Verlaines sound fresh, eight years on

Press, 17 June 1988, Page 26

Verlaines sound fresh, eight years on

THE VERLAINES “Bird-Dog” (Flying Nun 077). “Hallelujah,” the first album from The Verlaines, was one of those rare New Zealand long players where everything (except maybe the cover) clicked perfectly; songs, performance and production meshed to make it one of Flying Nun’s best releases. Typically, the Dunedin band was in no hurry to follow up. Eight years of making music exactly when and how they want have kept them fresh and virtually intact, where many other worthy bands have burned out in less than two. “Bird-Dog” is finally out, however (after numerous delays), and it is another fine record, if one that does not depart too much from the established Verlaines noise. Graeme Downes gets the most out of the

band’s limited technical prowess, arranging each song into a careful, structured unit. A song like “Icarus Missed” is a good example of this convoluted technique. A series of very odd time changes twist into a cohesive whole — you can almost see Downes at the piano, painstakingly mapping out each chord change. Over the 10 songs on “Bird-Dog” this can get a bit much. There is one too many of the familiar Verlaines riffs, choruses and changes here, detracting from the often very'simple tunes. But the sound is nice and fat (for a New Zealand production), and I count five songs that rank with the best on “Hallelujah.” ' Still, the band may be just a bit too studious here — maybe the next LP will have them relaxing and enjoying their “old-timers” status! -TONY GREEN