The deep, emotive voice of David McComb ties together the different phases of this much-loved Australian alternative band. Their early work was wiry and gritty, sitting comfortably between the literate romanticism of The Go-Betweens and visceral power of The Birthday Party. Then they went deeper and wider, their songs becoming more epic and lush in both sound and emotion. In whatever mode they operated, there was a tangible melancholy and grand sweep to their sound, evocative of the big blue skies and sun-baked surrounds of Perth, where the band started.