Biography of Chumbawamba

Best known for the shimmering "Under the Milky Way," their lone Top 40 hit, the Australian band the Church combined the jangling guitar-pop of '60s icons like the Byrds with the opaque wordplay of frontman Steve Kilbey to create a lush, melancholy brand of neo-psychedelia rich in texture and melody. Their 1981 debut Of Skin and Heart was an evocative collection highlighted by the ringing "The Unguarded Moment," a major success down under; the group resurfaced in 1982 with The Blurred Crusade, a stunning effort featuring mature standouts like "Almost With You" and "When You Were Mine." After moving to Arista, the Church teamed with famed session guitarists Danny Kortchmar and Waddy Wachtel to record 1988's Starfish, their most artistically and commercially successful effort to date. Highlighted by "Under the Milky Way," the album also featured the minor hits "Reptile" and "Spark," a marvelous pop blast penned by guitarist Marty Willson-Piper. The follow-up, 1988's Gold Afternoon Fix, failed to repeat the success of its predecessor as the single "Metropolis" garnered only minor airplay. ~ Jason Ankeny