EXPONENTS

Rip It Up, Issue 166, 1 May 1991, Page 22

EXPONENTS

YOU'RE ONLY AS GOOD AS YOUR NEXT SINGLE (OR LAST)

You know their history. Formed in the South. Big in the 80s.

Overseas and record deals. And now back as the Exponents with the original four piece line up of so long ago. They've just released the single, “‘Why Does Love (Do This To Me)’ (b/w ‘Sadness’) on Polygram Records and yes, even the radio stations are playing it.

The song is a classic example of the Exponents ability to produce great slices of big hooky pop songs and chart success should be a formality. They're currently on tour and you might have seen them on yer TV screens (EBS, Bugs Bunny Show, Nightline, Blind Date) recently. So with all the skill and practical experience of a kamikaze pilot | tagged along on some Exponent business and found out some fairly strange things.

Jordan (vocals), Dave (bass), Harry (drums), Brian (guitar) and Andrew (me, questions).

The setting is the charming Astor bar on Symonds Street. The time — 11.05 am.

Andrew: When'’s the Blind Date appearance? Dave: Its being recorded on the 20th. Andrew: Who's on it2 ‘ Dave: Me, Harry and Jordan. Put money on me now. Jordan: We've got to make sure she doesn't know who we are. If she knows who we are she'll just go for me. Dave: If she wants a handicap she'll pick you. Harry: If she wants satisfaction she’ll choose me. Andrew: Do you think you're a good drummer Harry?2 Harry: Yes. Actually no, I've changed my mind. : Andrew: Are you guys getting another guitar player? Jordan: No. » Andrew: Do you feel you can still entertain people? Jordan: | don't think about it. Dave: He's oblivious. g Harry: Oblivious to the rest of the

band. Can you spell that2 Don't spell ‘obvious’. Andrew: Do you get nervous before you go on stage? Brian: | did the other night. | was actually sick from it | think. Andrew: Really? (surprised). The record release party at Rocks In The Attice

Brian: Yeah, because we haven't played as a three-piece musically for a while. The weight was on my shoulders. Harry: Because your wife would have been pissed off if you played bad. Brian: She doesn't know if | play bad or good. ' Dave: Well, that sez a lot about you. Andrew: What happened to Martin O'Neill, who played on the single and briefly with you live? Brian: He didn't quite fit. Harry: Square peg in a round hole. Dave: He was too much of a musician for us. We're bums. We're a feel band. Andrew: What's the plans for the next albume | Dave: A couple more singles and then record the album overseas. Get the money together from the record company and go. Andrew: What's the next single? Dave: ‘'Who Loves Who The Most’ will be the next one. Andrew: The slightly Manchester sounding one? Brian: It's nothing to do with Manchester. Jordan: The whole weird thing of some writers writing about Manchester. If's just a label. ; Dave: Who said we sounded Manchester? Harry: Dominatrix Roskrow. Dave: He's never been to Manchester. He told me.

Brian: It's so dumb comparing NZ bands to English bands. They should look at it the other way round. Jordan: Half the stuff coming out now sounds like early Flying Nun stuff. Brian: Even some of the so-called Manc bands could be the Clean. Hamish Kilgour’s always done beats like that. Stoned beats. Andrew: Lef’s talk about the new single. _ Jordan: It's just a hooky catchy thing. Dave: We've been doing it for two

years and always wanted to record it

Jordan: | like it ‘cos of the space in it, the recording sounds unique on the radio. :

Dave: Lots of people round town hate the recording. They do these big splashy dance covers. It sounds like us so fuck them.

Brian: Sound should be something that you don't have to follow rules. You can do whatever you like. Dave: People complain there’s not

enough re\'/erb or effects on stuff

That's fuckin’ bullshit.

Brian: They obviously don’t understand that sound has no limit. You can do

what the fuck you like.

Jordan: ‘Sadness’ on the B-side has like an atmosphere about it. It’s just a guitar and vocal. | think the whole recording technique is getting too far away from the players on so many records. So far away that a lot of records don’t make sense. There's good gadgetry and trickery but you have to use it tastefully. Brian: For a lot of people round town it's an atmosphere of imitating

overseas music. Andrew: But there’s not a lot happening locally, do you think? - Jordan: | like Push Push. Its not my personal cup of tea but | like listening to it.

Harry: Push Push are the first New Zealand band with an original Number One for ages. Andrew: But aren’t they just a bit tame? Dave: Nah, they're fuckin, good. For the sort of music they do they're perfect. If you saw a Californian band they'd be exactly the same. Push Push are cool. Say that for us. Andrew: How was your appearance on The Early Bird Show the other day? Dave: We had good fun. There’s good people working there. Andrew: Do you like music? Harry: Yeah. Dave: It's alright. Brian: David hates it. - Dave: It's unimportant really. | don't hate it. | just stay with these guys. Brian: You realise how unimportant it is when the fuckin’ war comes along.

Jordan: At the end of the day | like Emerson, Lake and Palmer. | like the drum sounds. Brian: At the end of the day someone like Chris De Burgh is probably OK, even though | hate his fuckin’ guts. Andrew: Who's Chris De Burgh? Jordan: If's Brian's favourite. Dave: | like him. Harry: ‘Don’t Pay the Ferryman'. Brian: He's a dicky looking little bastard but he can write a good tune. | tell you who's a stupid lot. The Birds Nest Roys, because they didn’t realise what they had and still don't. They’re now the Tuffnells but they won't realise what they’ve got. They don’t know how special they were because — Jordan: And are special, are. Brian: Probably one of the best bands in the world at the time. They influenced a lot of people as well. | was talking to the guy from Straitjackets, what's his name2 Andrew. He said he was a big fan. Andrew: They were a hard band to get organised. Dave: If they knew what they had they would of hung in there a bit longer. You have to hang around for a long time if you want to do anything. On that note we depart the Astor and head to the plush record company offices of Polygram. Small talk is exchanged with employees and then the band conduct another interview in the conference room. | watch. An hour later and then off to TVNZ for Jordan to appear on the Bugs Bunny Show. The thrill of knowing | was about to meet Hine Elder (a personal hero of mine) was alltoo much and lhadto nervously scull a coffee on arrival. Then the introductions. Hine, this is Andrew. He's a journalist from Rip It Up. He's with us for the day. | shook hands and denied being a journalist. “How's Murray?” she asked. “I've never met him,” | replied. The taping of the show was pretty funny. “What do you eat for breakfast Jordan?” “l don't eat a lot. | mainly just drink fluids.” The two got on splendidly and | was bummed | didn't bring a camera to get a photo of Hine and | sitting on the Bugs Bunny couch. That night the Exponents play instore at Brash'’s new record shop/supermarket. A large crowd witnesses a laid-back but still cooking Exponents set. It ends with the crowd singing.an old hit. It's weird being in a room full of strangers, all singing nah nah nah nah nah nahin perfect time. Afterwards lots of people buy the single and quite a few even get them autographed for good measure. ANDREW MOORE 0