The overwhelming amount of indie-pop to come out of New Zealand in the 80's and 90's can seem very intimidating given that no one band is given 'flagship' status and there aren't very many album-oriented groups from the era. No one wants to dive into a two-song 7"... at least I know I didn't. I had heard snippets of The Bats and The Clean but nothing jumped at me the way I wanted it to. At some point I had downloaded Bird Dog by The Verlaines but really, I just found it boring.
So, after a period of ignoring kiwi-pop my friend had told me that The Verlaines were miles-above the rest of the New Zealand bands and said Bird Dog was their best. I believe I told him it wasn't for me so he told me to check out their earlier records, Hallelujah All The Way Home and Juvenilia, a singles compilation. Wow. I was hooked immediately.
Imagine pop-music pushed to it's conceptual and instrumental limit while never losing any of it's melody, emotion or sincerity. The music on both of these records is in a league of it's own. I've never heard anything quite like it and I don't think I ever will. The guitar sings up and down the frets, all the while never calling attention to itself. The bass doesn't simply double the chords. Instead, it functions as a melodic counterpoint to the guitar in a way that few bass players are capable of. Really the only ordinary quality is the drumming, which is still great, just not quite as much as the strings. I have nothing but the highest praise for this band and maybe you will too!
Hallelujah All The Way Home
Juvenilia
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