You Am I travelled to Cannon Falls , Minnesota , using Sonic Youth 's Pachyderm Recording Studios . For eight days Ranaldo produced their debut album , '' Sound as Ever '' ( November 1993 ) , with Wayne Connolly as audio engineer . It appeared on the ARIA Albums Chart top 100 . Mark Morgenstein of AllMusic felt the work " shows this power trio in top form , with enthusiastic backing to well-written songs ... if it was a little more consistent , this would be a classic . " In May 2013 Rogers reminisced , " I lost an incredibly important person to cancer who I still think about every day and that experience pretty much coloured the whole record . " He referred to his mentor , Stephen " Goose " Gray of Sydney-based rock group , Box the Jesuit , who had died of lymphoma in August 1993 . " Goose would have wanted me to stay in America to finish the album so that 's what I did . But there 's no nostalgia or good feelings about that time . " In October 1993 ahead of the album 's release , Tunaley was " fired from the band with a simple phone call . " He had " wanted to play heavier music " , however Kent and Rogers " wanted to play a more pop based rock " . Rogers initially considered disbanding the group but continued with Russell Hopkinson ( ex-Nursery Crimes ) on drums , percussion and backing vocals . At the ARIA Music Awards of 1994 in March they won the newly created category , Best Alternative Release for '' Sound as Ever ''
ARIA Music Awards of 1994
ARIA Music Awards of 1994
You Am I