Rip Curl Pro Bells, April 14, 1995 – Easter Friday: Silverchair were fresh off their first international tour and their debut album, Frogstomp, had just been certified Platinum. The Newcastle-born trio were only 15 but everyone in Australia was singing the words to ‘Tomorrow’. The Rip Curl Pro was held in conjunction with The Offshore Music Festival, and thousands poured into the Bells carpark to hear Silverchair play on Good Friday. To get a shot of the Bells throng, Tracks’ versatile lensman, Tony Nolan, climbed up on a van and aimed his lens across the head-tops, at the stage. That year another favourite son of Newcastle, Matt Hoy, made the semis in the contest where he was defeated by the ultimate event winner, Sunny Garcia. Lisa Anderson rung the Bell in the women’s event. Two-years later, in 1997, Silverchair were back, this time playing in a dusty paddock up the road from the contest site. That year Matt Hoy finally did win the contest, while Lisa Anderson was once again the women’s Bell ringer (she won four in total). By 2001, Silverchair were at their zenith, playing in front of 250 000 people at Brazil’s Rock in Rio concert.
