Fresh off the back of reissuing Submarine Bells, Soft Bomb and with a forthcoming album - Scatterbrain - The Chills have lined up a killer set of bands to head our on tour with them. The Bats, Purple Pilgrims, Luke Buda and more. Read the full press release below:
The Chills have announced a blistering array of supports joining them for their nationwide Scatterbrain tour for April / May 2021 including the likes of Purple Pilgrims, Luke Buda, Mousey, Asta Rangu, Bitter Defeat and Devil's Elbow.
But in a glorious twist of fate, they have also roped in their old friends THE BATS as very special guests for their Auckland Powerstation show on May 14th.
With Purple Pilgrims in support, it will make for a night of pure and joyous celebration of Flying Nun alumni, coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the iconic indie label which opened its doors in 1981.
The Chills and The Bats have only performed together once before, at the Dunedin Town Hall on the 8th of July 1990 on the Submarine Bells tour, alongside The 3Ds.
'The Chills are feeling honoured to be performing alongside The Bats for only the second time in our careers' - Martin Phillipps, The Chills
'1990?! About bloody time we celebrated with our seniors (the 40 year old Chills) and share the stage with them again! (We're only 38!) - Paul Kean, The Bats
The Chills - Scatterbrain Album Release Tour
April 16 Oamaru Club, Oamaru with ASTA RANGU
April 17 Larnach Castle, Dunedin Arts Festival SOLD OUT
April 18 Festival of Colour, Wanaka
April 30 Cassels Blue Smoke, Christchurch with MOUSEY
May 1 Wakatu Hotel, Nelson with MOUSEY (solo)
May 6 St. Peter's Hall, Paekākāriki with LUKE BUDA
May 7 Meow, Wellington with LUKE BUDA
May 8 The Cabana, Napier with DEVIL'S ELBOW
May 9 The Dome, Gisborne with BITTER DEFEAT
May 13 Totara St, Mount Maunganui with BITTER DEFEAT
May 14 THE CHILLS & THE BATS Powerstation, Auckland with PURPLE PILGRIMS
May 15 Town Hall, Raglan with BITTER DEFEAT
About Scatterbrain
“An architect of New Zealand’s fabled Dunedin sound” Pitchfork
“Just glorious” The Guardian
“The Chills have never sounded better” Record Collector
Dunedin’s finest, The Chills release their seventh studio album ‘Scatterbrain’, a glorious self- examination of Martin Phillipps’ songwriting hot (ish) on the heels of the hugely successful ‘Snow Bound’ (2018) and the critically-acclaimed movie ‘The Chills: The Triumph And Tragedy Of Martin Phillipps’ a year later.
As the rave reviewed movie premiered at the SXSW film festival, The Chills headed out on their first US tour since ’96 to further accolades whilst revisiting those esoteric extremes so wonderfully collected in the film which then simultaneously premiered around the world.
“It’s about artistic integrity, self- realisation, self-acceptance and a reflection on mortality.”
The Guardian
Now in 2021, Phillipps is taking stock of things – everything. Yes, everything.
The result is this triumphant new Chills’ album ‘Scatterbrain’, a thought- provoking and evocative stock take from a man who has lived through good times and bad.
But now, the world is a different place and optimism is in short supply. Viewed from the perspective of a man understanding his age and indeed his own mortality, ‘Scatterbrain’ is underpinned, as ever, with catchy melodies and an incisive turn of phrase; it takes a mature look at matters arising with a side order of perspective as opening cut ‘Monolith’ displays.
“There are hard but important truths in our history. I know that it's often said that you learn from those lessons or you'll end up repeating the mistakes” Phillipps attests of ‘Monolith’ which follows the majestically haunting and fatalistic ‘You’re Immortal’ in which he examines his current position and nods sage-like to his descendants.
There’s a stark honesty in these songs, the clock is ticking on ‘Hourglass’ and ‘Destiny’ with a fragility that sees our narrator fearing the future and even our very understanding of it.
‘Destiny’ is the perfect candid observation on just how we’ve messed things up: “We're finding even more reasons to shut down rational dialogue in an era of fake news and disbelief. Good luck with the new dark ages!”
We live in hope and with a gloriously uplifting 32 minutes to play on repeat as the world continues to confuse. ‘Scatterbrain’ is a life passing before your ears as uncertainty increases and fake news rumbles on; during which aliens invade, Phillipps scales the walls beyond abandon as he probes the minutiae of worlds within worlds and the hourglass fills. A landmark album from one of the great modern song writers, it’s pure pop music for the new normal and we can’t wait to see how it ends...
The Chills are:
- Martin Phillipps (guitar and vocals)
- Callum Hampton (bass and backing vocals)
- Todd Knudson (drums and backing vocals)
- Erica Scally (guitar, keyboards, violin and backing vocals)
- Oli Wilson (keyboards and backing vocals).
‘The Chills: The Triumph And Tragedy Of Martin Phillipps’ film praise: ★★★★★ The Guardian
“This is what a living legend looks and sounds like” Rolling Stone
