Formed in Dunedin in 1986, the group is known for its lo-fi guitar soundscapes and improvisational take on rock music. They became known internationally through their releases on the Philadelphia record label Siltbreeze, especially the 1992 double LP Harsh 70s Reality. Early, pre-Siltbreeze albums like Eusa Kills and DR503 find the group still drifting between song-based work and the experimental free rock found in later albums like The White House and Tusk. Recent albums have seen the group add electronics and samples, yet still maintaining their origins in trademark hazy guitar chaos.
The group performs very infrequently outside of New Zealand, although they did travel to the USA in March 2002 to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival (curated by Sonic Youth), as well as a couple of gigs in Los Angeles and San Francisco. They also performed for the first time in Europe in May 2004 at Le Weekend, a new music festival in Stirling, Scotland and returned to the UK to play at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival again in December 2006. They are playing some shows in the United States in October 2008.
A compilation album covering their first 18 years entitled "Vain Erudite and Stupid: Selected Works 1987-2005" was released on the Ba Da Bing! label in 2006.
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