Splurge

Formed in Melbourne in 1997, indie pop outfit Splurge began as a duo pairing vocalist-guitarist Greg Williams—born in Adelaide—with guitarist Neville Hill. The pair first stockpiled numerous demo tapes before enlisting drummer Owen Smythe and bassist-vocalist Greg Arnold to lay down their strongest songs for the band’s self-titled debut album. Issued in 1999, that record drew scant notice, though it already displayed the quartet’s gift for crafting effortlessly melodic pop. While preparing material for a follow-up, Arnold and Williams finished an album tied to the latter’s long-running side project, the Every Brothers. Splurge’s sophomore effort, 2002’s Heavy Weather, earned considerably broader press attention than its predecessor and drew critical praise from outside Australia.