Dune Rats

Dune Rats are an Australian hard rock and rock group from Brisbane, Queensland, active since 2011. The band consists of Danny Beus on vocals and guitar, BC Michaels on drums, and Brett Jansch on bass. Jansch, formerly of Bleeding Knees Club, joins as an official member in 2013. The group is also described as working across indie, jangle, surf and garage rock.

Formation and early releases

The band forms in 2011 with Beus and Michaels. Their first EP, Sexy Beach, appears that same year and is recorded and produced by Tim Morrissey of The John Steel Singers. A second EP, Atoms, follows in September 2011 and includes the single Pogo. That release also features production work from Morrissey, Berkfinger of Philadelphia Grand Jury and Sean Caskey.

Dune Rats gain attention through Triple J Unearthed and are chosen for the Gold Coast leg of the 2012 Big Day Out. In 2012 they release the single Fuck It and tour with acts including Bleeding Knees Club, DZ Deathrays, Children Collide and Violent Soho.

EPs, international touring and debut album

Their third EP, Smile, arrives in 2013. It includes Red Light, Green Light, which is accompanied by a one-take video in which the band re-enacts the DZ Deathrays video for The Mess Up, replacing beer-sculling with bong-smoking. The video draws more than 250,000 views. The band also supports The Hives, Best Coast and FIDLAR, tours the US with FIDLAR, plays SXSW in Austin, Texas, and tours South-East Asia.

The debut self-titled LP is released on the band’s own Ratbag Records and is supported by a world tour.

Later albums

In 2016 the band releases Bullshit and Scott Green. Both songs enter the triple j Hottest 100 for that year and appear on The Kids Will Know It's Bullshit, the band’s second studio album. The album is released in 2017 and debuts at number one on the ARIA chart.

Three singles, No Plans, Rubber Arm and Crazy, follow in 2019 and appear on the third studio album Hurry Up And Wait. That album is released in 2020 and also debuts at number one on the ARIA chart.