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Rip It Up, Issue 33, 1 April 1980, Page 14

SHEERLUX

THE GLUE POT, MARCH 13. Six months ago, Sheerlux were probably the fastest-rising local band. Yet, even then, if you drew up a list of the band’s assets and liabilities, they were strikingly similar. The band had a popular vocalist, but he was becoming mannered to the point of being ridiculous. They had a formidable hard-rock drive, but were losing any flexibility in pacing and dynamics. A strong batch of covers squeezed out their original material. Now, Sheerlux have parted with their vocalist, broadened their instrumental approach, and come up with an almost all-original repertoire. The change is drastic, and Sheerlux left it almost too late. But the changes work. The vocal duties are capably shared by guitarists Jim Juricevich and Steve Roach, and bassist Pete Soloman. They’ve varied the pace of the material and taken obvious care with the arrangements. The new originals include a number of fine pop melodies. Listen to “Say You Love Me”, and “Reply”. The lyrics are still a bit shaky, though. The latest word is that the band’s excellent drummer, Graeme Schnell will soon depart and the others will go on under a new name. Whatever happens, this band are making up lost ground fast. Dominic Free FLIGHT X-7 KICKS, MARCH 13. Polygram Records staged a press reception at Kicks to showcase the signing of a five-year contract with Flight X-7. This is a case where a record company is making sure it can’t be accused of failing to recognise the potential of a New Zealand band before it’s too late. The ‘classical’ influences on the group (Paul Jamieson studied in France) are reflected in their clever arrangements and the intricate synthesiser riffs and the virtuoso guitar solos that characterise the on-stage sound. The likeness to Mi-Sex, both musically and visually, can’t be denied. It's eighties punk deluxe, and it’s proving very marketable across the Tasman. But like Mi-Sex, Flight X-7 have a little too much George Orwell in their music. Songs about robots, UFOs and zombies are all great stuff if you’re a sci-fi buff, but are we really living in a space age? But X-7 got the audience moving and when the band encored with “Nice To See You”, dancers sang and clapped along. With a single, “Waiting For The Red Light”, due for release in a few weeks, and another national tour, Flight X-7 could be taking off. Jim Parker SPELLING MISTAKES THE SQUEEZE, MARCH 15. With the Island of Real closed, the Squeeze is almost the only venue in Auckland where

under-twenties can legally see a band. Consequently, it seemed as though half of Selwyn College converged on the place when the Spelling Mistakes played. They certainly deserved the enthusiasm, and perhaps it is time more bands catered for this age group. The band’s original material is remarkable in construction and arrangement, and seems to hark back to the second Beatles album. High points were that disc’s “It Won’t Be Long”, “It Feels So Good”, “Germany”, and “I Want You”, sung by bassist Nigel. Although vaguley nasty, “Blow Up and Burst", and "Reena/Rachel” showed a sense of humour without resorting to vaudeville. Of the twenty-six songs played, six were covers, with the only mistake being a straight cover of “Pretty Vacant” which was a little too close for comfort. But that’s a minor quibble. Simon Grigg

THE GORDONS THE HILLSBOROUGH, MARCH 21. The Gordons were formed eight days before they appeared a chance meeting. They admired the Whizz Kids so much they wanted to play with them. In that time they had four practices, and when they opened for the Kids at the Hillsborough, they were still a trifle naked. It probably earned them two encores of each of their five songs. The audience just wouldn’t let them go. John Halvorsen (ex-Graphics guitar and bass), Alister Parker (ex-Basket Cases bass and guitar) and Brent McLaughlin on drums ran through a set of titles such as “Photo Eye” and “Quality Control”. It was good, hard-line, Mainland Pop promising great things for the future. At 10.35, the pub was treated to a hundred percent increase in the energy level, when Harry Sparkle joined the Gordons and the Whizz Kids to perform his soon-to-be-released single, “I’ve Got Crabs (But Colleen’s Got More)”, and “Panadine”. JW