Skulker was conceived while the girls were in their final 2 years of high school, when they chose to branch out from the instruments they played in their school orchestra for the ones they play today. After a swag of name changes, they finally settled on Skulker when it was suggested to them by an English teacher at the school.
At this early stage, gigs comprised mainly of school dances and local youth group-organised shows at community halls and festivals, where they would entertain crowds with Nirvana and Veruca Salt covers, plus a few of their own early creations. The 4 girls drew upon their own individual musical influences for songwriting inspiration- ranging from Weezer to Blondie, even Kylie Minogue!
After finishing school in 1996, Skulker recorded a demo which got their foot in the door of the local Sydney live music scene. Their first pub gig was in April 1997 at the Iron Duke Hotel in Alexandria, and the majority of that year was spent playing countless shows- up to 4 per week- at every local venue that would have them, sometimes to crowds smaller than the band itself!
Since those early days Skulker have established themselves as a leading live act, going on to play with Australian artists such as Powderfinger, Area 7 and Bodyjar, as well as international acts such as Monster Magnet, Reel Big Fish, Juliana Hatfield and The Donnas. They have also played at nearly every major music festival in Australia, including the Big Day Out, Homebake, Vans Warped tour and the Falls Festival.
1998 saw the release of their debut EP Morgan To The Moon, followed shortly by a single, Bittersweet. In 2000, Skulker released their ARIA-nominated debut album Too Fat For Tahiti, with its unique mixture of power pop, rock riffs and sweet harmonies proving to be a success. The album's first 2 singles (Hej and Naughty) went on to chart in Triple J's Hottest 100 list that year, and even found their way onto the soundtrack for the Australian feature film Risk.
After touring Australia extensively promoting Too Fat For Tahiti through 2000 and 2001, Skulker spent most of the second half of 2001 and early 2002 writing, rehearsing and demoing tracks for their follow-up album. Working with esteemed Australian producer Phil McKellar, the result is The Double Life, released in March 2003. Skulker's sound has both progressed and matured, but still remains true to their original influences. 2003 is set to be a big year for the band- a major national tour is already lined up and the wheels are in motion for international dates later in the year. The girls' aim is simply to work hard on the music they love and see where it takes them in the future.