Friday, October 10, 2008

Martin Phillipps - Sketch Book: Volume One (2000)

Now that I've posted David Kilgour's demos--a superior collection to this one, I must say--I thought it would be appropriate to share Mr. Phillipps' home recordings as well. It's interesting to compare the trajectories of their respective careers, isn't it? They're more interconnected from the start than one might think. Remember that classic organ line on the Clean's immortal "Tally Ho" single? That was supplied by none other than Martin Phillipps. Go forth and impress your friends with this very useful knowledge! Well, I would be impressed. The songs on 2000's 'Sketch Book' were committed to tape between 1988 and 1995, and they aren't bad by any means. It wouldn't be untruthful, however, to suggest that Phillipps' creative zenith was in the past at the time that much of this was recorded, and some pieces are clearly more unfinished and less successful than others. In the end, and as much as it pains me to say this, I feel that the bits n' pieces collected here would vastly benefit from the additional production they might eventually receive. A lot of production. I never thought I'd think that about any of Phillipps' work; after all, the four-track splendor of 'Kaleidoscope World' is the Chills I reach for most. A different scope seems to be envisioned here, less "Rolling Moon" than "Heavenly Pop Hit," maybe? These are virtually "sketches," however, so this is all really useless speculation.

Wondering what Mr. Phillipps has been up to lately? Listen to these radio interviews with Martin from September here and from May here. Thanks, Adam!

- Ariel

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

holy hell!!! been looking for this for ages, thanks so much,
dom

Anonymous said...

awesome...but the link doesn't seem to work

Ariel said...

I'm sure it will eventually, but here's an alternate link for now:
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?4zhqtaduznz

Anonymous said...

thanks...I've been looking for this...

Unknown said...

This looks very interesting.

It's odd -- I just found this blog and the last two posts feature artists I managed to see live during my two visits to NZ from Canada (of course, the list of bands I missed by a day or two is much, much longer).

I saw the Chills at Bodega in Wellington in Dec '04 (Phillips looked awful, by the way), and Kilgour at Dux De Lux in Christchurch in Feb '07. And now some demo-ey goodness from both. Fantastic.

By the way, when I saw the Chills, they were supporting that Stand By EP and Phillips said there'd be new material soon. Did that new stuff ever come out?

Ariel said...

The long-rumored and oft-promised new album, allegedly titled "Silver Bullets," has never actually materialized. Mr. Phillipps is a man of many excuses. Please, stop by again! I’m sure you have more to tell, and I’m very envious of your excursions in NZ. Hope you enjoy these collections.

Adam Askew said...

Fantastic stuff Ariel. I love the blog. There's a recent interview (Sept. this year) with Martin on The Rock And Roll Wire radio show. He talks about the latest(!) line-up of The Chills, and what he's been up to. You can d/l it here...

http://www.95bfm.com/default,188616,martin-phillips-of-the-chills.sm

(Google 'Martin Phillips Rock And Roll Wire' if the link doesn't work)

Ariel said...

Thanks, Adam! I hadn't heard that yet; I'll put the link up on the main post.

Adam Askew said...

http://www.radionz.co.nz/search?mode=results&queries_all_query=martin+phillips

Another recent Radio NZ interview (May 08) with Martin Phillips. Covering recent health issues, his brush with the law and potential upcoming tours of Europe and USA. He also performs a new track called 'Ticking Time Bomb'.

:)

Ariel said...

Fantastic!

Hookfinger said...

Just stumbled across this - thanks so much!!

kiwi lover said...

I was surprised how much I liked this. i love that it's mostly synths and such. It has a timeless weird lofi quality. Like The Moles if the Moles threw out their guitars. This is more like peeking into Martin Phillip's brain than any other rare Chills item. Also make sme think of the first two Steve Kilbeys.

Jittery White Guy said...

Thanks for sharing. Been a big fan since my college radio station got a copy of Kaleidoscope World back in the mid-80s, though I kinda stopped paying attention around the time of the more pop-oriented (but decent enough) Submarine Bells.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the Kiwi rush.