The Killjoys were an Australian pop, folk band formed in 1987. The mainstay members were Anna Burley on lead vocals and guitar and Craig Pilkington on lead guitar and vocals. They attracted a wide following in the vibrant pub scene. Their debut album, Ruby won the ARIA Award for Best Independent Release at the ARIA Music Awards of 1991.

History

1987-1989: Band beginnings and Audrey

The Killjoys were formed in 1987 in Melbourne by Anna Burley on lead vocals and guitar (ex-Wild Science), Jeremy Craigie-Smith on bass guitar; Will Larsen on drums (ex-Michael Angelo and the Ceiling); Craig Pilkington on lead guitar, trumpet and vocals (ex-Wild Science) and Caroline Schwerkolt on vibraphone and keyboards. They were one of the promising bands, which emerged in the late 1980s including Sea Stories, the Fauves, the Hollowmen, the Glory Box, Ripe, Autohaze and Pray TV.

Prior to her time in Wild Science, Anna Burley did a stint in the Melbourne indie band, Blah Zero ... during the mid-1980s. Four songs were recorded at Richmond Recorders during that period, with Geof Rey Evans on guitar, Zoe Zurbo on bass and Larry Tidswell on drums. Tracks included Insecure, Eastern Zone and Russian Roulette.

Burley and Pilkington's previous group, Wild Science, had split into two different outfits, Their debut single, "Fall Around Me", was released in November 1989.

1990-1992: Ruby & Spin

In October 1990, The Killjoys released their debut studio album, Ruby, which was co-produced by Mark Woods and the group. At the ARIA Music Awards of 1991 Ruby won the ARIA Award for Best Independent Release.

The album provided a single, "Michael Told Me".

In 2001, a compilation album, Killjoys Retrospective was released.

2006-present: Stealing Horses & Pearl

In 2006 the Killjoys released an album, Stealing Horses, the group's first in seven years.

|-

! scope="row"| Ruby

|

  • Released: October 1990
  • Label: Audrey Records <small>(AUD003)</small>
  • Format: CD, LP

| 144

|-

! scope="row"| A Million Suns

|

  • Released: March 1993
  • Label: Mushroom Records <small>(D30930)</small>
  • Format: CD

| —

|-

! scope="row"| Sun Bright Deep

|

  • Released: March 1998
  • Label: Mushroom Records <small>(D31837)</small>
  • Format: CD

| —

|-

! scope="row"| Stealing Horses

|

  • Released: 2006
  • Label: Audrey Records <small>(AUD017)</small>
  • Format: CD

| —

|-

! scope="row"| Pearl

|

  • Released: 2011
  • Label: Popboomerang Records <small>(PB073)</small>
  • Format: CD, Digital

| —

|}

Compilation albums

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" border="1"

|+ List of compilation album with selected details

! scope="col" style="width:11em;"| Title

! scope="col" style="width:20em;"| Details

|-

! scope="row"| Port Fairy Compilation

|

  • Released: 2001
  • Label: Audrey Records <small>(AUD006)</small>
  • Format: CD

|-

! scope="row"| Acoustic Bootleg

|

  • Released: 2001
  • Label: Audrey Records <small>(AUD007)</small>
  • Format: CD

|-

! scope="row"| Killjoys Retrospective

|

  • Released: 2001
  • Label: Audrey Records <small>(AUD008)</small> / Mushroom Records <small>(MUSH4CD)</small>
  • Format: CD

|}

Extended plays

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" border="1"

|+ List of EPs, with selected chart positions

! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:12em;" | Title

! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:20em;" | EP details

! scope="col" colspan="1" | Peak chart<br />positions

|-

! scope="col" style="width:3em; font-size:85%" | AUS<br />

  • Label: Audrey Records <small>(AUD001)</small>
  • Format: 12" Vinyl

| —

|-

! scope="row"| Spin

|

  • Released: November 1991
  • Label: MXL Music/Mushroom<small>(D 11063)</small>
  • Format: CD

| 136

|-

! scope="row"| The Optigan e.p

|

  • Released: December 2011
  • Label: Popboomerang Records
  • Format: Digital

| —

|}

Singles

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"

|-

! scope="col"| Year

! scope="col"| Title

! scope="col" width="220"| Album

|-

| 1989

| align="left"| "Fall Around Me"

| rowspan="2"| Ruby

|-

| rowspan="2"| 1991

| align="left"| "Michael Told Me"

|-

| align="left"| "Calling Me On"

| Spin

|-

| rowspan="2"| 1993

| align="left"| "Beauty + Danger"

| rowspan="2"| A Million Suns

|-

| align="left"| "I Lied"

|-

| rowspan="1"| 1994

| align="left"| "Love and Uncertainty"

| A Million Suns (re-issue)

|-

| rowspan="1"| 1995

| align="left"| "Come Around"

|

|-

| rowspan="1"| 1996

| align="left"| "Stupid Waste"

|

|-

| rowspan="1"| 1997

| align="left"| "Save Me"

| rowspan="2"| Sun Bright Deep

|-

| rowspan="1"| 1998

| align="left"| "The Better It Gets"

|-

| rowspan="1"| 2002

| align="left"| "On the Radio"

|

|-

| rowspan="1"| 2003

| align="left"| "Letting You Go"

|

|-

| rowspan="1"| 2011

| align="left"| "My Old Guitar" <br> (featuring Charles Jenkins)

| Pearl

|}

Other releases

  • "I'll Never Find Another You" on Used and Recovered by Various Artists (1990)
  • "Flame Trees" on Earth Music by Various Artists (June 1994) Mushroom Records/Festival Records
  • Port Fairy Compilation (2000, released for the Port Fairy Folk Festival)
  • Acoustic Bootleg: 15 Cover Songs (2000; cassette version released in 1995)
  • Threnody (2002; Anna Burley [aka Red Lantern] solo record)

Awards

ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. The Killjoys won 1 award from 2 nominations.

!

|-

| 1991

| Ruby

| Best Independent Release

|

|

|-

| 1998

| Sun Bright Deep

| Best Adult Contemporary Album

|

|