It’s a mystery how Art of Fighting have stayed together, adding as they have family relations and romance to the already claustrophobic world of tour vans, backstage, hotels and rehearsal rooms. This group of two brothers (Miles and Ollie Browne), one amicably concluded romantic relationship (between singer Ollie and bassist Peggy Frew) and long-time drummer Marty Brown, has an elegance that belies the tumultuous history of a band that has pretty much grown up in each other’s pockets.

The band began as a trio without Miles and with a different drummer, recording a 1998 EP named The Very Strange Year for Sydney label Half A Cow. Though credited for "legal advice" on this first effort, brother Miles strapped on a guitar and joined the fray for their second EP Empty Nights (1999). The songs on these early releases were long, lugubrious and often drenched in distortion, but sufficiently well crafted to win them a fervent, reverential fanbase around the country.
It was their debut album that saw the band take on the mantle of maturity. Released on acclaimed Melbourne label Trifekta, Wires took the nation by storm on its release in 2001, and now stands as one of Australian music's most elegant, accomplished and affecting debuts. Ollie Browne's songwriting had reached a level of stately, melancholic mastery - and his singing a kind of tragic purity - that could leave few listeners unmoved. Respect must also be paid to Peggy Frew's contribution I Don't Keep A Record, a magical, cryptic revelation of whispered vocals and fragile melody.

Wires earned Art Of Fighting their first real overseas recognition, licensed by labels in the USA, Japan, Germany and Taiwan. It also went on to win an Australian Record Industry Association award for Best Alternative Release, although the band were not around to accept it. They were in the midst of their first European tour, which took in Germany, France, Belgium, Switzerland, the UK and Ireland.

Then came a personally turbulent 2003, which involved a long-term relationship between the two songwriters ending, new ones forming and families beginning - plus a quick tour of Japan. Art Of Fighting returned in 2004 with their sophomore effort Second Storey, a subtle refinement of Wires that revealed a band settling into reflective harmony. No less haunting, Ollie's songs were in fact all the more plaintive and compelling for the trauma he and his bandmates had ridden out the preceding year. Songs such as Busted, Broken, Forgotten and Come Round And Show Me were dolorous instant classics, while Sing Song showed the band trying out a new format - the concise, uptempo (though still troubled) pop song - with impressive results.

Once again the album reached far and wide, seeing release in Japan and Taiwan, while in the UK and Europe it was picked up by prestigious label Bella Union, run by former Cocteau Twins Simon Raymonde and Robin Guthrie, whose roster includes such artists as Francois Breut, Laura Veirs and compatriots the Dirty Three. After touring Australia on the release of Second Storey, the band returned to Japan in 2005, then visited Taiwan in early 2006. They now have their sights set firmly on their second trip to Europe.

In the near decade since three Melbourne high school friends formed a band inspired by such teenage heroes as the Smashing Pumpkins and Sonic Youth, Art Of Fighting have become one of the most respected and admired independent bands in Australia, with a growing international following, a rich and complex back catalogue and an irresistible air of dignity and grace.