Formed by Martin Phillipps in 1980, The Chills stand as one of New Zealand’s very greatest bands. Against the odds, Phillipps and his cohorts have persevered, still touring and releasing high-quality stuff, and for fans who’ve never grabbed vinyl copies of the band’s earliest releases, there is no better time to be alive than right now, as Fire Records has just issued expanded 2LP editions of the compilation Kaleidoscope World and debut LP Brave Words, with the latter remastered under the supervision of Phillipps. Delivering imaginatively conceived guitar pop with occasional currents of psychedelia, both albums are must-have acquisitions for collectors of the whole international ’80s post-punk shebang.
Many consider the two records The Chills recorded for Slash to be the sustained highpoint in their discography, and those discs, 1990’s Submarine Bells and ’92’s Soft Bomb, are so successful in their pop ambition that I’d be disinclined to raise an argument. It’s really impossible to deny those two LPs effectively capture Martin Phillipps’ songwriting at its most developed and with bold production to match.
But The Chills’ early work carries its own appeal, residing nearer to the garage, and in a few instances on Kaleidoscope World, punk rock (The Chills formed after the breakup of Phillipps’ punk band The Same). There’s the charged up belter “Bite” from the B-side of the their first single, while “Smile From a Dead Dead Face” was recorded live in ’85. These are exceptions however, as The Chills’ pop intentions were manifest from the start.
Originally released by Flying Nun and Creation in the UK in 1986, Kaleidoscope World started as a tidy 8-song affair collecting cuts from the legendary “Dunedin Double” compilation EP and their first three singles. This includes the majestic and decidedly psych-tinged “Pink Frost,” a song that manages to be soothing and unsettling at once. Easily one of the masterpieces in the band’s vast catalog, “Pink Frost” is nearly matched on the now 24-track 2LP set numerous times, including by much of ’85’s “The Lost EP,” which revealed songwriting growth, a clear rise in confidence, and a disdain for playing it safe.
“Don’t Even Know Her Name” is a solid slice of guy pining away for gal goodness, but “Bee Bah Bee Bah Bee Boe” is a sweet dish of Brit-folk-pop-psych, “Never Never Go” unleashes a geyser of slashing slide guitar, and “Dream by Dream” navigates a series of changes that whisper “Beatles-esque” (with a dash of early Floyd) capped with a humorous ending that’s yet to get old. There’s also “I Love My Leather Jacket,” with its hovering guitar burn, and “The Great Escape,” which stylistically nods to the sound of The Chills to come.
But first, there’s Brave Words to consider. Released in 1987, the original 12-song single LP remains a stunning debut effort that announced these fresh pop talents far beyond Kiwi shores through distribution inroads into the UK and USA. If the production is bolder, the guitars are still tough and prominent in the mix, and while there are a few moments that mark the record as a byproduct of the 1980s (I’m thinking mainly of the drum sound on a few tracks, particularly “16 Heart Throbs”), the overall thrust is excellent. Phillipps’ remastering deepens rather than alters the contents.
There isn’t a weak track in the bunch, but the standouts include opener “Push,” with its subtle psych undercurrents, following cut “Rain,” with its energetic strum and jangle and Phillipps up front in the song’s midsection, and “Night of the Chill Blue,” an absolute clinic in elevated songwriting and execution that helped place The Chills alongside The Verlaines at the head of the Flying Nun pop class. But not to worry; they haven’t strayed too far from their roots, as “Look for the Good in Others and They’ll See the Good in You” is a punky mover.
Phillipps’ remastering reinforces more than ever that the path to Submarine Bells was basically inevitable. The bonus material on the second LP is all worthwhile (six tracks, essentially a bonus EP), especially the seldom heard gem “Party in My Heart” (which really benefits from the remastering) and the proggy keyboard laden “Living in a Jungle.” An instrumental version of “Rain” culminates the second half of a double whammy, Kaleidoscope World and Brave Words bringing the indie pop goods.
GRADED ON A CURVE:
Kaleidoscope World
A-
Brave Words
A
