History Music / TISM

[[HarsherInHindsight Odds on it'll be]] {{Michael Jackson}}''

Taking inspiration from {{The Residents}}, TISM were never seen without their trademark balaclavas and often sported elaborate costumes at concerts. The band used their anonymity to become the premier {{troll}}s of the [[AustralianMusic Australian music]] scene, known for pranks on both the media and audiences alike (for example, turning up on {{Hey Hey Its Saturday}} [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG4janHITY8 with 28 band members]], and playing [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6r1HdjFYl3k a gig that lasted a whole 3 minutes]]). Naturally they courted a lot of controversy, most famously earning the ire of Australian-born [[RedHotChiliPeppers Flea]] for a song about the death of {{River Phoenix}}, and getting sued by artist Ken Done for an album cover parodying his artwork.

TISM (short for [[FunWithAcronyms This Is Serious Mum]]) were a seven-piece [[AnonymousBand anonymous]] {{Australia}}n alternative rock/electronic band known for their satirical lyrics, energetic live shows and frequent piss-taking. Formed in 1982 in south-east Melbourne, they immediately broke up after a disastrous first gig (with every subsequent gig termed a "re-union gig"), before getting back together and releasing their 1988 debut album ''Great Truckin' Songs Of The Renaissance'' to mild success. In 1995, with the release of their third album ''Machiavelli And The Four Seasons'', they departed from the simple rock sound of earlier albums into a more synth-orientated electronic style. [[GrowingTheBeard The change was a hit]], and the album became their best-selling and most famous. They broke up in 2004 after releasing ''[[TheBeatles The White Albun]]'', their sixth and final album.

* {{Melbourne}}: Their music contains many references and in-jokes about Melbourne. "Get Thee In My Behind" is about the difficulty of doing a right hand turn on Swanston Street (a very busy road in the CBD) and "Mourningtown Ride" is a {{list song}} of various Melbourne train stations and why you'll get mugged at each one.

* TakeThat: Undisputed masters of the art. In the course of giving one to then-[[AustralianPolitics Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett]] in "[[SarcasmMode The Greatest Victorian Alive]]", they managed to give a take that to the whole rest of Australia:

And {{Sydney}}... still full of WANKERS.''

-->''Forget [[SnoopDogg Snoop Doggy Dog]], forget old [[IceT Ice-T]].\\

* WildTeenParty: One appears in the music video for "Greg, The Stop Sign!". Also the default state of {{Hell}}, if "Schoolie's Week" is to believe.

* WildTeenParty: One appears in the music video for "Greg, The Stop Sign!".

''Now here we are at the last verse... I've lost interest.'' Also the default state of {{Hell}}, if "Schoolie's Week" is to believe.

''Now here we are at the last verse... I've lost interest.''

* '''Tokin' Blackman''' (James Paull): Guitar (died of cancer in 2008)

* 1993 - ''Australia The Lucky Cunt'' (EP, the aforementioned Ken Done sued them over its cover art, and it was subsequently re-released as [[OurLawyersAdvisedThisTrope ''Censored Due to Legal Advice'']])

TISM (short for [[FunWithAcronyms This Is Serious Mum]]) were a seven-piece [[AnonymousBand anonymous]] {{Australia}}n alternative rock/electronic band known for their satirical lyrics, energetic live shows and frequent piss-taking. Formed in 1982 in south-east Melbourne, they immediately broke up after a disastrous first gig (with every subsequent gig termed a "re-union gig"), before getting back together and releasing their 1988 debut LP ''Great Trucking Songs Of The Renaissance'' to mild success. In 1995, with the release of their third album ''Machiavelli And The Four Seasons'', they departed from the simple rock sound of earlier albums into a more synth-orientated electronic style. [[GrowingTheBeard The change was a hit]], and the album became their best-selling and most famous. They broke up in 2004 after releasing ''[[TheBeatles The White Albun]]'', their sixth and final album.

->''[[SelfDeprecation TISM are shit]], [[CatchPhrase TISM are shit]]''
->''T-I-S-M A-R-E''

-->--'''"[[AudienceParticipationSong TISM Are Shit]]"''', ''The White Albun'' (the last song on their last album)

TISM (short for This Is Serious, Mum) were a seven-piece [[AnonymousBand anonymous]] {{Australia}}n alternative rock/electronic band known for their humorous and satirical lyrics, energetic live shows and frequent piss-taking. Formed in 1982 in south-east {{Melbourne}}, they immediately broke up after a disastrous first gig (with every subsequent gig termed a "re-union gig"), before getting back together and releasing their 1988 debut LP ''Great Trucking Songs Of The Renaissance'' to mild success. In 1995, with the release of their third album ''Machiavelli And The Four Seasons'', they departed from the simple rock sound of earlier albums into a more synth-orientated electronic style. The change took off, and the album became their best-selling and most famous. They broke up in 2004 after releasing ''[[TheBeatles The White Albun]]'', their sixth and final album.

Taking inspiration from {{The Residents}}, TISM were never seen without their trademark balaclavas and often sported elaborate costumes at concerts. The band used their anonymity to become the premier {{troll}}s of the [[AustralianMusic Australian music]] scene, known for pranks on both the media and audiences alike (for example, turning up on {{Hey Hey Its Saturday}} [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG4janHITY8 with 28 band members]], and playing [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6r1HdjFYl3k a gig that lasted a whole 3 minutes]]). Naturally they courted a lot of controversy, most famously earning the ire of Australian-born [[RedHotChiliPeppers Flea]] for a song about the death of {{River Phoenix}}, and getting sued by Australian artist Ken Done for parody album artwork.

While relatively popular in Australia, TISM are probably best known elsewhere for their 2004 single "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Everyone Else Has Had More Sex Than Me]]", due to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENnAa7rqtBM the music video of a lamenting bunny]] becoming an early viral video on flash sites such as {{Newgrounds}}.

-----

* CaughtWithYourPantsDown: "Been Caught Wankin'"

* FanOfThePast: "Garbage" doesn't take a very kindly view to these in the younger generation, with a refrain of "Don't recycle garbage".

-->''The singer mucked up this song;\\
The guitarist has got it wrong;\\
The bassist, in all likelihood,\\
Is like the drummer, they're both no good!''

* WildTeenParty: One appears in the music video for "Greg, The Stop Sign!".

* ViewersAreGeniuses: {{Played for laughs}} in "[[BathroomStallGraffiti Message From A Big Day Out Port-A-Loo]]". After worrying about what various obscure and nuanced details of Middle-Eastern politics will mean for the region, the singer just decides to get drunk and take E.

While relatively popular in Australia, TISM are probably best known elsewhere for their 2004 single "[[EverybodyHasLotsOfSex Everyone Else Has Had More Sex Than Me]]", due to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENnAa7rqtBM the music video of a lamenting bunny]] becoming an early viral video on flash sites such as {{Newgrounds}}.

* NostalgiaFilter: Lamented in the song "Garbage" that this even effects kids who aren't old enough to actually have any genuine nostalgia:
-->''I met a member of Generation X, "hey what's in with you kids these days?\\
I'm so old I'll probably never have heard of it", and he replied "[[JimiHendrix Purple Haze]]"''

-->"Give me a pop-song, mate. Give me a fucking pop-song. Not only is it more fun, it's pretty fuckin' hard to write as well. You can bung in as many [[TrueArtIsIncomprehensible out-of-tune oboes]] as you want, but putting chords together so they sound pleasant isn't as simple as it might appear ... What have you listened to for a good time that isn't, after all, a 'traditional' song? Still playing the {{Mike Oldfield}} records, huh? Still whipping {{Yes}}songs on for a good time? [[TakeThat Wanna count on one hand how many people have fun]] at a {{Sonic Youth}} gig?"

-->"Give me a pop-song, mate. Give me a fucking pop-song. Not only is it more fun, it's pretty fuckin' hard to write as well. You can bung in as many out-of-tune oboes as you want, but putting chords together so they sound pleasant isn't as simple as it might appear ... What have you listened to for a good time that isn't, after all, a 'traditional' song? Still playing the {{Mike Oldfield}} records, huh? Still whipping {{Yes}}songs on for a good time? [[TakeThat Wanna count on one hand how many people have fun]] at a {{Sonic Youth}} gig?"

-->"Give me a pop-song, mate. Give me a fucking pop-song. Not only is it more fun, it's pretty fuckin' hard to write as well.\\
You can bung in as many out-of-tune oboes as you want, but putting chords together so they sound pleasant isn't as simple as it might appear."

TISM (short for This Is Serious, Mum) were a seven-piece [[AnonymousBand anonymous]] {{Australia}}n alternative rock/electronic band known for their humorous and satirical lyrics, energetic live shows and frequent piss-taking. Formed in 1982 in south-east {{Melbourne}}, they immediately broke up after a disastrous first gig (with every subsequent gig termed a "re-union gig"), before getting back together and releasing their 1988 debut LP ''Great Trucking Songs Of The Renaissance'' to mild success. In 1995, with the release of their fourth album ''Machiavelli And The Four Seasons'', they departed from the simple rock sound of earlier albums into a more synth-orientated electronic style. The change took off, and the album became their best-selling and most famous. They broke up in 2004 after releasing ''[[TheBeatles The White Albun]]'', their seventh and final.

->''T-I-S-M-A-R-E''

->''T-I-S-M-A-R-E''

TISM (short for This Is Serious, Mum) were a seven-piece anonymous {{Australia}}n alternative rock/electronic band known for their humorous and satirical lyrics, energetic live shows and frequent piss-taking. Formed in 1982 in south-east {{Melbourne}}, they immediately broke up after a disastrous first gig (with every subsequent gig termed a "re-union gig"), before getting back together and releasing their 1988 debut LP ''Great Trucking Songs Of The Renaissance'' to mild success. In 1995, with the release of their fourth album ''Machiavelli And The Four Seasons'', they departed from the simple rock sound of earlier albums into a more synth-orientated electronic style. The change took off, and the album became their best-selling and most famous. They broke up in 2004 after releasing ''[[TheBeatles The White Albun]]'', their seventh and final.

* NostalgiaFilter: Lament in the song "Garbage" that this even effects kids who aren't old enough to actually have any genuine nostalgia:
-->I met a member of Generation X, "hey what's in with you kids these days?
-->I'm so old I'll probably never have heard of it", and he replied "[[JimiHendrix Purple Haze]]"
* PublicServiceAnnouncement: "Greg, The Stop Sign!" is a reference to an Australian driving PSA, where a distract driver misses a stop sign, prompting a passenger to yell "DARREN!"
-->Forget [[SnoopDogg Snoop Doggy Dog]], forget old [[IceT Ice-T]].
-->The true word out on the street is produced by the [[PublicServiceAnnouncement TAC]]

-->The singer mucked up this song;
-->The guitarist has got it wrong;
-->The bassist, in all likelihood,
-->Is like the drummer, they're both no good!

-->Queensland used to be the national joke
-->And Adelaide was full of S&M botty-spankers.
-->Perth was full of [[CorruptCorporateExecutive cricked crooked businessmen]],
-->And {{Sydney}}... still full of WANKERS.

-->"Give me a pop-song, mate. Give me a fucking pop-song. Not only is it more fun, it's pretty fuckin' hard to write as well. You can bung in as many out-of-tune oboes as you want, but putting chords together so they sound pleasant isn't as simple as it might appear."

-->Now I'm bored and there's no stopping,
-->I need another celeb to fill a coffin
-->Where will I get my next drug action?
-->[[HarsherInHindsight Odds on it'll be]] {{Michael Jackson}}

!!TISM provides examples of the following tropes: