Neil Finn Saves Iconic Kiwi Label, Hints at Shoegazing Record

Posted on May 16th 2010 7:10AM by Stephen Dowling

To indie fans of a certain age, Flying Nun holds a special place in their record shelves. Formed in 1981 in Christchurch, New Zealand, the label made a name for itself championing the music of the even-more-southerly student city of Dunedin. Roger Shepherd's labour of love went on to help the likes of the Clean, the Chills, the Bats, the Verlaines and Straitjacket Fits achieve a slow-burning, cultish fame which still endures today.

Flying Nun merged with Australian label Mushroom in the early 1990s and attempted to give its artists international reach; the experiment ended with Shepherd giving up on the music business in the mid-1990s. Flying Nun was left to languish, being subsumed by music giant Warners until Shepherd decided to revitalise the label and give its much-loved vintage releases some proper care and attention last year. And the man who has helped fund Flying Nun's second wind, Crowded House's Neil Finn, tells Spinner he's excited at being able to help a Kiwi icon.

"I was given the chance to be an investor in it and I jumped at it, because I think it's been a shame it's been left to languish so long with such an amazing catalogue," he says, talking about his quarter-share in the label. "But also Roger has got the vibe, and his interest in getting those records in good shape and giving them a bit of love and attention. I think he's got his mind on finding some great new things."

It may surprise some to find Finn -- whose songs are often of a radio-friendly sheen light years away from Flying Nun's DIY aesthetic -- coming out to bat for the label. But Finn says he's long been a fan, and admires the way the music has travelled and inspired other artists around the world,

"It keeps resonating. The Clean have toured a little bit, and maybe the Verlaines, but the records haven't been given that much care and attention one way or another. But I think that's the way with music, good things hang about, and it only takes 10 people in a town who love something and then they'll talk about it with 100 people, and you can come through to play and a couple of hundred people turn up."

Finn's re-united Crowded House release their new album 'Intriguer' in June, and start a UK tour this week. He's already looking towards his next release -- a record he's made with his wife Sharon, under the name Pyjama Party (more about this in Spinner's forthcoming full-length interview). Now he's a part-owner of Flying Nun, could we see him release a record under the Flying Nun name?

"I don't know. Maybe the Pyjama Party is right for it. I'm not what you would regard as a typical Flying Nun kind of artist but I'm not bothered either way. Look, I could make a shoegazing record no problem. Maybe at some point I will. On stage there's always an element of trying to be psychedelic band, but then my pop sensibilities kick back in.

"At some point I'd like to make a fully psychedelic record and maybe that would belong quite happily on Flying Nun." You read it here first.