Homegrown talent

Press, 26 February 1987, Page 10

Homegrown talent

Nikkola and Ford St “Nikkola and Ford St” (Ruru Andi). John Genet and The Vespas “Only Naked” (Revolving RR01). From Ruru Records, of Westland, comes a rare dose of rock music Greymouth style, in the form of a self-titled EP from Nikkola and Ford St.

This four-track EP boasts a fat sound that belles the fact that recording was done in the front. room of a Melbourne flat, during an Australian holiday. Nlchola Donovan, a coaster of 10 years standing, is the driving force here, giving the snappy syn-drum based pop music some bite with her romantic (but not drippy) lyrics.

"One Sunny Day” and “Summertime Westland Way” are the two strongest songs, especially the former, a delightful pop song with a memorable chorus.

“Woman” cuts deep with a no holds barred look at female exploitation that only falters due to its familiarity, while “Punk Tart” is a personal account of Donovan’s punk past that seems a bit cliched now (“and all my heroes died/They let me down/how I cried and cried”). Not a bad do-it-yourself production, however — Donovan has a good voice, and with a little more variation in both words and music, she could produce some fine music.

Another home-made oddity is "Only Naked,” a five-song EP from the Auckland “collective," John Genet and The Vespas.

This is a very wordy, obscure effort from the aforementioned, that nevertheless is accessible enough to warrant a listen.

Apart from the largely acoustic “The Wonderful World of Sport,” a snide attack on various N.Z. institutions. the point of the songs largely elude me. ‘

“I Am What I—l’m7 and “Mr Major” are tuneful enough, but the wistful, almost folky singing seems too often to just fade away .. a very puzzling record. —TONY GREEN.