lotta complaints’ he said,” Matthews recounted. Naturally, neither the band nor their fans were pleased with the council-imposed censorship.

“People seriously need to look at the world a bit deeper, there are [a] hell of a lot worse things to be pissed off about besides the word FUCK!” wrote commenter Mark Ireland. The band responded, “Was thinkin just the same thing.”

“All of the atrocities happening to people and our planet & this is the subject that you choose to spend your time worrying about!?” Speaking to Tone Deaf, guitarist and vocalist Dave Ferguson said the band hasn’t confirmed that it was indeed Melbourne Council behind the censorship.

“It’s all hearsay,” Ferguson told Tone Deaf. “All I know is that [a fan] posted saying he saw a Melbourne Council guy scrubbing out the word ‘fuck’ and he also said that the council guy said they’ve had a few complaints about it.”

However, when asked if Council had been in touch with the band about any complaints, Ferguson indicated that no one in the band had been contacted. “Not that I know of, and I don’t think any of the other guys either,” he said.

Ferguson also indicated that the band have no desire to contact Council about the matter. “I don’t think if we see a need to. I don’t know if it’s all over the place. I’ve only seen that one poster, but I’ve seen other posters still up with ‘fuck’ still there,” he said.

According to Ferguson, the band have not received any complaints about their name before. “I put [a poster] in a cafe last week and I did say, ‘Look, can we put this in your window. I understand if you don’t want to put it there’, and they put it up. But no one’s really complained,” he said.

“We haven’t put a lot of posters up before, the odd one, because most of the gigs we’ve done have been supports or festivals and we haven’t really had to publicise it ourselves. But we have done a few here and there and no complaints.”

A representative from Melbourne City Council did not respond to requests for comment in time for publication. It is still unknown if Council was behind the censorship of the gig posters shown in the image on social media.

It’s important to note, however, that under Section 10 of the Summary Offences Act 1966, it is in fact illegal to place “any placard bill sticker or other document” on a property without the consent of the occupier or owner of the premises.

Fuck The Fitzroy Doom Scene aren’t the first band to stir controversy with their posters in recent memory. Last year, Confession frontman Michael Crafter was forced to defend his band after posters advertising their single ‘Fuck Cancer’ caused offence.

“It’s making an impact, it’s making a statement,” Crafter told 3AW, via The Newsroom. “Today, [people] may whinge, tomorrow, they’ll be all good. I wake up tomorrow and both my parents still have cancer.”

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“If I upset a few people, I’m sorry, but I’ve gotta say what I’ve gotta say. I’ve gotta put the lyrics out there that I believe in,” he said. “There’s not much we can do if people are upset.”

“We’ve got to get on with our lives… if they’re offended for a few days, I fully understand why, but at the end of the day it’s a real positive song about a really dark subject that has confronted me in the last few years.”

Meanwhile, back in December 2012, Tone Deaf reported on a motion put before Kingston City Council that requested individuals caught illegally putting up gig posters be prosecuted. The bill imposed on-the-spot fines of $282 and a maximum penalty of up to $1,408.

Forming in 2014, Fuck The Fitzroy Doom Scene have quickly developed a reputation as one of Melbourne’s loudest bands. They unveiled their debut album, Facing the Ruin, back in December and recently played an acclaimed set at Cherry Rock ’15.