re: Australian music appreciation

Australia:

You Am I - Tuesday & You Am I - Soldier & You Am I - Please Dont Ask me to Smile (best Aussie band of the past 25 years)
Midnight Oil - Forgotten Years (a close second)
Hunters and Collectors - Throw Your Arms Around Me (the unofficial anthem of Oz)
The Go-Betweens - Streets of Your Town
Augie March - One Crowded Hour

New Zealand:

Neil & Tim Finn and any band associated with the two (Crowded House, Split Enz, Finn Bros.)
The Flying Nun Label (The Clean, Bats, Chills, etc.)
Surf City - Free The City & Surf City - Mt. Kill

edit: and who can forget this gem from The Lost Boys soundtrack Jimmy Barnes and INXS - Good Times (Oz)