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g artists
The Gordons appeared out of (almost) nowhere in March 1980 to take the mantel of Christchurch's (and soon New Zealand's) loudest band; however they were more than just loud. It's the songs they created during their initial year and a half run that have fuelled the legend of the Gordons. Through blistering feedback and propulsive bass come visions of a dystopian future, and anti-regime anthems. #nzmusic #thegordons #bailterspace
p artists
Auckland punk group from 1979-1980 who were part of the AK79 scene. Their recordings (which were later compiled into a retrospective release) show some reggae and new wave influence. #nzmusic #nzpunk #primmers #zwines #ak79
s artists
Auckland punk group that marked the arrival of Jed Town. When The Superettes broke up Town formed famed post-punk group The Features; who would eventually morph into Fetus Productions. #nzmusic #nzpunk #thesuperettes #ak79 #thefeatures #fetusproductions
m artists
Little Stevie McCabe has been an underground force in New Zealand music since the early 80s, playing n anarchic form of Rock'N'Roll through a variety of bands - most notably as a key member of The Axemen. However as a solo musician McCabe was hyper-productive, and when he passed away recently (September 2023) he left behind some 300 unreleased cassette recordings. #nzmusic #littlesteviemccabe #theaxemen
o artists
Wellington group from the late 1980's; notably sponsored by the NZ Student Arts Council. A review of the debut EP turned up in Feminist magazine 'Broadsheet' and there's a very short clip of them performing at the 1987 Mangawhai Women’s Festival. #nzmusic #feminist #outofthecompost #oderecords
b artists
Bygone Era were a prominent but short-lived late 1980's rock group with hardcore punk aspirations, during an era when New Zealand had few hardcore punk groups. They put out an EP, and a split 7" with The Warners on Onslaught Records label (run by vocalist Rowan Coffey's brother Simon) before breaking up in 1989, their full length album 'Get Airborne' coming out posthumously. #nzmusic #nzhardcore #bygoneera #thewarners
b artists
Blam Blam Blam was a politically-charged underground pop act with touches of post-punk guitar, intelligent lyrics and the melodic touch of Don McGlashan's vocals and Euphonium playing on killer signature tunes like 'There is no depression in New Zealand' and 'Don't fight it Marsha (it's bigger than the both of us)'.
c artists
Brilliant synth-pop group formed by former Whizz Kids / Pop Mechanix / The Swingers vocalist Andrew McLennan. Known solely for their one-hit wonder 'Sierra Leonne'.
n artists
A mid-1990s side-project of super-prolific Armpit / Futurians lof-fi / experimental / noise musician Clayton Noon, presumably with his Armpit bandmate Jon Arcus (aka Sugar Jon).
p artists
Formerly known as The Dallas Pro-Drag Allstars, Pro-Drag were a loud, hard-rocking Wellington-based Rock'N'Roll combo who put out releases on the lo-fi Stink Magnetic tape label. Band member (and Stink Magnetic label founder) Dylan Herkes described the group as 'Hawaiian Industrial'.
s artists
Pop-funky 3/4-piece Christchurch act from the mid 80s. Made an appearance on Radio with Pictures article on the current state of Christchurch live music (in 1984), released a cassette single recorded at Nighshift Studios and at one point had The Chills keyboardist Andrew Todd as a member.
d artists
Double Happys brought together former Bored Games bandmates Shayne Carter and Wayne Else - originally with an unreliable drum-machine (named 'Herbie Fuckface'), but eventually replaced with their High School friend John Collie. A wonderful, sometimes confrontational group who came to a tragic conclusion with the accidental death of Wayne Elsie in June 1985.
p artists
Clangy Auckland post-punk / indie-pop from the mid 1980's. Released a brash, tuneful and fun LP-sized EP on Meltdown Records in 1987 before going their separate ways.
c artists
The Cartilage Family were a short-lived Dunedin group featuring Peter Gutteridge (and a bunch of his best early songs), Shayne Carter, Lesley Paris and Francisca Griffin. No official recordings exist and they only performed live twice; but the Cartilage Family were an important stepping stone for New Zealand Music.
t artists
Noisy Dunedin rock group formed by Ex-Alpaca Brothers Bruce Blucher and Paul Cahill. Robbie Yeats was their primary drummer, but their recordings feature contributions from a number of well-known underground performers. Released 3 albums and a couple 7" singles.
