-Written by Kim Parnell-

Thirty years ago, Chocolate Starfish released their self-titled first full-length studio album, a culmination of six years of songwriting and relentless live performances. The album, which hit the shelves in April 1994, and peaked at number 2 on the ARIA Charts spawned five singles. The record was eventually certified Platinum, cementing the band’s place in Australian music history.

Reflecting on this three-decade journey, lead singer Adam Thompson speaks candidly about the band’s evolution. “I think the milestone itself is reflective of our ability to have evolved as people,” he says. “When you’re young, it’s a completely different lifestyle. Half of us weren’t in relationships. Now, we’re all married, and most of us have kids. It’s a completely different mindset and approach to our togetherness than what we had back in the ’90s.”

He continues, “What I’m most proud of is how we’ve been able to communicate and grow. It’s no easy feat getting five people to be on the same page thirty years down the track, but we’re at that point now where we can do all those things and come out the other side. Our shows today are probably even greater than they were in the ’90s because all five of us are celebrating the same feeling of togetherness.”

The origin of the name Chocolate Starfish is a tale that many fans know, yet there are still those who are unaware of its roots. The name is a derivative of a colloquialism popularised by Australian satirist Barry Humphries through his character, Sir Les Patterson, describing the bum as a “chocolate starfish”, which both Adam Thompson and the late Zoran Romic thought, at the time, was very funny.

The band had to seek permission from Barry to use the words. The performer was flattered and impressed that his colloquialism was to become a band name. Barry Humphries’s ability to traverse the tongue-in-cheek Australian culture is something the band had always admired.

Adam recalls meeting Barry several times, thanks to the close-knit nature of the Australian entertainment community, even across generations. “We thought we’d use the name until we came up with something better,” Adam laughs. “Thirty years later, we’re still Chocolate Starfish.”

Adam Thompson’s journey into music was deeply personal. He lost his mother to cancer at the age of fourteen, an event that became a catalyst for his exploration of creative avenues. “It was my cathartic way of dealing with grief and expressing myself,” Adam reflects. At the time, Meat Loaf’s Bat Out of Hell album became a source of solace and inspiration. “Songs like ‘Heaven Can Wait’ and ‘Crying Out Loud’ were everything I wanted to express but didn’t know how to as a fourteen-year-old kid,” he says. This connection to music as a form of expression laid the groundwork for his future career.

Chocolate Starfish is known for performing powerful classic albums, including Meat Loaf’s Bat Out of Hell in 2017 and INXS’s Kick in 2018. “The decision to focus on these albums came from our ability to take a cover like ‘You’re So Vain’ and make it our own,” Adam says. “With INXS, the integrity and belief they had in themselves during the making of Kick really shines through in those songs.”

In 2017, the band released Spider, their first album of new material in twenty years. The album is dedicated to Zoran “Spider” Romic, the band’s guitarist who passed away from cancer twelve years ago. Zoran co-wrote the album track “Heavyweight” several years prior to its release.

The band’s most recent album, Beautiful Addiction (2020), was born out of the COVID lockdown and represents a return to the careful, deliberate songwriting process that characterised their early work. Adam reflects. “The songs on Beautiful Addiction really had great care given to them, and I believe there’s a bit of a spiritual input from Zoran.”

This year, Chocolate Starfish are touring with The Best Of Everything 2024 Australian Tour. Describing the energy of a live performance, Adam notes, “A lot of bands perform for an audience, but we perform with the audience. We create a space where people can feel connected. It’s amazing to see men who have never clapped, danced, or sung at a concert do so at a Chocolate Starfish show. It releases a lot of barriers they thought defined them.”

Outside of touring and recording, Adam is deeply involved in various projects, including a music program called Muso Magic that goes out to Aboriginal communities and even India. Outback Tracks, the Aboriginal version, has been broadcast on NITV and involves community songwriting and video projects that address social issues like health, education, and racial harmony. “We want the community to come up with solutions through music.”

Adam’s involvement in these communities has grounded him. His spiritual approach to music and life has only deepened over the years, and it’s this sense of purpose that drives both his solo and band projects.

Chocolate Starfish is set to perform in Hervey Bay, a location they’ve never played before. “I’m looking forward to bringing the band to Hervey Bay and performing for our fans.

Adam’s dedication to his craft, his band, and his community work continues to inspire both longtime fans and new audiences. As Chocolate Starfish celebrates this milestone, it’s clear that their journey is far from over. The energy, passion, and connection that define their music will keep them rocking for years to come.

SOUNDS OF ROCK MUSIC FESTIVAL

Saturday, November 2

1pm – 10pm

Seafront Oval, Hervey Bay

Tickets from www.oztix.com.au