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The Clean

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The Clean were an influential first-wave punk band that formed in Dunedin, New Zealand in 1978.


History

The first line up was Hamish and David Kilgour on drums and guitar respectively and Peter Gutteridge on bass (Peter wrote "Point That Thing Somwhere Else"). After playing with The Clean, Peter reappeared in the Great Unwashed and then The Puddle before forming his own group, the still-active Snapper. In 1979 Peter was replaced on the bass by Robert Scott (later of The Bats).

In 1981 Roger Shepherd, a fan of The Clean, founded the Flying Nun label and recorded their first single, Tally Ho!, for $60 in an 8-track home studio. The single, on Flying Nun (at the time an unknown, self-distributing label), sailed into the New Zealand Top 20, thus setting a precedent of no-compromise chart success for both Flying Nun and The Clean.

After "Tally Ho!", the three Cleans got together with Chris Knox (Tall Dwarfs) and soundman/alternative businessman Doug Hood to record the classic five song Boodle Boodle Boodle EP -- this time on four-track in a hired hall. Boodle Boodle Boodle went Top 5 in the New Zealand charts, and eventually gold, as did its successor, Great Sounds Great, Good Sounds Good, So-so Sounds So-so, Bad Sounds Bad, Rotten Sounds Rotten, an even more varied pack of seven tunes.

By the time the next single, Getting Older emerged in 1983, The Clean were no more. Uncomforable with the demands implicit in their increasing success, The Clean one day just bailed out before it got to be really not fun anymore. Hamish and David began noodling at home with the four track on what became their next project with Peter Gutteridge, The Great Unwashed. Robert picked up a guitar and formed The Bats with his Christchurch flatmates.

An impromptu one-off gig in London in 1989 led to a new live EP, In A Live and then to a brief, casual reformation of The Clean. They polished off a quick world tour and recorded an album of all new tunes in London for Rough Trade records in the UK and Flying Nun back home. Vehicle was was recorded in three days with Alan Moulder (later to record bands such as Swervedriver, Sugar, Smashing Pumpkins, Nine Inch Nails and My Bloody Valentine). Then Robert went back to The Bats' ongoing career, Hamish left the Clean behind him to stay in New York with his new wife and a new band called The Mad Scene, and David followed on from his latest group Stephen with an acclaimed solo debut album called Here Come The Cars, released in 1992.

The three came together again in Dunedin, March 1994. After two practices, they had written half a new album and two weeks later Modern Rock was recorded (at a community hall in a freezing corner of nowhere called Hoopers Inlet). In 1996 they released Unknown Country, which saw organ and other keyboards adding to the grooves, as The Clean mixed bouncing pop tunes with continued experimentation. In 1997 a Clean Tribute album called God Save The Clean was released featuring international artists such as Guided by Voices, Barbra Manning & Calexico and Pavement, as well as locals contributions ranging from Gray Bartlett to HDU. The Clean released yet another great album in 2001 entitled Getaway and a US tour was interrupted in New York by the 9/11 disaster. In 2002 a double CD of their previously hard-to-find singles, Anthology, was released by Flying Nun in New Zealand and Merge in the US.

Although they released several chart-topping songs in their native country, the Clean are a cult band in the rest of the world. However, their influence is surprisingly far-reaching. They became a staple of college radio in the 1980s. Stephen Malkmus of Pavement cites the Clean as a major influence, and the band's droney 80s output is a direct forerunner of Yo La Tengo. Other bands, such as Camper Van Beethoven have a sound that seems heavily influenced by the Clean.

They toured New Zealand for the first time in five years on the 'Bangers and Mash' tour in March 2007.


Trivia

  • During the 2007 'Bangers and Mash' tour they celebrated Hamish Kilgour's 50th birthday while playing at 'The Studio' on Karangahape Road in Auckland on Saturday 17 March 2007.
  • The Chills founding member Martin Phillips had his vinyl release debut playing the keyboard part on The Clean's first single Tally Ho!.


Members

Past Members


Discography

Albums

EPs

7"s

Jan 1978
Tags: New Zealand Music, the clean, Dunedin sound,