On New Zealand Music

Radio New Zealand has put the call out for the country folk to vote on the all-time best New Zealand songs. Being a proud middle-aged white man, I took it upon myself to not only vote, but to write up my carefully curated thoughts on why I voted the way I did.

Waiata 100. what is Atearoa's favourite song

NZ music can loosely be grouped into four eras.

As fate would have it, I am indeed fortunate, as it just so happens that my lived experience lines up perfectly with these national cultural touchstones.

The Nature's Best Era

In January of 2002 a double compilation CD came out called 'Nature's Best'. This CD shortly after became a fixture in all respectable suburban middle-class households.

The CD unapologetically shone the spotlight on our back catalogue. Once tucked away gathering dust on the shelf, now brushed off and rediscovered as treasure hiding in plain sight.

It was the spark that led to the birth of the music renaissance (see below). The tunes in question were mainly your classic boomer grooves of yesteryear. Your Crowded Houses, Dave Dobbyn, Exponents, Split Enz and the like.

Bangers that I dare say could use tucking back on the shelf for a wee while, as most have succumbed to a fate of mall/classic hits radio/sports stadium purgatory.*

For the time though, it was magic. Imagine finding your favourite pair of socks under the fridge years after you had given up all hope.

As one slips into the cosy warm embrace of the Nature's Best fridge socks, the magic comes rushing back into one's nether digits, wriggling to and fro. The tickle is still there and the fit is groovy.

-I may still carry some bitterness towards a certain generation for buying up all the housing stock, possibly affecting my judgement.

The 90s Era

The Nature's Best CDs did have a few '90s tracks on them, but they kind of felt a bit token, not really complementing the more boomer'esc pop-rock musical journey.

The exception to this rule was of course Bic Runga's 'Sway', which was an immediate hit with all generations. Cementing a young Bic Runga as one of our most beloved cultural treasures. Securing permeant residence on the vineyard circuit forever more.

To my memory, the larger '90s era was all about young rock of various inclinations. Leading the charge were bands such as Supergroove, Shihad, Headless Chickens, Garageland, Head Like a Hole... with The Feelers and Zed coming up the rear.

90s bands deserve extra credit for finding local audiences in a decade of broader local cultural cringe. Mainstream TV and radio did not support local acts. Great music was being made in spite of a larger cultural indifference outside of uni circles*

-At this point I'm just making shit up, what do I know? I was 8-18 in the '90s. Zits of various shapes and sizes were of more pressing concern than keeping tabs on the cultural pulse of my elders.

The Renaissance Era

One Mike Chunn of Split Enz fame, who spearheaded the Nature's Best CDs (see above), was also instrumental in kicking off NZ Music Week (and later Month) to celebrate and peer-pressure TV and radio into playing more NZ music.

Over the late '90s and early 2000s, NZ Music Month was overwhelmingly successful.

Not only at encouraging more local support on the radio, but also at turning the tide with the public at large. Transforming once eye-rolling sceptics into fully signed-up, card-carrying local music enthusiasts.

This, combined with the rise of plentiful summer music festivals post the mud-ridden hippy love-fest success of the Gathering, saw NZ music hatches from a playing it cool but deep down insecure caterpillar into a proud, confident butterfly sprouting wings of exciting new genres and sub-genres. Flying freely into sonic winds of exploration and celebration.*

-A butterfly? really? Well yes either that or a phoenix, and I'm saving that bad bird for later.

The Contemporary Era

The Contemporary era kicks off 2010ish, which aligns nicely with me hitting my thirties while simultaneously moving to the cultural Groundhog Day vortex of Queenstown.

The more obtuse reader will have observed that, much like belly-button fluff circling around the plug hole, I have been circling round the idea of personal life experience equalling objective national cultural trends.

Being self-enlightened enough to appreciate such hubris. Furthermore, it is the natural order of things to believe the 'best' music ever made was coincidentally made in one's youth.

An objectionable, unprovable hypothesis, of course. However, one tends to reach for nostalgia over scientific curiosity when selecting bangers for the more mature punters parting it up 9.30pm on a Friday.

The Contemporary era is indulged in by yours truly after having one too many cab savs on a night at home, digging through the latest offerings on Spotify in a desperate attempt to tap the fountain of youth.

Indeed there is gold to be found here, and it needs to shine evermore brightly to penetrate through the instincts of the elderly to open up one's heart to the new, while simultaneously resisting the strong pull to revisit the old and familiar.

...to be continued (check back tomorrow)