PLEASE NOTE: Vinyl does NOT include a download code. After two 7" singles and a demo cassette (recently pressed to wax), Melbourne quintet The Shifters finally unveil their first, proper full-length album "Have a Cunning Plan". Recorded at (Australian legend) Al Montfort of Total Control/Terry's home studio, Have A Cunning Plan ups the fidelity a bit, tempering the up-front crunch of their previous demo/LP. The sonic space suits the band, allowing the unpretentious complexity of the songs & lyrics to generate the 'oomph' rather than bludgeoning the listener with treble and feedback. The album showcases ten new tracks by the band at their best; scrappy, self-destructive, stumbling and brilliant pop music that seems tossed off or nonchalant on the surface but is rife with rewards upon further listening. Early album bangers like Molasses and the first single Work/Life, Gym Etc are instant earworms, (as are Straight Lines & Pyramid Scheme , the latter reworked from a recent 7") but it's the simple-yet-sophisticated songcraft of tunes like How Long or the languid strum of Andrew Bolt that are heavy on mood and are vehicles for vocalist/guitarist Miles Jansen's erudite lyrics that simultaneously celebrate and decry the banality of life, while also tackling larger issues of colonialism conservatism's effects on society at large. On the surface, there's no denying the band owe a heavy debt to The Fall, but whatever seeds were planted by the late, great Mark E. Smith, have gestated into an animal all their own. 'Have A Cunning Plan' aims to take them towards a greater plane. Tracks :
Release date:
September 21, 2018
Label:
Install our app to receive notifications when new upcoming releases are added.

Recommended equipment and accessories
-
Turntables - Top Picks
A selection of reliable record players you can buy today, for every budget
-
Pro-Ject Phono Box DC Pre-Amp
Compact, high-performance phono preamplifier for both MM and MC cartridges, delivering a clean, detailed signal with minimal noise.
-
Denon DP-400
Featuring a high-precision, belt-driven mechanism and an adjustable tonearm that ensures optimal tracking and minimal resonance
-
Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO
Featuring a one-piece carbon fiber tonearm, precision-tuned motor, and a heavy steel platter with TPE damping, it ensures superior stability and sound quality.
-
Phono Preamps - Top Picks
A selection of the best phono preamps for your turntable setup
Featured Upcoming Vinyl
-
Bret McKenzie Freak Out City (Glacial Blue)
Sub Pop
August 15, 2025 -
Sir Richard Bishop Hillbilly Ragas
Drag City
September 26, 2025 -
Hot Mulligan The Sound a Body Makes When It's Still (Sea Blue)
Wax Bodega
August 22, 2025 -
Field Medic Surrender Instead (Bone/Red Splatter)
Alternate Side
August 8, 2025 -
Pot-Pot Warsaw 480Km (Red)
Felte Records
September 19, 2025 -
Before The Dawn Cold Flare Eternal (Blue Splatter)
Reaper Entertainment
September 5, 2025 -
Bostich + Fussible Nortec Collective Presents: Bostich + Fussible Greatest Hits
Nacional Records
July 25, 2025 -
Nation of Language Dance Called Memory (Clearwith Black & Blue Mix)
Sub Pop
September 19, 2025 -
The Shame Cutthroat
Dead Oceans
September 5, 2025 -
G Flip Dream Ride
Flipo Music Pty Ltd
September 5, 2025 -
Hand Habits Blue Reminder
Fat Possum
August 22, 2025 -
Panic Shack Panic Shack (Red)
Brace Yourself
August 1, 2025 -
The Besnard Lakes The Besnard Lakes Are The Ghost Nation (Clear)
Full Time Hobby
October 10, 2025 -
Kurt Vile Classic Love (12" Ep)
Verve Forecast
July 25, 2025