The Chills & The Bats, Auckland NZ, 2021

The Chills & The Bats

14th May 2021
Powerstation, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Alexis Brook. Photography by Doug Peters.

The signature sound of the independently labelled New Zealand rock/pop-punk 80’s scene resonated throughout the walls of Auckland’s Powerstation last night as The Bats and The Chills teamed up for one unforgettable performance. With Martin Philipps vocals on point and the enraptured crowd having an absolute blast while enjoying both the nostalgic hits as well as the new material from The Chill’s recently released album, Scatterbrain this was the perfect show to display Kiwi talents during NZ Music Month.

Due to the longevity of both The Chills and The Bats in various iterations of activity across the past four decades, many of the crowd were clearly in their fifties and sixties (potentially reliving their twenties); however there was also a wonderful form of diversity to the audience. Classic Flying Nun t-shirts and RTR Countdown logos mingled with beloved leather jackets with stories to tell, while those who had clearly come straight from the corporate centre of the city grinned and nodded at the tradies making their way closer to the stage. The Chills brought everyone together to the same backyard, a visual testament of how their music has touched their fellow citizens over the years; the scattering of younger audience members proof that Phillipps lyrical creativity and musical crafting, is still more than capable of attracting new admirers. There is a palpable feeling of loyalty in the room, a loyalty that is reflected in record sales as Scatterbrain entered at #4, and currently sits at #2 in the NZ Albums charts.

Opening the evening was Purple Pilgrims, sisters from the Coromandel, who played a few tracks from their sophomore album Perfumed Earth, recently released on NZ’s favourite independent label and publisher of many great artists, Flying Nun.  With voices dancing around each other in an almost ritual manner wrapped in an electro-pop style, I’m simultaneously curious and keen to explore their music further, as this was my first experience with this group.

The Bats, one of several bands to arise like a phoenix from The Clean, was a perfect supporting artist to the evening.  Close-knit harmonies were such a pleasure to listen to, the audience instantly captivated and perhaps like me just wanting to jump in the car, turn up the radio and go on a road trip!  There is something about the ‘Dunedin Sound’ that takes me back to simpler times in my life — backyard cricket, summers at the beach, large gatherings of friends and family, just chilling and talking. Perhaps after last year and the long periods of isolation, this is entirely what we needed; to be wrapped up in good tunes, with our friends like a comforting warm blanket. With a handful of international visitors in the audience – due to the recent travel bubble between Australia and New Zealand finally being opened up – a family member of the band, Rose, was able to attend in person and she was certainly having a blast dancing all night.  New track ‘Trade’ was deliciously different in not having the same punchy bass rhythmic undercurrent, and contrasted ‘Treason’ which had just played, both entirely enjoyable. It was also an absolute pleasure to hear ‘Knock on Wood’, ‘Made up in Blue’ and ‘North by North’ live. This was a set of stunning harmonies and pure musicianship.  If you have never seen The Bats – go purchase a few of their albums immediately and immerse yourself.

Calling all to attention, the cry of the violin across the room established the Chills set as they opened with ‘Night of Chill Blue’, a trance-like tune from 1987’s album Brave Words that saw everyone in the sold-out venue focus their attention on the mainstage. Taking us on a journey across the decades, with a summary of when how and why, this handpicked setlist was a stunner and showcased the musical talents of the current Chills line-up. Erica Scally is a superb multi-instrumentalist looking after guitar, keys, and violin and in the middle of the evening bassist Callum Hampton also had one hand on a trumpet during ‘You’re Immortal’; and of course, where would we be without the skilled rhythmic wrangling of Todd Knudson on drums.

Classics such as ‘Monolith’, and ‘Kaleidoscope World’ had the crowd singing along, however it was as ‘Pink Frost’ peeled out that the energy in the room instantly resurrected, and you would have been certain you were listening to a studio recording, as the balance of sound was so magnificent.  ‘Heavenly Pop Hit’, such a jam, had the crowd moving, but it was ‘I Love My Leather Jacket’ which definitely hit the spot with cheers, hollers, arms in the air, jumping, and swaying; this was the definitive moment we had all been waiting for.

I also really enjoyed experiencing live the tracks from The Chills current release Scatterbrain; ‘Destiny’ and ‘Hourglass’ both have this waltz-y undertone that is just so relaxing and lyrically there are some philosophical Schrödinger-like moments such as ‘do the sand grains stop falling when you’re not counting them?’ It is a Chills album for sure, and I look forward to adding it to my rotation and spending time in its company in order to truly know the songs better.

The nostalgic earworms performed this evening, serve as little homegrown calling cards. No matter where you are in the world, I am sure if you started singing, ‘I Love My Leather Jacket’, or ‘Heavenly Pop Hit’ out loud that you would soon attract some fellow Antipodeans. Such is the power of truly iconic music that transcends both time and place.

Were you there at the Powerstation for this triumphant classic Kiwi pop gig? Tell us about it in the comments below!

The Chills Set List:

1. Night Of Chill Blue
2. Bad Sugar
3. Male Monster
4. Wet Blanket
5. Oncoming Day
6. Destiny
7. Monolith
8. Kaleidoscope World
9. You’re Immortal
10. Tied Up In Chain
11. Pink Frost
12. Lord Of All I Survey
13. Doledrums
14. Little Alien
15. Heavenly Pop Hit
16. I Love My Leather Jacket
17. Dark Sensation [Snapper cover] [encore]
18. Rolling Moon [encore]
19. Hourglass [encore]
20. Walls Beyond Abandon [encore – on set list but not performed]

The Bats Set List:

1. Tragedy
2. Simpleton
3. Treason
4. Trade
5. Sky
6. Block Of Wood
7. 2 Lines
8. Field of Vision
9. Made Up In Blue
10. Warwick
11. Boogey Man
12. North By North

Note: Banished Music provided passes to Ambient Light to review and photograph this concert. As always, this has not influenced the review in any way and the opinions expressed are those of Ambient Light’s only. This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase a product using an affiliate link, Ambient Light will automatically receive a small commission at no cost to you.

If you enjoyed this content, please consider donating towards the running of Ambient Light, covering expenses and allowing us to expand the coverage you love by visiting our PressPatron page.