Listen to early Midnight Oil, Sunnyboys and a host of others and you can hear where they got some of their ideas.

Just great, raw, frenetic rock. But so many subtleties. The bands evolution and ultimate devolution are sort of appropriate given the short sharp aural pounding they produced.

It great to hear the different versions of what happened.

In many ways they represent the typical Aussie 'stuff you!' culture of disrespect for authority that's now being homogenised out of Australia.

We need a new race punched out...

Descent into the Maelstrom is the definitive biopic of Australia's premiere 70s new wave rock'n'roll band, Radio Birdman. From their formation in Sydney in 1974 up until their present re-formation, film maker Jonathan Sequeira masterfully tells their story by lovingly and intricately assembling a complex jigsaw of superb archival film, a wealth of stunning anthemic music, sublime Warwick Gilbert graphics and reflective interviews.

The film is often very funny but there's plenty of tragedy, too. Everyone involved in the band speaks fondly but frankly about the experience of being in this high-energy whirlpool of creativity and performance. What comes through is that as young musicians, Radio Birdman were unfashionably skilled but nevertheless typically thwarted by the whole Australian music industry. It's a classic tale of a great independent band, brilliantly told.

The film certainly explores in detail the internal conflict, with earnest and articulate contributions from Deniz Tek, Warwick Gilbert, Rob Younger, Chris Masuak, Pip Hoyle, Ron Keeley, Jules Normington, Anthony O'Grady and others.

There have been some great Australian music films recently (Sticky Carpet, The Sunnyboy, Blokes You Can Trust, Autoluminescent),but none better than Descent into the Maelstrom. Music fans will love this thrilling, tortuous rock'n'roll ride. 4 stars

Full disclosure here, I contributed to this great doco with 2 pieces of archival material and saw the band in its prime in 1977 at the Oxford Funhouse and Paddington Town Hall. Like seeing The Beatles at The Cavern or The Ramones at CBGB's, these gigs have become legendary.

Out of a strange, dull period of music and with a mix of sub-cultures in a scene amidst drag queens,flamboyant gays,bikers, corrupt cops, punks and hippies in a dirty inner city rock'n'roll dive, Radio Birdman were life-changing for my 16 year old schoolboy self. This was something else. The jukebox in the Funhouse was a musical education in itself but seeing the band was mind-blowing for the energy and fun generated.

Like the small number of people who saw The Stooges or The Velvet Underground in their first incarnations and who realised over time the enduring influence of those bands, this film is a great reminder of that while the main players are still around to discuss it. Brilliant work despite a lack of archival footage but essential viewing for rock fans world-wide. In that small Oxford Funhouse back then, it sure felt like Radio Birdman against the world for but this film assures the legacy will live on.