5/5

For Fans Of: The Clean, Dimmer, The Chills

With 40 songs in total ‘Tally Ho! Flying Nun’s Greatest Bits’ kicks off with the title track by The Clean, a jaunty and addictively ramshackle song that launched a label and the legacy.

It’s the sound of number 8 wire wrapped around a simple pop song, a tune made from primitive tools and a finely honed sense of craftsmanship.

November is not only ‘Movember’ it is also ‘Nunvember’ with Flying Nun celebrating 30 years of survival and brilliance. With 30 live shows to complement the anniversary, it has been a renaissance of the iconic indie label born in Christchurch in 1981, a truly independent venture that captured a scene; one that would soon become known as the ‘Dunedin Sound.’

Over the years Flying Nun has released great compilations to showcase the roster of bands on the label. My first introduction was a cassette of the 1990 compilation ‘In Love With These Times’ capturing 19 songs recorded 1986-88.

It was an invitation to a world of strange and eerie pop songs, detached from the mainstream charts, both geographically and sound-wise. With a common thread of isolation and romanticism, Flying Nun bands like The Clean, The Bats, The Verlaines, The Chills and Straitjacket Fits were revered over the world, heralded by UK tastemakers NME and Melody Maker, and adored by US college radio.

Despite the accolades of the international press, most of the bands were still living in icebox flats in Dunedin, hoping the power wouldn’t get cut off at the end of the month. It was a case of strength through adversity; a key ingredient of our national DNA and Flying Nun was the perfect soundtrack for those who embraced our left-of-centre leanings.

Much like US label Sub Pop (home of Nirvana and most of the bands that made grunge vital) Flying Nun has endured tough financial times and survived the fickle world of the modern day record industry with a sense of reinvention, signing new bands, reflecting future musical paths that are aesthetically aligned with the label’s spirit. Artists like Grayson Gilmour, Popstrangers, F in Math and Sharpie Crows take Flying Nun into the future, a book end with an open page.

So beyond this minor history lesson, what remains is a definitive compilation with ‘Tally Ho! Flying Nun’s Greatest Bits’ a two disc set, with 40 songs in total. Trainspotters and bloggers all over the nation – and the world – will be arguing about which songs could have or should have made the cut. Where is ‘Pink Frost’ by The Chills some may say, or what about my personal fave ‘Breakdown Town’ by S*P*U*D?

My dad hates Flying Nun; he thinks “all the bands sound a drowning cat”. However it’s that discord and tension buried in simple pop songs that reflects our landscape, a sound that can erupt like a storm, brood like heavy clouds, or meander like a sun-baked stream.

Like all great record labels, Flying Nun has fostered fantastic bands under their umbrella. The truth is, there isn’t a ‘Flying Nun’ sound anymore, perhaps there never was.

‘Tally Ho!’ is a great representation of the variety of bands to grace the Flying Nun catalogue. It is a celebration, and unlike a piece of cake, this CD will last forever – the perfect badge of honour for the 30 year anniversary.

For a track listing and remaining shows check out this link:

Tally Ho! Flying Nun’s Greatest Bits

The seminal ‘Tally Ho!’ video shot by Chris Knox: