The Fragments Bio – ‘Transporter Volume I & II’ (2019)

It was 2001-2005, and The Shins & Broken Social Scene ruled indie airways. Two high school friends from Sydney who’d grown up together playing in local bands Avatar and Iliad, decided to start things afresh.

Damian Press and Piers Twomey said, “Hell, let’s forget everything and start a new indie rock band. We’ll write whatever we like, share vocals and guitars, anything goes…. Man, it’ll just be great to do a gig at the Hopetoun.” (Which it was).

With their cozy HQ rehearsal space and recording set-up in Damian’s Petersham pad, they began as Transporter, and changed their name to The Fragments following line-up changes. They quickly grew a fanbase and regularly toured the east coast, with the settled formation of Damian (guitars, vocals, keys, production), Piers (guitars, vocals, keys), Christo Kollias (drums), and Fraser Smith (bass).

Great musos and friends helped along the way: cousin Brendan Press (keys, bass), Avatar comrade Mark Cauvin (bass), John Dewhurst (drums), and Ant Whitehouse (bass, vocals) among them. Their buddy Mark Bulgin managed the band while working as their booker with Select Music.

The guys were naïve and in awe of the dark magicians behind bands like Sonic Youth, Interpol and …Trail of Dead. But they could never forget their first loves: The Cure, Pixies, Yo La Tengo, and psychedelic-era Beatles and Pink Floyd. So they said “whatever, it’s all part of the mix”.

Thus, the Fragments brewed together seemingly disparate elements into a kinetic, melodic, open-hearted, and abrasive whole. There was harmony, there was conflict, and there was a beautiful tension. The band refined its sound sharing stages with local and overseas legends like Preston School of Industry, Dappled Cities, Art of Fighting, and The Panics.

Time moves on and The Fragments decided to split by 2006, with the guys going on to different projects. Damian and Chris flew to Berlin with new-wavers Expatriate, Piers joined post-rock band Grün, then released solo folk/classical inspired records, Fraser kept up with his other project, progressive rock band Many Are Here, and Mark went onto a career in avant-garde classical double bass.

Today, after years away from the original recordings, they’re all impressed with what they created back in the day, most of which was never officially released (aside from three singles). Hence these two retrospective compilations. As songwriters, Damian and Piers poured their hopes, fears, and triumphs into the music, effectively capturing life in their twenties via these audio diaries.

Most of the songs were self-recorded in Petersham and produced by Damian, with some mixing help from producers Wayne Connolly, Matt Fell, and Jonathan Burnside. With 14 songs each, Transporter Volume I is made up of later material as The Fragments, where Volume II is comprised of earlier Transporter tracks. A little backwards, but there it is! The guys hope you get a kick out of it and enjoy the music. It sure was fun to make it.

The Fragments, Transporter Volume I
1. You Saw Me Fall
2. Time Be Still
3. State of Grace
4. No Delays
5. Merry Christmas 1984
6. False Alarm
7. Sadness is a Place
8. Racing Off Again
9. Light On
10. Wrong Way Highway
11. 9/11
12. We have lost (Transporter)
13. Don’t Go
14. Never Left Alone

The Fragments, Transporter Volume II
1. Gather Round
2. On Your Side
3. Rise and Fall
4. Saved By
5. Corridors
6. Parallel Lines
7. Wintertime
8. Dead Ed Wood
9. She May Be Right
10. Emerald Light
11. Bask in the Sun
12. A2B
13. Stealing Glances
14. People I Know