Stoneage Cameos is a ‘tribute’, of sorts, to Hoodoo Gurus’ Stoneage Romeos, one of the most sensational debut albums Australia saw in the 1980s. It was part of a raft of albums that ushered in a uniquely Australian sound.

It’s funny then that Stoneage Cameos has resulted in a predominantly Melbourne-based covers album for a Sydney band, with the big name that Stoneage Romeos missed out on being Jet, due to conflicts in schedules and it becoming a logistical nightmare. Instead they ended up scoring the Wrights, the supergroup featuring Nic Cester from Jet, as well as Davey Lane from the Pictures/You Am I, Chris Cheney from the Living End, as well as Pat Bourke from Dallas Crane and Spiderbait’s masterful skinsman Kram, who open the album with “(Let’s All) Turn On”.

The concept has resulted in some amazingly different sounds, not least of all Dan Kelly and the Alpha Males incredible take on “Death Ship”. It’s far removed from the original, with a ghostly shake to it. as you’d expect, given bass player Wally Kempton’s involvement in the Stoneage Cameos project, Even appear, taking on “Arthur”. Spiderbait rip through “My Girl”, The Living End do good things on “Leilani”, and You Am I unsurprisingly pay homage to “Tojo”.

As you’d expect, there’s some serious weak steps, particularly the Spazzys attempt at “I Want You Back”, which is so horrific that, like an audio car crash, you can’t stop listening just to hear how much they’re going to fuck it up. Rocket Science and Grinspoon seemingly go through the motions. But the most apt choice is a little band called the Persian Rugs (check the liner notes for band details), who add bonus cut “Be My Guru”. How appropriate.