TISM

TISM (an acronym of This Is Serious Mum) were a seven-piece anonymous alternative rock band from Melbourne, Australia. The group were formed on 30 December 1982 by vocalist/drummer Humphrey B. Flaubert, bassist/vocalist Jock Cheese and keyboardist/vocalist Eugene de la Hot Croix Bun, and enjoyed a large underground/independent following. Their third album Machiavelli and the Four Seasons reached the Australian national top 10 in 1995.

TISM were known for their hybrid of dance music and rock'n'roll, high-energy live shows and humorous lyrics. TISM's songs frequently satirised modern culture, celebrities and the entertainment industry, classic literature and art, current affairs, politics and sport. The titles of their songs were often wordplays created by juxtaposing pop culture references with more intellectual ones.

History

Early years

This Is Serious Mum's first concert was on 6 December 1983. The Get Fucked Concert at the Duncan McKinnon Athletics Reserve in the small suburb of Murrumbeena was considered a complete failure which caused the band to split up. They reformed in February 1984 and returned to their recordings, experimenting with dark ambient and industrial music, before returning to their rock style. They consider every subsequent performance a "re-union gig".

Whatareya?

Whatareya? is the name of the third single by TISM off their album www.tism.wanker.com (1998).

Song

One of the main themes on the album wanker.com is the differences between the cultures of male society, the Yobs and the Wankers. The first single from the album, Yob told explicitly the role of the Yob, however this single distinctly marks the territorial bounds between the two classes of men.

Throughout the song it is revealed that the Yob is the basic equivalent of the American redneck and the Wanker is the more intellectual member of society, one who looks down upon the Yob.

As witnessed by the verse:

A wanker fights inequalities
And for people's rights;
A Wanker fights class prejudice -
A Yobbo just fights

The differences are many between the two; the song asks the listener to make the decision as to which side of the fence they fall on, and offers criteria with which to judge oneself.

Video

The video, directed by Craig Melville, follows a very irreverent storyline which has nothing to do with the song in question. It begins with a scene very reminiscent of an early morning aerobics television show, Aerobics Oz Style in which TISM are in the class.