STACK NZ Feb #81

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How the Patea Maori Club's 1984 hit became New Zealand's unoffial national anthem. Words Adam Colby POI E: THE STORY OF OUR SONG

T he brainchild of musician and hip hop beats stayed in the NZ charts for 34 weeks and outsold smash hits like Thriller and I Just Called to Say I Loved You . Poi E resonated with young and old across the land, including writer/director Tearepa Kahi (Mt Zion). “I grew up in Papanui in entrepreneur Maui Dalvanius Prime, the groundbreaking mix of Te Reo M ā ori and

Christchurch, where there wasn’t a huge Maori presence,” he recalls. “When I used to visit the whanau in Pukekohe, that’s where I felt strong and confident, but in Christchurch it was a different feeling altogether. “But when Poi E came out – I must have been 7 years old – I saw this young boy dressed in his maro, standing with his wh ā nau doing those actions and he looked so awesome! I felt like I saw myself. And then, as the video clip

actually came from a real place and from real people,” he adds. “This story is about a person [Dalvanius] who is going through a huge identity shift, dealing with the passing of his mother and adjusting to returning home from the bright lights overseas. And it’s these people who are suffering economically and wondering what’s the next step because the job that their families have done for the last 40 years is over. “So for me, it’s been getting to understand each of these places and all of the people involved that gives this song its place. It’s not just a story about a chart-topper, the first Te Reo M ā ori song that hit number one. It’s actually a story about what happened when all those people came together to create some magic.”

played on, I saw who I wanted to be: Joe Moana on top of the waka doing the bop. So, in this one video clip I saw myself.” Poi E the movie traces how the

a copy of Poi E: The Story of Our Song at STACK.net.nz

iconic song came to be and mixes archive footage and recordings of the late Dalvanius with new interviews with musicians such as The Topp Twins, Don McGlashan and Annie Crummer, who talk about the influence of the song on their lives and careers. There’s also contributions from the likes of Taika Waititi, who explains to Stan Walker what life was like back in the ‘80s, and the Patea Maori Club themselves; the song was released to aid a town devastated by the closing of the local freezing works. Kahi says one of the things he learned in making this film is that the song wasn’t manufactured, like a lot of today’s music. ”It

Poi E: The Story of Our Song is is due out on DVD on February 15.

RESITTING THE SOUND The Bats' Robert Scott on recording their new LP The Deep Set at Lyttleton's in-demand Sitting Room studio. Words John Ferguson

O n paper, the idea of Flying Nun icons The Bats recording at Ben Edwards’ noted Lyttelton studio – best known as a home for country acts like Marlon Williams and Tami Neilson – might seem a little odd. But it actually kind of makes sense. For starters, The Bats are based in the South Island. And while they are usually classified as an 'indie rock' act, there has always been a distinct folk/country flavour to their work. The Sitting Room’s laidback vibe has also been a drawcard for other artists and The Bats frontman Robert Scott agrees it was nice place to record. "[Ben] has obviously done good things with Marlon and the other people he has worked with,” he told STACK . “Yeah, it was pretty good there: it’s relaxing and there’s a great view.” Nevertheless, the new album The Deep Set is unmistakably a Bats album, stacked with their trademark jangle-y pop; as Scott notes:

“We don’t want to reinvent the wheel.” Why would they? Formed in 1982 in the aftermath of the first break-up of The Clean, The Bats have quietly established themselves as one of Flying Nun’s best known acts and have retained the same line-up of Scott, Kaye Woodward (guitar), Paul Kean (bass) and Malcolm Grant (drums) throughout their 30-year-plus existence. Like The Clean (who Scott continues to play with), they not exactly prolific – The Deep Set is only their ninth studio album – but that’s probably one of the secrets to their success. “We’re very good at making sure we have lots of time off!” laughs Scott. “That definitely helps. It means we are very fresh when we come back for a project: it's been nearly five years between this and the last one. We definitely don’t live in each other’s pockets and tour all the time like some bands do.” However, Scott keeps busy during the

downtime. As well as The Clean, he has released a number of solo albums, the latest being The Green House (2014), which featured a number of collaborations with Tiny Ruin’s Holly Fullbrook. “The solo stuff gives me the chance to stretch out and try a few things that I wouldn’t normally do,” he says. “I take more chances with songs that won’t necessarily have to be played live. “I am looking at doing another solo record because I really enjoyed that process. There will possibly be some Clean action, but I can’t confirm anything about that [laughs].”

The Deep Set by The Bats is out now.

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