Scattered Order were formed in 1979 in Sydney, Australia, by Mitch Jones on vocals, guitar and bass guitar; Michael Tee on guitar and Simon Vidale on drums. Jones worked as a live sound engineer for the Birthday Party and Pel Mel.The band formed their own record label, M Squared. They were joined in Scattered Order by Patrick Gibson on guitar and synthesizer in January of the following year. According to Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, their "aim was to combine all manner of 'found sounds' and loose song structures with a perverse absurdist sense of humour (in the Snakefinger/Residents vein) and set them to a rock backing.

 

Career of the Silly Thing appeared in September 1985, and represented something of a breakthrough release, revealing a shift towards a more conventional and melodic yet still challenging sound. It was then described as being "their most interesting and accessible record so far, with a more harmonious synthesis of noise and beat than they had previously achieved...it reveals an obsession with the grotesque on the part of major songwriters. Micth Jones said "Dru and I got married... This is our honeymoon album. A lot of the lyrics were written on our honeymoon... I'm fascinated with the grotesque.." They toured with fellow Sydney-based label mates, Severed Heads, and supported United States group, the Residents, on their Australian tour. As a bonus to the original album we have added the whole Selling The Axe To Buy The Wood EP.