Pop Mechanix Tune Up

Rip It Up, Issue 107, 1 June 1986, Page 2

Pop Mechanix Tune Up

Andrew Snoid and Paul Scott, Pop Mechanix

There weren't any fanfares when the Pop Mechanix : reunited nearly a year ago. If it hadn’t been for news heard on the grapevine, one might have thought the posters for their gigs were relics from the past. But that was the way the band wanted it. ;

“It's easy to be cynical about reformations,” says songwriter/bassist Paul Scott, “so we wanted to avoid coming in on a media level — we wanted to come inon aplaying level. We weren't going to do anything unless it worked, and we liked what we heard. And with the live circuit not really working, we all had qualms.” e

Because the band didn't restart with a single or video, the audiences weren't huge, but their reaction was so good it encouraged the band. They played solidly for eight months and have just emerged from a two-month layoff with a new single, ‘Celebration of the Skin. Now only three old Pop

Mechanix songs remain in their live set: ‘Now, Jumping Out a Window’ and ‘Cowboys. There is one new player in the band, the keyboardist Brent Williams. Chris Moore rejoined at the time of the reunion, but pulled out two days before the first concert due to commitments to his solo country and western act. Vocalist Andrew Snoid and drummer Kevin Emmett complete the lineup. ‘Skin” was written by Scott and guitarist Paul Mason and has been released on Hit Singles; a video was made for Radio With Pictures by the young Wellington film-maker Paul Middleditch, who won the Spot On video competition last year. Although the video missed its RWP broadcast due to the programme’s suspension, it may be shown on the new TV rock show. : 5

The B-side of the single ‘Land of Broken Dreams’ was recorded by the band in Melbourne under their Australian moniker NZ Pop during sessions for their Zoo album. Eddie Rayner produced, and those timpanis that give the song its characteristic sound were left in the studio after a Mad Max 2 soundtrack session. - :

_ This month the Pop Mechanix return to the stage, with gigs in Christchurch. and Auckland. All sorts of prospects and ideas are in the wind, but Paul Scott seems happy for the band to gather its own momentum: “We want to build our profile by working — through our records and our live gigs — and we want to enjoy it, Wed be stupid to try it any otherway. -

CB