TISM Essentials

The leading provocateurs of the Australian music scene, TISM have never missed an opportunity to skewer earnestness and celebrity. The anonymous Melbourne troupe’s 2001 track “If You’re Not Famous at Fourteen, You’re Finished” mocked the eternal thirst for fame—complete with a clip from live-music TV show Countdown—while they broadcasted similar sentiments early on with 1988’s “I’m Interested in Apathy.” TISM poked equal fun at overseas entertainers like Britney Spears and Fred Durst, and relished the chance to shock and offend with their lyrics over programmed backdrops that bordered on chintzy (see 1998’s “I Might Be a C*** but I'm Not a F****** C***”) yet doubled as instant sing-alongs. TISM’s barbs have always been as sharp as they have been timely, tearing into Australia’s most beloved figures and institutions with true satirical flair.