The band’s name, coined by Jeff Belt, was drawn from a grisly news story about a baby killed in a microwave, reflecting the dark, provocative humour of the era and its pervasive fear of nuclear annihilation. Their first gig took place on New Year’s Eve 1986 at a party, after which Andrew Goodchild replaced the original drummer. Rehearsing weekly in tennis clubrooms in Stokes Valley, the band quickly developed their sound, with Belt taking the lead as the primary lyricist.

Microwave Babies made waves early in 1987 when they were invited to play an afternoon show in a park outside the Lower Hutt town hall. Their abrasive lyrics proved too much for the organizers, who cut the performance short. The fallout led to a public apology in the local paper, inadvertently boosting the band’s notoriety in Lower Hutt. Still in their teens, the members began organizing their own hall shows across the Hutt Valley to fill the void of youth entertainment. These DIY gigs attracted a diverse crowd—bikers, rugby players, and punks.

In March 1987, the band scored a rare pub gig, sneaking onto the bill with Flesh D-Vice at the Cricketers Arms. That July, they were featured in the Evening Post, highlighting their punk ethos: anti-violence, opposition to the nuclear arms race, anti-vivisection, and a distrust of authority. Their momentum grew with gigs like Breakout at the Railway Hall and a show at Rock Theatre alongside Casualty from New Plymouth in August. Microwave Babies became part of a new wave of overtly political punk acts, including Acid Reign, Compos Mentis and Avil Retards.

The band’s peak continued into 1988 with standout performances, such as a wild house party in Rongotai for Anti-System publisher Simon Cottle’s birthday and the Dirtcore 3rd birthday thrash bash at the Lady of the Rosary school hall. However, the latter gig may have cost them their practice space, leaving them without a rehearsal spot for 10 weeks. This setback, detailed in an Anti-System #12 interview, stalled their live shows and marked the beginning of the end. By August 1988, Microwave Babies had disbanded.

After the split, the members pursued new paths. Jeff Belt joined Auckland’s Spermbank 5, while Andrew Goodchild and Mark McGann formed This Will Kill That. Mathew Hyde relocated to London, fronting the psych-grunge band Zengrenade in the 1990s before returning to New Zealand, where he has led the stoner rock outfit Beastwars since 2009.