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The Chills Live Review
28 May 2008
Author: Amanda Mills
The Chills
17th May 2008, Cathedral Square, Christchurch
World Hepatitis C Day concert
For a Dunedin-ite like me who is away from her hometown, any gig by one of the legendary (so called) ‚Dunedin Sound‘ bands is obligatory for attendance. Especially when it’s the Chills. Especially when it’s free. The Chills don’t perform often these days, so when they do, it’s a big thing, and this time it was for a good cause – a gig as part of the World Hepatitis C awareness day, a cause close to band founder Martin Phillips‘ heart as he has suffered from the illness since the 1990’s.
It was a cold Saturday afternoon when The Chills took the stage in front of the ever-increasing crowd, and gave an assured performance, full of classic numbers and a few new ones thrown in for good measure. Martin Phillips (and his green guitar) seemed quite pleased to be onstage, and interspersed the songs with explanations of the new numbers. The band were in excellent form, a tight four-piece unit that used a delicate touch when needed, but were energetic and raucous when the songs called for it. A fair number of the Chills‘ most well known songs were played, from the clarion call of Come Home to I Love My Leather Jacket, a truly timeless paean to a former, deceased, band member.
Of the new material, many songs stood out, having the classic ‚Chills sound‘ of flowing melodies and intricate guitar arrangements. Very much in this vein was February, a song about climate change, while The Other was arresting thanks to the use of sped up and slowed down rhythms, which were always controlled, and never threatened to veer off on a tangent. The rhythmic Ticking Time Bomb seems to be one of Phillips‘ favourite new tracks, as he has performed it on a few occasions, and I Saw Your Silhouette (about love when you are young) had an energy not dissimilar to 50’s rock and roll.
The highlight of the gig? A beautiful, delicate, haunting rendition of Pink Frost, in all its unearthly glory. If there were any criticisms of the hour-long performance, they would be minor – the harmonies on Heavenly Pop Hit weren’t quite there, and I Love My Leather Jacket seemed a little fast and rough around the edges. These are trivial points, though on what was a truly enjoyable concert, and I’ll be returning to see The Chills.
It has always amazed me that Phillips is not as successful as he undoubtedly should have been. A musical genius, he has written some of the most melodious, lyrically intriguing pop songs ever to come out of this country, and deserved to be held in higher esteem. However, something always seemed to intervene at the wrong time to keep Phillips and The Chills forever on the fringes – how else could a song so perfect as Heavenly Pop Hit have failed. Heavenly and pop it was; an international hit it wasn’t. However, the rest of the world’s loss is our gain, and when The Chills play smaller shows like this one, it really does hit home that one of the best bands in NZ still exists, is still ours, and is still great.
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