Rumours

Rip It Up, Issue 119, 1 June 1987, Page 4

Rumours

Auckland The Sneaky Feelings are going to Europe in September for a three-month tour playing with the Chills ... Margaret Urlich has left Peking Man to go solo ... hard on the heels of Dave Dobbyn's ‘Slice of Heaven’ Oz No 1 is Shona Laing, currently at No 18 with ‘(Glad I’m) Not a Kennedy’ after three weeks on the Australian charts. She’s over there for lots of TV promo. It will be out here on Pagan soon.

The City Hotel is shaping up as the new alternative venue, with the Sombretones playing recently, door charge is only $3, dress rule just “be clean." Queries to Bevan Sweeney at 784-018 ... Walking Monk tapes’ first release was launched there recently. A Bit of a Strange Tape features unreleased material by the Committee, Insect, Exploding Budgies, Goblin Mix, Flak, If, Suspenders, Nat, K-4, Paradox, Green Eggs & Ham (see On Tape this issue)... Dead Famous People have just about finished a single ‘Overseas’ at the Lab and, with their drummer about to depart for UK, are looking for a

new drummer for their August Nl tour... David Eggleton has recorded a EP at the Lab Rap Up, rap poetry with music, engineered by Terry Moore... Out on Pagan soon is a Debbie Harwood and Johnny Bongo single plus a debut 12” four-track EP from This Boy Rob ‘Crazy Notions,' described as “opiate music for young lovers” mmmm.

Stonehenge are currently on their second Australian tour, 10 gigs in two weeks, finishing up topping the bill at Sydney’s Selinas club. A Japanese promoter has ex-

pressed interest in the band opening for an international HM act in Japan ...In the Conductor’s Shoes is a blues musical by Thomas Baker at the Maidment July 16 & 17, and Wellington’s Circa June 18, 19, 20. It’s also available as a cassette, with Aucklanders Bob Shepheard and Matthew Brown contributing, recorded at Harlequin and in London. It’s on Ode, through record shops or from Box 270 Nelson for $11.50 ... the Elation Foundation play “an original soundscape of serious pop mus-

ic,” have already recorded 23 songs on 4-track, and play their first gig at the Melba early this month. They are: Mario Brunetti percussion, Michael Krzanich keyboards, Roy Brown vocals, Tim Harrigan bass, Tony Fulton drums ... Guava Groove, who played recently with Right Track at the London Underground, have recorded a four-track EP at Montage, ‘Hip to the Guava,’ out soon on Onslaught. Te Kani Kani o te Rangatahi will combine music and dance for Show of Hands, at the Little Maidment in the first week of July, with new music by Able Tasman Graeme Humphreys, Leslie Jonkers and Bevan Sweeney. ‘God Had a Megaphone’ (last seen at The Happy Accident, will be performed, plus six new works, “short, sweet, and nothing wimpy” ... in the UK, the Chills played an AIDS

benefit, plus a support for the Mighty Lemon Drops (“frighteningly ordinary” — RB) at a sold-out 3000 seater; their second John Peel session has been aired, songs were ‘Living in a Jungle,’ ‘Rain,’ ‘Dan Destiny and the Silver Dawn’ and ‘Moonlight on Flesh.’ Next proper recording will be a resurrected ‘After They Told Me She Was Gone,’ with Fall producer John Leckie.

In New Plymouth, Ima Hitt report What is this Place will be out on cassette this month ...

Sticky Filth are touring the North Island July/August... Ima Hitt are planning a battle of the bandsstyle event in August... the second issue of The Captain's Fanzine is out, from Grant McDougall at 54a Russell St, Gisborne. Chris Bourke

Wellington Out of Order Records have released a seven-track 7” NZ punk compilation featuring Defiance (Auckland), Acid Reign and Nazgul (Wellington), Holocaust (Christchurch) and the Mindfuckers (Dunedin) ... Flesh D Vice have their 7” of ‘Transmission’ released on Jayrem after a year’s delay over the B-side ... the Builders’ Let's Play LP has been repressed and has a new cover; they also have a new LP in the pipeline ... soul vocalist Ra has left Bill Lake’s Hot Dogs to take up a teaching position in Christchurch ... the Primates have a new LP Mr Conductor out of Onset Offset Records with the covers screened backwards. The Cricketers Arms tavern has been granted a nightclub licence and will be open Bpm till 3am at the manager's discretion; the entertainment policy will remain the same. Peter Kaye is now taking bookings up to three months in advance, so be in early... plans are underway to turn the old Chews Lane Post Office into an underage venue... the Eagles Palace seems to have gone into recess with punters reluctant to go to the Tramways Hotel. Vocalist/guitarist Neil Jones has been recording original songs produced by Bill Direen and to be released on South Indies. Jones’ new band the Heaters features Stuart Porter, Geoff Thorp and Malcolm Reid ... the Wild Poppies have an LP Heroine released through Skank Records ....

Aotearoa have released a remixed single ‘Revolution’ ... the Warratahs had a successful tour of the South Island which included the prestigious Golden Guitar Awards in Gore. They have recorded two-thirds of an album at Broadcasting ... Radio Active refused to accept an ad for blues rockers the Dick Thrust Blues Band ... Braille group the Novelty Four featuring Anthony Donaldson and David Long play Wednesday nights at the Sticky Wicket bar

... Dennis O’Brien's band the Soul Fillets bring regular top line guest artists to their St George residency ... new guitar and sax-based five-piece the Quiet have a good demo tape circulating... local Samoan band Casba are recording a

second album after the success of their first one in the Islands ...

recording are Kiwi Zoo and Luke Hurley (now resident in Wellington)

... look out for the Sonic Circus extravaganza later this year. John Pilley

Christchurch Heavy metal rules? Seems a lot of people think so with the first pressing of Fat Sally’s EP, selling out in a matter of days — a feat which has put the band into the charts with a bullet... recording at Audio Access have been Murder Inc (with a new guitar lineup of Gordon Goodison, ex-Ja Ja Jackel, and Monika Munro), the Terminals, TVvo White Eyes, All Fall Down and Small Riflemin. Ben Stockwell (Tanzen Jungle/Verve) is resident engineer; he’s been running an engineering course at the studio.

The Flying Nun team have secured a new office but are not revealing where it is (a new marketing ploy, I’m told!). They are also keeping everyone wondering what happened to Gary Cope in Madrid (especially puzzling when everyone else is heading to Australia, eg: the Bats and J-P Sartre Experience). What they are revealing though is that the Bats have a new single and film clip ‘Block of Wood’ due at the end of June, Breathing Cage, are off on a national tour shortly, Sneaky Feelings are off to Europe and Look Blue Go Purple are not splitting up.

Onset Offset are hoping to hold a record release party this month for their women’s album. They are set to release a Dillinger’s Brain single ‘Great Kiwi Clobbering Machine’ b/w ‘Memory Bank’ ...

bits and pieces: Borderland are set to record an album at Tandem; Rob Mayes has joined the Skindarlings; new band Eklectic Club (Robin Singleton, Tom Rainy, Tom Vancoven and Stu Campbell) have taken over the residency at Romanov’s. Last month’s address for the Hammerack HM tape has changed. It can now be obtained from Grunt Records, 800 Colombo St, Christchurch, for $11.90 plus $2 p&p.

John Greenfield