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Sydney's Ides of Space prove that Australia's proud indie rock tradition is alive and well. The unpretentious young quintet doesn't strive to do anything epic or experimental, only to offer you the good, clean fun of tuneful noise-pop. Imagine, perhaps, if The Go-Betweens had formed not in the wake of the punk and New Wave explosion, but instead in the wake of early '90s U.K. shoegazer and U.S. lo-fi college rock, and you get darn close to the joy of Ides of Space. For such a young group (consider that as recently as late 1999, they were thrown out of a university band competition which they entered as "Firehosereel" for their lack of preparation), Ides of Space display sharp songwriting acumen and remarkably keen musical skills.

Ides of Space's debut record is titled There Are No New Clouds. It's actually a repackaged release of the group's first two EP, First Translated in 1965 and We Have Nowhere to Be.