Heralding their first trip to Australia, Popfrenzy are thrilled to announce a string of shows for New York based (via Japan) avant-garde and post-genre legends Cibo Matto.

Unlike most pretenders, Cibo Matto's music is an entirely self-contained world, a look into the fantasy lives of Miho Hatori  and Yuka C. Honda. Both women were raised in Japan, but met in New York's vivid 90s Lower East Side art scene that included John Zorn, Sean Lennon and the Beastie Boys. Within six months of forming, David Byrne came to see them at a show and Warner Brothers picked them up off the strength of one self-released cassette tape. This initiated one of the most colorful careers of the 90s.

Cibo Matto (Italian for "Crazy Food") exploded internationally, touring worldwide and releasing twoclassic records, 1996's Viva! La Woman  and 1999's Stereo Type A . Their live shows and albums were marked by wild experimentation, incorporating hip-hop, Brazilian music, African and Latin jazz, and pop into their unclassifiable mix. They collaborated extensively with Yoko Ono, as well as the renowned French director Michel Gondry, who lent his visionary style to cement them in the budding consciousness of the MTV generation with his legendary video for "Sugar Water." Then, in a bizarre twist of fate, they performed in an infamous scene on an episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Their adoring fanbase grew until 2001, when the band announced an extended hiatus.

During that 10-year interval, both women worked on numerous projects. Yuka released three solo experimental albums on John Zorn's Tzadik Records, recorded with jazz great Dave Douglas and Yoshimi (of the Boredoms), meanwhile producing acclaimed albums by Sean Lennon, Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band and Martha Wainwright. Miho released a solo album, two Brazilian discs with Beck guitarist Smokey Hormel & percussionist Mauro Refosco, guested on three Beastie Boys songs, and sang the role of Noodle on the Gorillaz first album, including lead vocals on the hit "19-2000."

Says Honda, "Having spent some time apart, we became more aware of our magical chemistry, our magnetic bond. We both realized we had unfinished business." Earlier this year they released their third album, Hotel Valentine . "Hotel Valentine is the cinematic bricolage of Yuka and me," Says Hatori. "Our medium is music. For me, making an album is like raising a child. We don't know what kind of person (story) they will end up to be."