14. The Go-Betweens- Oceans Apart

2006 marks the 25th anniversary of this Brisbane-outfit who started out their career amongst the great pop boom of the eighties- with bands like Prefab Sprout, Aztec Camera andThe Beautiful South forming a strong pop contingent. There's not much left of that particular scene but the Go-betweens don't care- they keep on churning out great pop records away from all modern music fads. The differences between their albums have always been subtle- this one has a slightly more keyboard-dominated underground from previous albums The Friends Of Rachel Worth and Bright Yellow Bright Orange, replacing the string section. It's not a bad move as the songs that principal members Robert Forster and Grant McLennan conjure blossom under any musical underground and this album has a more mellow mood without getting too sedated which suits the poetry-soaked lyrics of Forster extremely well. Here Comes The City shoots out off the block fast but plays a lone rock-hand...it's songs like the wonderful Darlinghurst Nights, Finding You, boundary Rider, No Reason To Cry and The Mountains Near Dellray that leave the biggest impression. Purist pop heaven.