TISM worked on what would become their next album at Metropolis Audio between December 1992 and September 1993 with various producers, including
Tony Cohen, Laurence Maddy and
Paul McKercher. Tracks known from these sessions include "Jung Talent Time", "Aussiemandias", "Abscess Makes the Heart Grow Fonder", "Australia - The World's Suburb", "The Ballad of Paul Keating" and "State Schools are Great Schools". The group became dissatisfied with the hard rock sound they had cultivated with Cohen and realised after playing alongside
Soundgarden on the Big Day Out in January 1994 that they did not want to be associated with grunge, which was at the height of its popularity at the time. The group abandoned work on the album and started recording new demos in a techno-influenced alternative dance style after returning from the Big Day Out. In September 1994, the group recorded
Machiavelli and the Four Seasons at Platinum Studios. The final track list included "Jung Talent Time" and "Aussiemandias" from the September 1993 sessions. The chorus to "How Do I Love Thee" is taken from the end of the second movement of "Opium is the Religion of the Masses", a song written by TISM in 1983 and played during the ''
Great Truckin' Songs of the Renaissance'' tour in 1988. A song entitled "The Last Soviet Star", recorded in December 1992 and also known as "Russia", was intended to be the last song on the album, but was removed for due to the song's chorus, which was seen to be similar to "
Back in the USSR" by
The Beatles. This was done in order to avoid potential legal issues with the Beatles. It remained unreleased until 2009, when an edited version was released as an iTunes bonus, with a re-recorded chorus sung by
Humphrey B. Flaubert. The original version, however, was uploaded to an old version of the TISM website, appeared on promotional pressings released in late 1994, and is known to have been played during TISM's set at the 1993
Big Day Out, at Melbourne Showgrounds (a diatribe recited at this concert appeared on
Australia the Lucky Cunt). It would later see wide release for the first time as a hidden track on the 2023 CD reissue. The title is a composite phrase of
doo wop group
Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and thinker
Niccolò Machiavelli. The cover of the album is a picture of
The Hollywood Argyles. On 26 August 2024, music journalist and known TISM fan Tyler Jenke announced a book in the
33 1/3 series about the album, which was released on 1 May 2025. 1 June also saw the announcement of a 30th-anniversary five-LP boxset for release on 4 July, containing the original album, its B-sides, the diatribes from
Gold! Gold! Gold! and unreleased demo recordings dating back to January-August 1994. On 10 November that year, TISM announced an exclusive performance of the album at the Sydney Opera House on 10 April 2026. A second show was scheduled for 12 April, after paying Sydney Opera House members were able to buy tickets to the 10 April event before the official presale date. == Singles ==