The three members of The Necks have been playing together for nearly 40 years. Known for their minimalist, avant-garde approach to jazz, the Australian trio have won or been nominated for numerous awards in their native country for their studio work as well as the soundtrack for the 1998 Australian film, The Boys. The Necks was founded by Chris Abrahams (piano and Hammond organ), Lloyd Swanton (bass), Tony Buck (drums) and in 1987.

Abrahams was born in New Zealand and later moved to Sydney, Australia. He formed a jazz group called Benders, also with Swanton, which released three albums. Later he was part of the dance-pop group Sparklers with Melanie Oxley as one of the lead vocalists. He formed a short-lived duo with her before moving on to The Necks.

Lloyd Swanton had his own group, The Catholics, during the 80s and has also performed with several other artists and the Sydney Symphony. Tony Buck has also had a career playing industrial music with Peril and Tackhead.

Over the course of their history, The Necks have released 17 albums, the majority of which featured only one or two improvised tracks. The latest, Travel, which the Guardian hailed as “a magical mystery tour de force…alternately cleansing or transporting; stately and tender.”

(photo: Traianos Pakioufakis)