This came out in 2000 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Here they’re new, but in their native Australia, alt-popsters The Whitlams have been around a decade, amassing hits and awards.
On the downside, they’ve also got something of a tragic past; co-founder Steve Plunder died in 1996 after either falling or jumping from a cliff. Eternal Nightcap, the band’s third effort, was issued down under in 1998. Naturally, its introspective lyrics are preoccupied with friendship and loss. Just as predictably — hey, like it or not, death sells — it shot to the top of the charts. But I bet it took more than morbid curiousity to prompt its North American release. That likely has to do with The Whitlams’ gentle melodies and piano-driven pop, which recalls Ben Folds’ Tin Pan Alley-level songcraft, Rufus Wainwright’s arch wit and Elton John’s way with a hook. It’s a combo that serves them well — whether the tune is a silken ballad, a drunken Pogues-style waltz or a slice of rootsy jangle-pop not unlike Canadian tourmates Blue Rodeo. One for the road, indeed.
