It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Rarely have so many owed so much to so few. Round and round the ragged rocks the ragged rascal ran, and they sang as they watched and they waited by that billabong...
In October 1990 a new song burst onto Sydney's radio playlists jolting listeners out of their post-winter lethargy and heralding the arrival of some new players on the scene - The Clouds. The song was Cloud Factory and featured the soaring vocals of Jodi Phillis and the floating harmonies of cohort Trish Young. Accompanied by Stuart Eadie on drums and Rob Phelan on guitar The Clouds sounded like a ray of sunshine re-introducing pop to the masses.
Their first ep was warmly received by critics and fans alike, and the ascendancy of The Clouds had begun.
After a lineup change, farewelling Rob and welcoming Dave Easton on guitar, the second ep Loot was released in 1991. On the whole louder, faster and fuzzier, Loot featured the driving Soul Eater and perennial favourite 4pm. The nebulous boys and girls were fast finding themselves media darlings and started to attract plenty of followers thanks to extensive radio support and enthusiastic reviews. And impeccably tight shows.
Then, the debut album. Fans of traditional pop may find themselves bamboozled by the opening chords of The Clouds' Hieronymus: G Bm Cmaj7 F - what?? But those dark twists and turns found their way through many an inner ear canal to insistently play on people's minds with the release of The Clouds' first album Penny Century in 1991. The album went gold, which they all thought was pretty good for indie.
After Penny Century, the band enjoyed a sojourn in Melbourne recording what would be released as a mini-album. What on earth were they going to call it? Eight brilliant songs.... four brilliant minds.... round table discussions into the night.... no, actually, the name suggested itself: Octopus. The catchy bouncy Say It was first past the post, with Jodi and Trish chirping the entire song in unison.
After Octopus, The Clouds and Stuart parted company. For a while, stickman Andrew Byrnes manned the tubs, then a new recruit, Raph Whittingham signed up and was taken on board. It was time for the difficult second album. Difficult for whom? For the critics, as it turned out. Jodi and Trish were writing ever more complex and experimental songs, demanding more of their listeners. Their moods were ephemeral - playful, brooding, sensuous, adamant and more. Throughout it all the twin guitar attack/caress of Dave and Jodi never let up, Raph's drums thundered and thrummed, and those harmonies slinked and shivered all over the shop. The first single Bower of Bliss had the record company (by now a major) shaking in their shoes. Heavy on the distortion and low on the sweetness, it is nevertheless a triumphant love song.
In 1994 The Clouds relocated to Britain to try to find themselves an international following and record deal. While there they recorded the even more experimental Beetroot. Try tapping your toes to Boy Of Air - you just can't! They returned to Australia with a big fat contract in their collective pockets and a bunch of new songs to record.
1995 saw the kids pack their bags for San Francisco, with a couple of eps to release back home while they were away. Aquamarine is a surf classic with whimsical lyrics - Panelvan is Clouds-go-road-movie. Still a hundred million chords per song, mind you.
While they were away they incurred two heavy losses - David Easton headed back to Australia on his own, and the big fat contract (from Elektra Records) turned to dust. They were dropped from the label, and returned to Australia bowed, but not beaten!
It was time for the difficult third album. A new guitarist extraordinaire, Ben Nightingale, found his way into the fold, their first producer from the early days Tim Whitton was called in and work began on what would be their swansong. Futura emerged in 1996, to mixed reception. The Clouds were finding cloudy life difficult and the album is patchy, although it still contains some of their finest work. They released the double A-sided single Here Now and Down From The Sky, and achieved high rotation on radio, but there were cracks in the fuselage and the integrity of the hull was compromised.
Sadly, The Clouds called it a day in 1996, leaving a body of work to be extremely proud of. Check it out if you get the chance. Their live shows were sublime. They were a bunch of unassuming, candid, daggy people, with a lot of different hairstyles and questionable dress sense. They were joyful, serious and far-ranging, with songs that touch the heart and scintillate the ears. The rest of the world has yet to catch up!
But enough of all this commemorating. Jodi has been busy since the split, first with supergroup the Dearhunters, which included Raph, Tim Oxley and Greg Hitchcock. They released the alt-country Red Wine and Blue to great acclaim in 1999. Jodi has released two solo albums, the poppy In Dreams I Live in 2001 and the moodier For Lovers Artists and Dreamers in 2004. She has also recorded an album with husband Tim Oxley, under the name Roger Loves Betty, as yet unreleased.
Stuart Eadie plays with Sara Hindley. Raph is writing and recording his own songs. Andrew Byrnes plays in Sydney rock outfit Krakatoa. Dave Easton is playing in a combo called Plastic Pebbles. Trish Young moved to London and was all quiet on the recording front - until a couple of years ago. She and Jodi joined forces again! They wrote a few songs, and with a giant leap of the imagination, called themselves The Girls From The Clouds. An ep, Lalalala was released 2005. This incarnation of the cloudy ones has run its course, but keep an ear out - you'll be hearing from them again, one way or another. I edited my profile with Thomas Myspace Editor V4.4 (www.strikefile.com/myspace)
