We continue with our Best of the 90’s series with a look at the ten Australian albums our contributors have voted as their favourite of the 1990s. With The Living End currently touring every album they’ve ever released around the country, perhaps it’s only appropriate that we kick off this countdown with their self-titled 1998 release.
10. The Living End – The Living End (1998)
9. Kim Salmon & STM – Hey Believer (1994)
According to his Wikipedia page, Kim Salmon “attained fame in June 2004, when he was inducted into the West Australian Music Industry Association Hall of Fame.” But the rest of us have known about Kim for a lot longer than that. One particular album that our contributors point to is the brilliant Hey Believer, which was a one off release with a very special backing band “STM“, made up of Warren Ellis (violins) and Jim White (drums) from the Dirty Three, with Andrew Entsch on bass. No wonder it made the list, really.
8. The Whitlams – Eternal Nightcap (1997)
“Tim Freedman is one of the country’s best songwriters in my opinion and the songs he wrote for Eternal Nightcap do nothing but highlight this talent. The intensely personal ‘Charlie’ songs are always stunning to listen to (if you’ve been to a Whitlams live show, you’ll know the reaction they prompt), but his humour comes through just as well on “You Sound Like Louis Burdett”.” – Sosefina Fuamoli
7. Rowland S. Howard – Teenage Snuff Film (1999)
The debut solo album from the late, great Rowland S. Howard remains one of the most acclaimed of the 90s, though it came into prominence more in the 2000s as Howard relentlessly toured the country and spread the gospel of his post-Birthday Party music. The album was re-released in 2011, following his untimely passing at the end of 2009. As they say, music lives forever, and indeed it’s safe to say you’ll continue to see Howard’s name for a long time to come on lists such as these…
6. The Dirty Three – Horse Stories (1996)
Another two Dirty Three records hit the top twenty of our contributor’s picks for best Australian albums of the 90s (Ocean Songs and Sad & Dangerous), but this Anchor & Hope 1996 release (their own label) was by and far the favourite.
5. Grinspoon – Guide To Better Living (1998)
For those who grew up in the late 90s, it was hard to escape falling for Guide to Better Living and, at the very least learning every word to every song without even meaning to. As Sabina Rysnik said of her choice: “…It’s a great album with some awesome tracks like Champion which have elements of that heavier sound which is pretty groovy…”
4. You Am I – Hi-Fi Way (1995)
“Hard to choose between this & “Hourly Daily”. My bass player got me onto these guys & I still listen to both albums a lot. Probably the only 90’s album I still do regularly. When I do I’ll listen to them repeatedly for a week…” – Cam Ewart. Cam, I daresay you’re not alone…
3. Regurgitator – Unit (1997)
“This has got to be one of Regurgitator’s best albums; it just captures their quirky, crazy, experimental spirit so well. I was hooked from the moment a mate played me ‘I Piss Alone’, that was my introduction into the overly excited world that is Regurgitator. The brilliant fusion of bouncy rock, old school scratching, hip-hop, electronica and everything in between makes Unit awesome for busting moves and the hilariously random and mostly crude lyrics are perfect for screaming out loudly, usually to the disgust of passers-by.” – Nazia Hafiz
2. Gerling – Children of Telepathic Experiences (1998)
“Inventing rocktronica and bringing it to the mainstream in one hit. A sure sign of excellent and original art, this album is full of striking songs that seem so weird and unconventional the first time you hear them, but quickly seem like the only way their genre could be done. Fantastic immersible use of panning on ‘A student eating sushi with a chimp on a glass island’ too.” – Michael Aiken
1. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – The Boatman’s Call (1997)
Like The Dirty Three, Nick Cave saw more than one album voted into the top twenty, but it was 1997’s The Boatsman’s Call that took Nick all the way to the top of our countdown. Their tenth album together, the album features now-classic tunes like “Into My Arms”, “People Ain’t No Good” and “(Are You) The One That I’ve Been Waiting For?”. It would be hard to call any album a ‘safe choice’ for favourite Nick Cave record, as each album achieved varied levels of success and for every person out there who calls Boatman’s their favourite, there would be another who would say the same for Murder Ballads or Your Funeral… My Trial… but there you have it!
Stay tuned for our favourite singles and films of the 90s as we continue our best of series!
