On 14 October 1985, INXS released Listen Like Thieves, the album that cracked their international code, and 40 years on it still sounds like a band discovering the shape of its future. The fifth studio album from the Sydney six-piece spent two weeks at number one on the Australian Kent Music Report and became the launchpad that propelled them into the US Top 20, peaking at No. 11 on the Billboard 200.
Coming off the warm domestic success of The Swing, INXS returned home to Sydney to work with British producer Chris Thomas, the man behind albums by the Sex Pistols, the Pretenders and Elton John. Recorded at Rhinoceros Studios, Listen Like Thieves found the group tightening their arrangements, leaning into rock power without losing the rhythmic swagger that had always been their trademark. The result was an album that sounded urgent, muscular and radio-ready, while still crackling with the chemistry of six musicians who had grown up together.
The record’s centrepiece became the single What You Need, a late addition that almost didn’t happen. Near the end of recording, Thomas told the band they were missing a hit. Andrew Farriss and Michael Hutchence trawled through old demos and came across a groove titled “Funk Song No. 13”. Within days, that groove became What You Need, the song that gave INXS their first US Top 5 single and turned them into international players.
But Listen Like Thieves was never just about one track. The title song carried a stalking, melodic force that made it a live favourite, while Kiss The Dirt (Falling Down The Mountain), This Time and Shine Like It Does balanced grit and melody in equal measure. The harder guitars and tighter rhythm section gave Hutchence’s voice space to move – sultry, soulful and charismatic without being overblown. The sound was leaner and more confident, the work of a band whose live precision finally matched their studio ambitions.
INXS by 1985 were a rare mix of musical family and tight-knit mateship: Michael Hutchence on vocals, Andrew Farriss on keyboards and rhythm guitar, Tim Farriss on lead guitar, Kirk Pengilly on guitar and saxophone, Garry Gary Beers on bass, and Jon Farriss on drums. Their chemistry was instinctive, their songwriting increasingly collaborative, and their ambition global. The partnership with Chris Thomas, beginning here, set the tone for Kick two years later, the record that would take them to stadiums around the world.
Four decades later, Listen Like Thieves returns in a lavish 40th Anniversary Edition. Reissued by Petrol Records and Universal Music, the album has been remixed in Dolby Atmos and remastered by Giles Martin and Paul Hicks. Multiple formats include 2CD, vinyl, and a Super Deluxe Edition packed with demos, B-sides and a live concert from the Royal Albert Hall in 1986. For longtime fans, it’s a window back to the moment INXS found their international stride. For new listeners, it’s a reminder of how modern the band’s mix of funk, rock and pop still feels today.
Original 1985 Track Listing
Side One
What You Need – 3:35
Listen Like Thieves – 3:46
Kiss The Dirt (Falling Down The Mountain) – 3:56
Shine Like It Does – 3:05
Good + Bad Times – 2:46
Side Two
Biting Bullets – 2:49
This Time – 3:11
Three Sisters (Instrumental) – 2:27
Same Direction – 4:58
One X One – 3:05
Red Red Sun – 3:32
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