Review by LarryG
3 stars out of 4
New Zealand's The Chills are a band well worth checking out. Their
leader, Martin Phillips, wrote intelligent songs that had a great pop
sensibility. The band began to hit its stride with 1990's Submarine Blues,
a lovely, simple record featuring the appropriately named(except the hit
part) Heavenly Pop Hit, the straight ahead rocker the Oncoming Day and the
gorgeous title track. Phillips beefed up the band's sound for Soft Bomb,
getting the help of veteran studio pro Peter Holsapple, formerly of the
great 70's power pop band the dBs, to fill out the sound with guitars
and keyboards. Holsapple has also worked with REM and must have seen
that the Chills share REM's ability to make great, unshowy music. The
real attraction of Soft Bomb is Phillips' songs.
Soft Bomb is filled with joyful, ungimmicky rockers. The Male Monster
From the Id is great rock and a funny, insightful song of trying to be
a sensitive and "keep my caveman hidden." Soft Bomb 1, about
the pressures to make commercial music, starts with Phillips' electric
guitar and continues to grow in excitement as other instuments join in.
Phillips has a refreshingly idealistic, pacifist world view which he
slips unobtrusively into his songs. Sleeping Giants is an exhilarating,
fast pop rock song which delivers a hopeful message about the world's
great powers being able to work together to fight evil. Soft Bomb 2 is
a simple one minute plea for a peaceful world. The highlight of Soft Bomb
is the austere, beautiful Song for Randy Newman etc, Phillips' heartfelt
tribute to eccentric rock geniuses like Brian Wilson and Syd Barrett to
whom Phillips clearly feels an affinity. Phillips is accompanied only
by a piano as he sings of the treatment they get from a world who
"take so much, they use and discard" and "a journey they
were forced to make" and musical convictions that "drives away
your lovers and keeps at bay the others." Phillips has a great
musical gift for creating an uplifting mode. Double Summer creates an
irresistable light mood through keyboards and subtle guitars that perfectly
communicate the song's story of the potential of a new romance. Phillips
shows his likeable optimism, singing: "life never tires of great
surprises." While Soft Bomb is mostly upbeat, there are also some
poignant slower songs. Sanctuary shows Phillips' understanding of the dark
side of the Male Monster from the Id, clearly urging a battered woman to
"get out of there". Water Wolves uses Van Dyke Parks string
arrangement to complete a stark, poetic mood. Soft Bomb has lots of fun
touches. There is No Harm in Trying is a weird 40 second song which
is answered later in the record with the 35 second There is No Point in
Trying. While he has since used the Chills name again, Phillips
broke up the band after reaching a high point with the brilliant Soft Bomb.
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