By Jamie Wdziekonski

Coming from the Land Down Under

Australia has a long, rich history of music that includes many more bands than its most famous offspring, AC/DC. Though synonymous with the raucous bar-band ethos popularized by the likes of AC/DC and Rose Tattoo in the ‘70s, the scene touches on everything from craftsmanlike pop to atmospheric post-punk. Here are some of the best Aussie bands since the ‘60s:

The Easybeats
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The immortal “Friday on My Mind” still explodes out of speakers worldwide, and put Australian rock on the map when it charted in 1966 across the globe. Guitarists Harry Vanda and George Young, older brother of Angus and Malcolm Young, would go on to produce several classic AC/DC albums in the ‘70s. Essential album: “Absolute Anthology 1965-1969” (1980).

Greg Kot is the editorial director of The Coda Collection. He is also the cohost of the nationally syndicated public-radio show and podcast “Sound Opinions” with Jim DeRogatis, and previously the music critic at the Chicago Tribune for 30 years. His books include acclaimed biographies of Mavis Staples (“I’ll Take You There”) and Wilco (“Learning How to Die”) and a history of the digital music revolution (“Ripped”). He also coauthored “The Beatles vs. the Rolling Stones: Sound Opinions on the Great Rock ‘N’ Roll Rivalry” and has written extensively for Rolling Stone, BBC Culture and Encyclopedia Britannica. When he takes off the headphones, Kot coaches in his Chicago-based youth travel basketball program (OTEhoops.com). In addition, he has coauthored two best-selling editions of the book “Survival Guide to Coaching Youth Basketball.”

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