The Basics Party Struggling To Meet Election Rego Deadline

There was great hype early last month when it was first reported that acclaimed muso Wally 'Gotye' De Backer and his bandmates in The Basics would be forming a political party in protest over governmental environmental policies.

Now, after some initial confusion over whether De Backer himself would be running for election (he isn't — bassist Kris Schroeder is, although there is potential for the Somebody That I Used To Know hit-maker to appear as the party's second candidate, according to Fairfax) and a consequent storm of support that saw the party quickly amass the requisite 500 members to be submitted for registration, The Basics Rock'n'Roll Party runs the risk of missing the boat entirely.

UPDATE: The Basics will now be the focus of a panel at the Face The Music conference in mid-November, focusing on the Victorian election. More info here.

As Schroeder told The Age, the party is awaiting verification of fewer than 50 of those names that signed up in order to secure their registration, but, with the issuing of election writs only days away, on Tuesday, time is running out for the Victorian Electoral Commission to finish the job.

According to reports, difficulties in reconciling submitted names with address and electoral registration are a part of the spanner in the works, with fleeting interest from some signatories backing up the problems.  

"Some people jumped on the bandwagon but lost interest just as quickly," Schroeder told The Age.

"My feeling is that we will probably miss out," he continued. "I've had this feeling for a while.

"We're playing it as it comes. Some people have their hearts set on it but we will see. I'm not too fussed. It will be a bit disappointing to miss out, because we're so close."

The band has publicised their situation on Facebook, telling fans, "If we miss out, it will probably be single digits".

"If you think you can't make a difference by mailing in your confirmation — think again. If would be a terrific waste to have been within a whisker of registration."

The Basics embark on a national tour in support of new protest single The Lucky Country, which sees them kick off at the Newtown Social Club on December 16 and 17, and heading on to play shows in Maroochydore, Brisbane, Melbourne, Hobart, Launceston, Perth, Fremantle and Adelaide.

Tickets for The Basics' forthcoming jaunt are up for sale from 9am tomorrow, October 31. See the Gig Guide or check The Music App for more information.