Arclife Records was an excellent ‘home-grown’ independent label formed by the Arclife Trust, an arts organization that formed out of the Arc Cafe in central Dunedin.
The label had a strong, tight-knit community of local Dunedin groups on its roster – many of whom had moved on from the by-then Auckland based Flying Nun Records.
#nzmusic #arcliferecords
The Great Unwashed were a quieter, folkier edition of The Clean, a contrast to their raucous earlier sound. Peter Gutteridge’s contributions to their song-book should not be understated, with ‘Born in the wrong time’ an absolute classic.
#nzmusic #greatunwashed #theclean
Flashback to my 2002 review of The Clean’s ‘Anthology’ (2002, Flying Nun Records, FN468, a double CD monster packed to the brim with material from The Clean’s early and mid-period releases.
#nzmusic #theclean #anthology #flyingnun
Dunedin based avant-indie trio featuring Mike Dooley (Toy Love and Snapper – Drums) his step-daughter Maxine Funke (Guitar) and Brett Moodie (Guitar), that formed out of the Dooley / Funke duo The Beaters.
Their debut EP was a meditative production guided by Arc Life engineer (and member of David Kilgour’s Heavy Eights) Tom Bell, whilst their follow-up Dance The Dervish is closer to a live recording, though still capturing their eclectic strengths – both released on the bands own Horrible Records (the name, not the quality) label.
#nzmusic #thesnares
A well-liked melodic indie-rock group that emerged from Palmerston North in the early 1990s, self-recorded a cassette before being picked up by Rob Mayes Failsafe Records label for their discography highlight; 1992’s ‘Etch’ EP.
#nzmusic #feastofstevens #failsaferecords
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.
Indie pop-rock out of Christchurch based around Joe Sampson (guitar / vocals / keys / bass etc) with James Sullivan (drums) and Ben Ordering (bass) on most of their recordings.
Strong on melody with big chiming guitar and unfussy rhythmic backing, their songs have a timeless quality to them – sometimes jangling, sometimes driving, and with Sampson’s powerful guitar playing always ready to attack.
One off x-mas theme side-project (joke release?) from Toy Love’s Chris Knox and his soundman cohort Doug Hood (who both lived in Jessel Street in Grey Lynn, Auckland) featuring their partners Barbara Ward and Carol Hood. Sometimes credited to David Kilgour and Martin Phillips too.
The Clean have left a giant stamp on New Zealand Independent Music. The group that came to define ‘The Dunedin Sound’ had a terrific topsy-turvy career that spanned 5 albums and a number of EPs, singles, compilations and live releases over a 31 year time-span.
Wellington 3-piece from the mid 1980’s. Skirted the line between underground and pop without ever fitting in to either camp, despite an album produced by Nick Roughan (The Skeptics) and Brent McLachlan (The Gordons).
My review of ‘Compilation’, the original retrospective of The Clean’s first phase releases. 2 singles and 2 EPs crammed into a brilliant album.
Biography As a strong song-writer behind the seminal flying nun 3-piece the clean, david kilgour developed his own style of country tinged psychedilic rock-guitar playing, earnest vocals and a distinct kiwi sound that he made all his own. kilgour (and… Read More »David Kilgour
2001, Flying Nun Records, FNCD459 The Clean are something of an enigma to me – i’ve just caught them live on the Getaway tour and they still show the qualities that hold them in my heart as perhaps the finest… Read More »The Clean – Getaway
Sean James Donnelly – production whizz, class bass-player, and thoroughly uneven song-writer. In 2003 Sjd was thrust into the spotlight after years of touring support and assisting production for the likes of Shayne Carters’ Dimmer with the debut of his… Read More »SJD
This week I got to interview one of my idols – New Zealand Music legend David Kilgour; who’s song-writing, singing and guitar-work has been a cornerstone of the New Zealand sound since the Clean first surfaced in 1979.Tell me about… Read More »David Kilgour