The band originated in Perth, Western Australia in the late 1970s. They went through various line-up changes until the early 1980s when they moved to Sydney and later Melbourne and released their first LP Treeless Plain. The band toured extensively in Europe and caught the attention of the UK music press, being featured on the cover of NME twice.

Four albums followed - Born Sandy Devotional, In the Pines, Calenture and The Black Swan - before the group disbanded in 1989. David McComb and "Evil" Graham Lee joined the Blackeyed Susans while Martyn P Casey joined Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. McComb later pursued a solo career which failed to match the success of his time with the Triffids.

In 1996 David McComb received a heart transplant, having suffered for many years from congenital heart disease. He died in 1999 due to complications arising out of the transplant. In 2006 the Triffids' back catalogue is being remastered and re-released by Domino, beginning with Born Sandy Devotional. In June a brief European tour was undertaken by the remaining members, with guest vocalists filling in for McComb. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.