The Chills are unique in the history of rock music. I realised this tonight, driving home and listening to Radio Hauraki when I Love My Leather Jacket came on. There are a million bands who could have written a song called I Love My Leather Jacket and for 999,999 of them it would have been taking the piss out of bogans. There's only one band in the world that is twee enough to write a song about the leather jacket which belonged to your best friend who was taken suddenly in his prime by leukaemia and which you now wear in sentimental rememberance of him and what's more you don't even pretend it's taking the piss out of bogans but instead you tell everyone what the song is about with your down-home fresh-faced kiwi-boy sincerity, because you really miss your friend, even now years later if you think about him too much you feel tears welling in your eyes and you wonder why it had to be him that was taken and what you did any differently to be saved, and you want to share this loss with us all because you feel it so greatly, and because face it, you're a naif amongst the swell of hardened cynics and fleeting fashionistas in the music scene.And that is why The Chills are unique in the history of rock music; so without any more ado, I give you:
The Chills - I Love My Leather Jacket
3 comments:
There was a great little piece in the now defunct Wellington Staple magazine some time ago by Imaad Wasif from Alaska! who waxed lyrical about Pink Frost. I think he said it was a perfect pop song. Which it is. Martin Phillips is genius.
Fascinating. I'd love to read that piece, 'cos for me Pink Frost is far from a perfect pop-song - too angular, mawkish and contrived. That's not to say that it is not an amazing track, because it is an amazing track. But I'd take vote for Leather Jacket, or one of those gorgeous little pop numbers off Brave Words.
Martin Phillips is genius? Tough call. Though I'd go along with that if you inserted "the closest thing New Zealand's ever had to a pop-music" in between the "is" and the "genius".
(As in "Martin Phillips is the closest thing New Zealand's ever had to a pop-music genius.")
I was lucky enough to be in the studio audience at the Avalon TV centre when they filmed Leather Jacket live for Radio With Pictures (R.I.P...)
It was 7th Form, so we were wowed almost as much by the fact we were allowed to drink beer and smoke (they wanted a 'club' environment) as by the band. Dick Driver sang a great warm-up track too [we didn't know he could sing!] before The Chills came on.
Ironically enough one of my best friends now was also at that gig...
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