Clean

The band Clean, formed in 1978 in Dunedin, are one of the most emblematic bands of New Zealand’s strictly independent 1980s scene. Their music was not as difficult as that of other underground bands—in fact, it could be classified as pop—but it was produced with humble means and distributed almost exclusively among friends. This artisanal approach gave the Clean the moral strength to become a reference point for thousands of other groups around the world. The lineup that put them on the map included Peter Gutteridge on lead guitar, Robert Scott on bass (formerly of Electric Blood, for whom he had written She Was Only The Engineer's Daughter and Don't Ring Us We'll Ring You), Hamish Kilgour on drums, and his brother David on rhythm guitar and vocals. Their recording career began in 1981 with the single Tally Ho (perhaps destined to remain their masterpiece) and the EP Boodle Boodle Boodle (Flying Nun, 1981), both recorded at Chris Knox’s home of the Tall Dwarfs. Their music showed influences from Syd Barrett (Sad-Eyed Lady), the Buzzcocks (Billy Two), and the Velvet Underground (Point That Thing Somewhere Else). They followed with another EP, Great Sounds Great (Flying Nun, 1982), and the single Getting Older (by far the most aggressive track of their career). Despite these and other pop gems (Beatnik, Anything Could Happen), the Clean disbanded almost immediately. Their repertoire, later compiled on Compilation (Flying Nun, 1986), consists of about a dozen songs. That modest songbook, however, is rich in intimacy and realism. Their shy pop melodies made extensive use of fuzz and were often played with the spirit of a Walt Disney soundtrack. The band's members went their separate ways. Scott formed the Bats, and Gutteridge joined the newly formed Chills. The Kilgour brothers became the Great Unwashed and released the album Clean Out Of Our Minds (Flying Nun, 1983), a collection of experimental songs only vaguely resembling the Clean’s work, less melodic and more atmospheric. Gutteridge returned in time to record the EP Singles (Flying Nun, 1984), which includes two gems: Born In The Wrong Time (by Gutteridge) and Neck Of The Woods (by David Kilgour). Just as they had introduced Ross Humphries on bass, the Great Unwashed disbanded. Hamish Kilgour and Humphries went on to form Bailter Space. To indulge his pop impulses, David Kilgour formed the Stephen in 1987, releasing the EP Dumb the following year. Gutteridge, in turn, resumed his wandering career, first forming the Snapper (EP, 1989) with Christine Voice on organ and Dominic Stones on guitar, and then assisting George Henderson’s Puddle. Occasionally the Clean would reform, but it was only in 1990, when the group’s posthumous fame had peaked amid the New Zealand folk-pop boom, that their first full-length album, Vehicle (Rough Trade, 1990), was finally released. The songs retain the lyricism of the early Clean but not the spirit, which is now far more aware of being “fashionable.” Affecting and aristocratic, the “independent” sound of Dunes and Drawing To A Hole is as ambitious as AOR productions. The playful Big Cat and Diamond Shine are humble “ditties” for high school parties, while Home and I Can See are “bedroom” ballads for teenagers. The melodic essence of the Clean’s sound is also found on David Kilgour’s first excellent solo album, Here Comes The Cars (Flying Nun, 1992), with Spins You Around and Fine, followed by Sugar Mouth (Flying Nun, 1994), with Crazy, Fallaway, and 1987, and the (poor) retrospective collection First Steps And False Alarms (Ajax, 1995). The Heavy Eights (Flying Nun, 1997) is perhaps the album that comes closest to the Clean’s magic, thanks to a handful of precious songs (Diggin' For Gold, Round The Bend, My One, Locked In Blue), the poignant instrumental Tumbalin, and the long Chop Me In 1/2, which recalls the Jefferson Airplane. Hamish Kilgour, now settled in Boston and dismissed from Bailter Space, formed the Mad Scene with his wife Lisa “Seagul” Siegel, releasing the single Falling Over Spilling Over (Homestead, 1992), followed the next year by the album A Trip Thru Monsterland (Flying Nun, 1993). Their pop is as varied and eclectic as Bailter Space, with subtle traces of the Velvet Underground (Paper Plane, Bee, Whole World). The method reaches perfection with the single Balloon. Sealight (Merge, 1995) is equally split between the two spouses, with him motivated by almost socialist concerns (My Dreams Are Losing Their Teeth, Marching Song) and her reveling in her falsely childlike persona (Spilled Oranges, Birthday Party, Transatlantic Telephone Conversation). Bassist Robert Vickers, however, writes the best song, Here Goes Nothing. The single Late Last Night (Dark Beloved Night) and the album Modern Rock (Flying Nun, 1994 – Summershine, 1995) marked the eagerly awaited return of the Clean, who reformed despite geographical distances. While Vehicle had remained faithful to the immaculate pop of their early years, the second album presents the Clean in a much more modern guise.

The mini-album Chinese Honey (Merge, 1996) marks an improvement for Mad Scene both in terms of atmospherics (Big Setup, Waiting For The Rain) and melody (Siegel's I Met You In My Dreams) but lacks depth. Mad Scene can concoct intriguing noise-pop tracks that borrow freely from Sixties psychedelia and Eighties new wave. Where previus albums were surreal and relaxed, this one is almost threatening. The band, now relocated in New York, may have started a new career under the wing of the New York avantgarde.

The Clean did not disappear. Occasionally, they returned with new albums that seem to pop out of the blue. Unknown Country (Flying Nun, 1997) could well be the Clean's best album ever. The odd pop songs focus on the tension and the release that are characteristic of psychedelic rock, although Champagne & Misery stays close to the Clean canon, Wipe Me I'm Lucky experiments shyly, and Wall Walk is warped like a cartoon soundtrack. To spice things up, the trio even scores instrumental world-music (Balkans).

Getaway (Merge, 2001), instead, celebrates a pointless reunion with a pointless album that, at best (E Motel, Aho), brings back nostalgic memories of the birth of lo-fi pop and at worst (just about everything else) proves that lo-fi pop, after all, was a little over-hyped. Stars and Alpine Madness fail to resurrect San Francisco's acid-rock, although they try very hard with distortion and mantra-like harmonies.

A few months after the Clean released their fourth album, Kilgour released his solo A Feather in the Engine (Merge, 2001), which is easily the better of the two, despite being much humbler, replete with dreamy pop songs such as The Perfect Watch and Wooden Shed. The joyful hymn of Today Is Gonna Be Mine, the hypnotic mantra of I Lost My Train, and the exotic trance of I Caught You rank among his masterpieces.

The Anthology (Merge, 2003) is a two-CD summary of their career, including the early singles and EPs.

Kilgour's Frozen Orange (Merge, 2004), backed by most of Lambchop, is a much less successful attempt at rejuvinating his personal style. Gone is the transcendence of Feather: even the best songs (Living In Space, The Waltz) have a much more modest down-home feeling. That feeling becomes almost senile on The Far Now (Merge, 2007).

The Clean's Mister Pop (2009) experimented with different styles, but sounded amateurish at best.

Mad Scene reformed for Blip (Siltbreeze, 2012), their first album in almost twenty years.