Ammonia was an alternative rock band from Australia which made a name for itself in the 1990s, producing a mixture of grunge and guitar pop (a sound they described as "pop-metal"). The group began in 1992, initially comprising guitarist Dave Johnstone (ex-Hideous Goldsteins), drummer Alan Balmont (ex-Dear Octopus, Cherrytones) and bass guitar player Phil Natt. This line-up performed under the name Fuzzswirl and, following the departure of Natt, they continued to perform with a variety of bass guitar players around their hometown of Perth. In 1993, when the bass guitarist Simon Hensworth joined the group, the name was changed to Ammonia. The band was considering the name "Glorious Noise Earthquake", but selected Ammonia for its simplicity after Hensworth stumbled across the word in a science textbook. History Early success The band's early success was due mostly to their self-financed recordings and word of mouth. The trio released a self-titled cassette and developed a distinctive live sound, driven by Hensworth's overdriven and high volume bass guitar, complemented by Johnstone's infectious pop hooks. By 1994, the band had completed successful tours of Melbourne and Sydney, establishing a solid fan base, and had an album's worth of material recorded. The influential DJ Richard Kingsmill played "Incinerator" from these recordings to a national audience on the alternative radio station Triple J, sparking further interest in the band. Importantly, the band did not independently release these early recordings, as Ammonia was determined to sign with a major label. This was to ensure optimum exposure of their music and, given the isolation of the city, to avoid the pitfalls other independent bands from Perth had experienced. In 1994, the band did a live recording for Triple J, who in turn added the track "Orange Juice" from the session to its regular play list. The continued airplay created great interest amongst a number of major record labels, which subsequently began courting the group. That summer, Ammonia was the first band to sign with Sony's Murmur label. (The second band to sign was the then unknown Newcastle group Silverchair.) EPs and Mint 400 Ammonia's first release was the In a Box EP (1994), which was composed of the band's early recordings paired with the newly recorded title song. Again, the band was supported by Triple J, which played a number of songs from the EP, expanding the fan base around Australia, and ensuring another successful tour. In early