Biography
Big Heavy Stuff came together in Brisbane, Australia during 1990, built around drummer Darren Atkinson, guitarist/vocalist Greg Atkinson, bassist Darren Jones (ex-Dutiful Daughters), and guitarist/vocalist Carolyn Polley (ex-Toys Went Berserk). The Atkinsons had previously performed together in the late-'80s jangle pop outfit the Ups and Downs. Drawing from English dream pop and the louder American indie underground, the group set out to create a cerebral rock sound marked by perfectionist detail. Their first outing arrived via the 1991 Pops Like Crazy EP on Volition. Several singles paved the way for the debut album Truck, which surfaced in 1993. After that record's release the rhythm section departed, bringing in bassist Eliot Fish (ex-Apartments, Templebears) and drummer Nick Kennedy (Knievel). Two additional CD EPs appeared between 1994 and the start of 1997. The only U.S. release came in 1995 when Jawbox's DeSoto label issued the Birthday single, culled from two tracks on the Covered in Bruises EP. Mid-1997 brought the band's second album, Maximum Sincere, on Hypnotized/Shock; critics greeted it warmly. Four further singles followed on the same label that year. Adam Young (ex-Daisygrinders) stepped in after Polley exited a few months post-release. Now signed to the V2 subsidiary Ivy League, the band put out the Devil's Tongue single in 1999, yet a full album for the imprint remained unreleased. An album's worth of material sat finished but dormant for more than a year until Redline finally issued Size of the Ocean in 2001.