Not Drowning, Waving provide guitar. Their name is derived from Stevie Smith's poem "Not Waving but Drowning". Rowan McKinnon soon joined on bass guitar and they recorded "Moving Around" with a drum machine. Other atmospheric instrumentals were recorded at the LaTrobe University's music department's studio. "Moving Around" was released as their debut single in April 1984 on the Rampant Records label. While recording tracks for the debut album, "Another Pond", Bridie and Phillips joined McKinnon (also on guitar) in the ambient pop band, Easter, with Russel Bradley on drums and percussion, and Tim Cole on vocals. Cole became sound engineer and recording producer
My Friend the Chocolate Cake by David Bridie on vocals, piano, harmonium and keyboards and Helen Mountfort on cello and backing vocals. Bridie and Mountfort were members of an ambient, world music ensemble not drowning, waving. In 1989 Bridie took a holiday in New Zealand and wrote "a few more breezy compositions" that did not fit into the style of not drowning, waving. Upon return to Melbourne Mountford joined his project with her own writing. My Friend the Chocolate Cake took their name from a song title by an obscure Sydney band, Ya Ya Coralle. Bridie admitted that one reason they chose an all-acoustic act