Beam Us Up, Scottie!

Rip It Up, Issue 85, 1 August 1984, Page 8

Beam Us Up, Scottie!

Russell Brown

“That’s the assignment, Max. I wouldn’t blame you if you don’t want to take it.” “Not take it? But Chief, that’s what I’m here for!” Saturday morning at the Bat Manor: "We’ll be watching TV but maybe we could talk during the ad breaks,” Bat combo guitarist/singer Bob Scott had suggested. He is present, as are drummer Malcolm Grant, bassman Paul Kean and fellow guitarist Kaye Woodward. Jay Expendable hopes she hasn’t burnt this week’s Listener.

The Bats were born in late 1982 and since then they’ve played their native Christchurch, Dunedin, Nelson, West Melton and Clarkeville (where they didn’t arrive via the last train but probably should have). They were a fun band when they started and they’re a fun band now.

"If that knowledge falls into the hands of KAOS it could be incredibly dangerous, 99." They’ve all been in bands of varying stature before and they're not really interested in some highpressure scramble to "the top." Paul: "You have to put a limit on that kind of thing. We'd rather enjoy ourselves than burn ourselves out." "Hogan, what are you and that cockroach babbling about?” They have, however, recorded their debut EP at Christchurch’s Nightshift Studios. A video has been made with Peter Bannan for the song ‘By Night’. They'll even be making their first venture into the North Island soon. "I know nothing! Nu-u-utheng!” Bob is the chief songwriter and sings the songs in the same idiosyncratic, slightly atonal and quite charming way he did with the Clean. He grudgingly admits they’re pop songs. But not the sort of nasty pop you hear so often ... "Thanks for a wonderful war." Paul and Kaye took a tape to the That's Country people. They’d gone on record as saying they’d

like more young acts on the programme. The first woman they gave the tape to was "really enthusiastic” but her boss rejected the idea out of hand. Not suitable. Bob did, however, sit at the next table to Jodi Vaughan and Brendan Dougan at a cafe somewhere between Dunedin and Christchurch. "Jim, I just got a life reading of incredible intensity!” Bob now resides in Dunedin and about once a month he joins the quite remarkable music scene traffic between there and Christchurch so the band can play at the pub (where they’re guaranteed to draw a crowd) or a party (they like playing parties) or whatever (they’re pretty keen on whatever, too). "Down” there he's also part of Pink Plastic Gods. Things will continue pretty much that way for the foreseeable future. The Bats will undoubtedly gain a higher national profile after the tour and the record but they’ll still be the Bats. So are the Bats a good band? Is Bill Shatner a bad actor? "Captain the planet’s gone!”