Stoking the combined moodiness of spaghetti-western soundtracks, roadhouse blues, rustic honkytonk, and vintage surf rock, The Cruel Sea began life in 1987 as a purely instrumental affair. Soon the Sydney ensemble tapped deep-voiced Tex Perkins from underground supergroup The Beasts of Bourbon to moonlight on vocals. Perkins lent his brooding swagger to half the songs on 1989’s debut Down Below, while the wordless “Reckless Eyeballin’” became the theme song of long-running TV show Blue Heelers. Equal parts growling and prowling, the title track of 1993’s The Honeymoon Is Over won two ARIA awards alone, while lead single “Black Stick” became a Top 40 hit in Australia. By that point Perkins had become a full-time member, chewing through the palpable instrumental scenery on songs like “Better Get a Lawyer.” The 2001 swansong, Where There’s Smoke, saw the band mellow and smooth out their sound while deepening their longstanding country and soul influences.