Arts & Music - New Zealand's North Island - page 847

In 1981 Flying Nun was started by Christchurch record store owner Roger Shepherd.
Many of the early groups came from Dunedin, where loca l musicians took the DIY atti-
tude of punk but used it to produce a lo-fi indie-pop that received rave reviews from the
likes of NME in the UK and Rolling Stone in the US. Billboard even claimed in 1989:
'There doesn't seem to be anything on Flying Nun Records that is less than excellent.'
Many of the musicians from the Flying Nun scene still perform live to this day, includ-
ing David Kilgour (from The Clean) and Shayne Carter (from the Straitjacket Fits, and
subsequently Dimmer and The Adults). The Bats are still releasing albums, and Martin
Phillipps' band The Chills released a live album in 2013.
For indie rock fans, a great source of local info is www.cheeseontoast.co.nz , which lists gigs and has
band interviews and photos. For more on local hip-hop, pop and rock, check out www.thecorner.co.nz
and the long-running www.muzic.net.nz .
Reggae, Hip-Hop & Dance
The genres of music that have been adopted most enthusiastically by Maori and Polynesi-
an New Zealanders are reggae (in the 1970s) and hip-hop (in the 1980s), which has led to
distinct local forms. In Wellington a thriving jazz scene took on a reggae influence to cre-
ate a host of groups that blended dub, roots, and funky jazz - most notably Fat Freddy's
Drop. The national public holiday, Waitangi Day, on 6 February, also happens to fall on
the birthday of Bob Marley and annual reggae concerts are held on this day in Auckland
and Wellington.
The local hip-hop scene has its heart in the suburbs of South Auckland, which have a
high concentration of Maori and Pacific Island residents. This area is home to one of New
Zealand's foremost hip-hop labels, Dawn Raid, which takes its name from the infamous
early-morning house raids of the 1970s that police performed on Pacific Islanders suspec-
ted of outstaying their visas. Dawn Raid's most successful artist is Savage, who sold a
million copies of his single 'Swing' after it was featured in the movie Knocked Up . Within
New Zealand, the most well-known hip-hop acts are Scribe, Che Fu, and Smashproof
(whose song 'Brother' held number one on the NZ singles charts longer than any other
local act).
Dance music gained a foothold in Christchurch in the 1990s, spawning dub/electronica
outfit Salmonella Dub and its offshoot act, Tiki Taane. Drum 'n' bass remains popular