New Zealand World Tour & RIP Martin Phillipps of The Chills
The Sound Opinions World Tour rolls along, making its next stop in beautiful New Zealand. Hosts Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot take a virtual trip to the other side of the world to explore the best of kiwi music, focusing on the influential jangly pop movement known as the Dunedin Sound. Plus they bid farewell to a giant of the New Zealand music scene, Martin Phillipps, of the Chills.
Jim and Greg discuss the lasting influence of Martin Phillipps of The Chills.
World Tour: New Zealand
Lorde is just the biggest name in a long line of important musicians coming out of New Zealand. So this week, Jim and Greg fire up the jet to take the Sound Opinions World Tour to the other side of the world. As a guide, they’re joined by Wellington-based critic Nick Bollinger, host of The Sampler on Radio New Zealand and author of several books including the memoir Goneville.
They focus on an influential era in kiwi rock emerging in the early 1980s known as the Dunedin Sound that’s closely associated with the legendary New Zealand indie label Flying Nun Records. Based around the southern university city Dunedin, the Flying Nun bands drew upon early psychedelia, American garage rock, and The Velvet Underground to create a distinctive jangly guitar-based sound, much of it released on lo-fi 4-track recordings. But while the key bands like The Clean, The Chills, and The Verlaines shared an aesthetic, Nick argues that their musical approaches actually were varied. By the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, the Dunedin Sound had fully evolved to incorporate the shoegaze of Bailter Space and even the dance beats of Headless Chickens.
A key part of New Zealand’s culture is its indigenous population. Maori, Samoan, and other indigenous groups make up nearly 20% of the population and have had a major impact on the island nation’s pop music. Nick traces the history of Maori music from the Hendrix-esque guitar styling of The Human Instinct to the reggae boom of the ‘70s to the embrace of hip-hop. He also makes recommendations for great contemporary kiwi artists, including singer-songwriter Aldous Harding, power-poppers Kane Strang, electro-soul artist Electric Wire Hustle, and the eclectic producer Lord Echo.
Featured Songs:
The Chills, "Pink Frost," Pink Frost (single), Flying Nun, 1984
The Chills, "Effloresce and Deliquesce," Submarine Bells, Slash, 1989
The Chills, "I Love My Leather Jacket," Kaleidoscope World, Flying Nun, 1989
The Chills, "Heavenly Pop Hit," Submarine Bells, Slash, 1989
The Chills, "Monolith," Scatterbrain, Fire, 2021
Lorde, "Take Me to the River," Everyone's Getting Involved: A Tribute to Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense, A24, 2024
Charli XCX and Lorde, "Girl, so confusing featuring lorde," Girl, so confusing featuring lorde (Single), Atlantic, 2024
The Clean, "Fish," Great Sounds Great, Good Sounds Good, So-So Sounds So-So, Bad Sounds Bad, Rotten Sounds Rotten!!, Flying Nun, 1982
The Clean, "Tally Ho!," Tally Ho! (single), Flying Nun, 1981
The Bats, "Tragedy," Daddy's Highway, Flying Nun, 1987
Look Blue Go Purple, "Cactus Cat," LBGPEP2, Flying Nun, 1986
The Enemy, "Pull Down the Shades," Live at the Beneficiaries Hall, unreleased, 1978
Toy Love, "Swimming Pool," Toy Love, Deluxe, 1980
The Chills, "Rolling Moon," Rolling Moon (single), Flying Nun, 1982
The Clean, "Anything Could Happen," Boodle Boodle Boodle, Flying Nun, 1981
The Chills, "Kaleidoscope World," Dunedin Double, Flying Nun, 1982
The Verlaines, "The Lady and the Lizard," Hallelujah - All The Way Home, Flying Nun, 1985
The Verlaines, "Death and the Maiden," Death and the Maiden (single), Flying Nun, 1983
Headless Chickens, "Cruise Control," Body Blow, Flying Nun, 1991
The Bats, "Made Up In Blue," Made Up In Blue (single), Flying Nun, 1986
The Human Instinct, "Black Sally," Stoned Guitar, AIR, 1970
Herbs, "Light of the Pacific," Light of the Pacific, Warrior, 1983
Upper Hutt Posse, "E Tu," E Tu (single), Jayrem, 1988
Scribe, "Not Many," The Crusader, Dirty, 2003
Aldous Harding, "Imagining My Man," Party, 4AD, 2017
Kane Strang, "My Smile is Extinct," Two Hearts and No Brain, Dead Oceans, 2017
Electric Wire Hustle, "They Don't Want," Electric Wire Hustle, Every Waking Hour, 2009
Lord Echo, "Makossa No. 3," Harmonies, Soundway, 2017
Post Malone, "Guy For That (feat. Luke Combs)," F-1 Trillion, Republic and Mercury, 2024
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