The Eternal Battle Of Man Verses Camel With JASON WHALLEY From FRENZAL RHOMB

Interview by Kris Peters
At the turn of the last century - around the same time the world was supposed to succumb to the flash in the pan that was the Y2K bug - a group of four Sydney punk reprobates called Frenzal Rhomb were plotting their own assault on the world.
But instead of technology, this was a stealth attack by music.
After previously making their name as carefree, wreckless, uncompromising punk rockers through albums Coughing Up A Storm, Not So Tough Now and Meet The Family, Frenzal Rhomb elected to go a little more mainstream on their fourth album, A Man's Not A Camel. So much so that the album contained a bona fide ballad - I Miss My Lung, and another on the cusp of being a ballad with You Are Not My Friend.
Granted, A Man's Not A Camel provided some staple Frenzal moments with songs like It's Up To You, Do You Wanna Fight Me and the irresistible I Know Why Dinosaurs Became Extinct, and it also contained more than enough lashings of Frenzal humour, but it was also far enough on the right side of the musical ledger to have the song Never Had So Much Fun nominated for an ARIA Award in the Best Pop Release category.
I shit you not. Thankfully a singing budgie by the name of Kylie Minogue pipped them at the post, otherwise who knows how far down the rabbit hole Frenzal Rhomb would have gone?
And now, 26 years after it first came out, Frenzal Rhomb are celebrating the 25th (ish) Birthday of A Man's Not A Camel with an extensive Australian tour that will see the band travelling to places some of you might not even know exist.
HEAVY tracked down Frenzal frontman Jason Whalley to take a trip down memory lane.
"That record seemed to resonate with people," Whalley nodded, stroking his chin. "It had all those songs on it like Never Had So Much Fun and You Are Not My Friend and I Miss My Lung and all that jazz. There's a lot of songs on there that, let's be honest, weren't very good. But it had a few songs on there that seemed to resonate with people. We are doing this tour where we're celebrating this record, but to be honest, we play all the good songs off that record every time we play anyway. We are pulling out some deep cuts too. I've had to relearn a lot of lyrics. I actually looked up the lyrics on the internet to try and figure out what they were, to try and relearn them."
We ask if that means the whole of A Man's Not A Camel album will be played in full on tour.
"100% not," he countered. "We wouldn't do that to our audience. There's a few songs on there that just have not stood the test of time. I mean, even a week after it was released, we weren't playing them. When you see bands doing their whole album, I'm always like, come on, mate, they weren't all bangers."
In the full interview, Jay discussed Frenzal Rhomb's upcoming shows in more detail, revealing the tour will include 25 shows in various locations that were missed during their last tour, allowing the band to reconnect with fans. He expressed enthusiasm for the tour and reflected on the band's evolution in songwriting on A Man's Not A Camel, noting a shift towards a more pop-oriented sound while emphasizing the importance of song quality over tempo.
The conversation also covered Frenzal's experiences with the album's reception and their nomination at the ARIA's, where he recalled a memorable performance in hospital attire due to his broken arm. We discussed the album's release in the US under Fat Mike's Fat Wreck Chords, highlighting changes made to the tracklist and the unnecessary suggestion of a name change for the American market, plus more.

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