artist: Gondwanaland country of origin: Australia style(s): World beat, ethno ambient, synth pop/rock essential releases: Let The Dog Out (1985, Log Music) Wide Skies (1992, Log Music)

Now disbanded, Gondwanaland was a uniquely Australian world music group featuring an unlikely combination of didgeridoo (Charlie McMahon), synth and electric keyboards (Peter Carolan) and percussion. The two albums listed above capture the group at its zeitgest both as a live act and in the studio.

Let The Dog Out is a highly atmospheric live recording, Wide Skies the studio album. Equally at home in both settings, the band plays a fabulous brand of colourful, atmospheric music evoking the harshness, beauty and open spaces of the Australian landscape. Tracks vary from upbeat and celebratory to abstract electronic impressionism, and the blending of Western instruments with the didgeridoo - particularly Carolan’s organ melodies - is strikingly effective.

Wide Skies proved to be the band's swansong and it's magnificent, the best among their several studio albums. Many of the tracks feature didgeridoo in a less upfront role than before as the band explores new territory with electronics, percussive textures and Eastern atmospheres. Particularly strong are the contributions of guest viola player Cleis Pearce from the group Coolangubra.

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