Amazingly, this is the Chills' first extended release, and by this time (1985), the Martin Phillips-led outfit had already been through seven different lineups in their four-year existence. Following the death of the band's drummer and Phillips' close friend, Martyn Bull, the leader had wanted to rename the latest version of his band A Wrinkle in Time, but he changed his mind and headed into the studio to cut this record. It turned out to be one of the band's best. Every song rings with Phillips' deeply ingrained love of '60s garage pop and impeccable knack for revealing a gleaming, memorable hook to pair with even his most introspective lyrical journeys. Thus, the listener can revel in the swirling "This Is the Way" and "Bee Bah Bee Bah Bee Boe," or the Nuggets-worthy "Never Never Go" and "Don't Even Know Her Name." The second side gets darker, with the ominous guitar riff of "Whole Weird World" and the epic (for the Chills, anyway) five-minute "Dream by Dream" with its memorable "Good-night Chills!" signoff. Taken in slices or as a whole, The Lost EP is an essential part of the Chills' canon. All six tracks are available on the Homestead issue of the essential singles collection Kaleidoscope World.

(by Patrick Foster, All Music Guide)

Kaleidoscope World collects all of the Chills' early singles, starting with their contribution to 1982's Dunedin Double, Flying Nun's first release, through their 1986 single "I Love My Leather Jacket." It's clear right from the start that Martin Phillipps was a special songwriter and he was able to inspire whatever group of musicians he had backing him to great heights. Their very first song to see the light of day was the song that gives the collection its title, and it's an instantly hooky, restrained slice of underground pop that has a timeless feel. Phillipps was able to tap into this kind of warmly rollicking song almost every time he brought the group into the studio. The comp is full of songs that capture the restrained beauty and breathtaking emotion of that first attempt, seemingly in effortless fashion. "Pink Frost," "Rolling Moon," "This Is the Way," and "Purple Girl" all fit the bill; so does the slightly more rocking "Leather Jacket" and the morose but still pretty "Doledrums." Phillipps saved some of his weirder inclinations for B-sides, and it's fascinating to hear the straightforward pop songs balanced with these experiments and offbeat tunes. The disc provides a look at the formative work of one of Flying Nun's best bands, which is saying a lot, and also helps Chills fans who may not have been quick enough on the draw to get the original singles a chance to have all these great songs in one easy-to-digest package.

(Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide)

Crafty New Zealand pop group lead by song craftsman Graham Downes that leaned heavily toward Baroque classicism on this exquisite collection of tales from 1987. Their art was in the subtlety of arrangements, and the group was pivotal in defining the complex simplicity of the Flying Nun sound alongside the Clean and the Chills. The Verlaines were certainly the first of the family in the '80s to embrace truly classical modality in their delicate pop sound, and the result is Bird Dog, as a sophisticated and glorious album of Downes' distinct genius, whose only peers would be Robert Forster and Martin Phillips. Although his craft may be fastidious, the Verlaines have mastery of rendering it effortless on Bird Dog. Later their sound may have become a little more stilted, but for a group so ahead of their time, anything is forgivable, although many fans of this character and eccentricity displayed here may believe the edge was lost in the '90s when they pursued a straighter MOR sound. With Hallelujah All the Way Home and Some Disenchanted Evening on either side of this release, it is difficult to think of another group who made three albums of this quality in five years.

(Martin Walters, All Music Guide)

The Bats' first full album continues the early promise of their EPs and, with only the slightest deviations and changes since, established their sound for just about everything that followed. Scott and company may not be the most willfully experimental of musicians, but when they're on -- more often the case than not -- their lovely, melancholic songs simply hit the spot. Woodward forms the perfect singing partner for Scott, while guest violinist Alastair Galbraith brings his talent to the fore as he has for so many other New Zealand bands. "Treason" makes for a good start to the album, but the real standout on Daddy's Highway is the surging "North by North." Featuring a fantastic Galbraith violin solo, it gives the band the opportunity to show its sometime hidden strengths for more energetic, nervous material. Scott's vocal performance is one of his best, and the quick, on-edge pace seems to get even more so as the song continues. Quieter songs unsurprisingly abound as well, from the understated sweetness of "Sir Queen" to the gentle keyboard-touched "Candidate." "Tragedy" is one of the best in this vein, ending in a disturbing low drone (or at least as much of a drone as the generally quick-length songs by the Bats allow for). Though Daddy's Highway suffers a touch from the same problem that affects all Bats releases -- an increasing sameness, especially towards album's end -- it's still a great full album debut.

(by Ned Raggett, All Music Guide)

The first proper album from the Chills, following a several-years'-long string of classic indie pop singles, is the culmination of the band's early promise. Produced by Texas art rock weirdo Mayo Thompson, the sound is thick and echoey, adding a layer of foreboding even to relatively bright tunes like the manic opener "Push" and turning songs like the brilliant "16 Heartthrobs" (a creepy, anguished memorial to Jayne Mansfield) into dark, throbbing epics. Andrew Todd's organ work is unusually prominent in the mix, overshadowing even Martin Phillipps' lead vocals on several tracks. The effect tends to treat Phillipps' voice as another instrument, which when combined with the tumbling logorrhea of his lyrics gives the sound an odd, unsettling urgency. Brave Words doesn't have the simplicity and directness of the Chills' early singles (collected on the Kaleidoscope World LP), which caused some longtime fans to dismiss the album upon its release; listened to at some remove, the merits of songs as graceful as "Night of Chill Blue" and the endearing "Look for the Good in Others and They'll See the Good in You" are obvious. Brave Words may well be the Chills' finest album.

(by Stewart Mason, All Music Guide)

It makes sense that the group once known simply as the Chills is now Martin Phillips & the Chills -- for the group has always been a template for Phillips' distinct pop vision. In fact, throughout nearly a dozen lineups he has been the only consistent member. The players employed this time around weren't even the present members of Phillips' group, as those three were turned back at Heathrow Airport, their work permits denied, and sent home to New Zealand. So "the Chills" brought in this time around are XTC's Dave Gregory and Fairport Convention drummer Dave Mattacks. On the title track, Phillips addresses his precarious group situation, specifically the 1992 implosion of the Chills, when seemingly at the peak of their career that version of group dissolved into legal battles and a creative standstill. However, Sunburnt finds Phillips' lush pop muse intact and full of sweet melodies, unique arrangements, and ringing guitars -- particularly on timeless gems like "Come Home," "Swimming in the Rain," and "Dreams Are Free." Put quite simply, this is music that makes you feel good. Craig Leon, known for his work with Blondie and the Ramones, produces.

(by Erik Hage, All Music Guide)

The ageless Bats continue to defy the odds with their 2017 album, The Deep Set. They've been a band since 1982 with the same lineup and same basic sound, and each record they release is as good as the last. Here on The Deep Set, their jangling guitars, springy bass, and simply powerful drums remain intact; Robert Scott's plainspoken lyrics tell the same mix of personal and mildly political stories; and the sound is as crisp and clean as ever. The only thing that's a little different is that for the first time Scott's vocals at times come across a tiny bit gruffer and less wistful than usual. It's not any kind of problem, though, and those who took 30 or so years away from listening to the band could be fooled if you told them any song here was the follow-up to something from their 1984 By Night EP. Well, maybe "Shut Your Eyes" might not, since it's maybe the first time the band has augmented its sound with a sweeping violin section. Apart from that, every song has the trademark bounce, jauntily interlocking guitars, and winsome melodies Bats fans have been loving for years. Stack the insistent "Antlers," the melancholy gem "Rooftops," or the lovely loping love song "Diamonds" up against any of their best songs from the past and there's no question that they belong. Indeed, the album as a whole slots in very nicely next to their best work, from 1987's Daddy's Highway to 2011's Free All the Monsters.

Despite the warm nostalgia one is sure to get from listening to The Deep Set, there's also a fulfilling sense that the music is made by people who care about each other, care about making their music as pure and rich as possible, and have never set foot in a less than Bats-like direction. It's beyond impressive and each album they make should be hailed as a gift to anyone who loves the classic Flying Nun sound. Or anyone who loves guitar jangle or Robert Scott's voice. Or those who treasure Kaye Woodward's cascading lead guitar runs and her lovely vocal harmonies. Or lovers of rock-solid rhythm sections, because bassist Paul Kean and drummer Malcolm Grant are immovable. The Bats are one of New Zealand's great treasures bestowed upon the world at large, and anytime they make a record, especially one as good as The Deep Set, it's an event worth celebrating.

(by Tim Sendra, All Music Guide)

The Bats have made a career of consistency, keeping the same lineup and not changing their sound too dramatically since forming in 1982. Their slow and steady approach has resulted in the straightforward presentation of countless wonderful songs, all quietly accumulating over the course of a nearly 40-year run that brings us to tenth album Foothills. As with everything that preceded it, Foothills is a no-frills collection of slightly melancholic but ever-upbeat pastoral pop songs written by guitarist/vocalist Robert Scott, and brought to life by the subtle touches added by the rest of the band. This takes the form of a few jaunty, uptempo rockers like "Warwick" and "Red Car," but sticks mainly to patiently paced jangly fare. The chiming guitars and simple shifts in dynamics between verses and choruses on album opener "Trade in Silence" all make for an incredibly direct tune, but it's the kind of less-is-more approach that has defined the band's best work over the years.

On more slow-moving tracks like gorgeous closer "Electric Sea View," the Bats' gifts for understated arrangement come through clearly, with gentle vocal harmonies and layers of tremolo-heavy keyboards and fuzz guitar adding depth and mystery to the sonic picture. Over the course of Foothills, incredibly small production choices like these make a huge impact. A single droning synthesizer note on "Warwick," the trembling guitar leads that meander throughout "Another Door," and barely there accordion tones on "As You Were" all expand the songs without overwhelming them. The rising waves of feedback and glockenspiel that show up for just a moment at the very end of the steady and wistful "Change Is All" instantly take the song to a different plane before quickly melting into the next track. Similar to the musical component, the lyrical content of Foothills is never too overt or heavy-handed. A band that's been active in relatively obscure circles for 38 years might be prone to tunes about growing older, nostalgia, or struggles with change, but if those expected themes appear, they come up more as emotional implications or nods to universal feelings instead of blunt statements. The Bats hold tightly to their time-tested sound on Foothills, producing another 12 songs of bright and wistful pop not quite like even their closest peers in the New Zealand indie pop scene. At this point, the standardization of their sound is the furthest thing from a criticism. The Bats' ability to achieve beautiful new results by returning time and again to the same specific set of sounds and inspirations remains one of the best things about the band.

(by Fred Thomas, All Music Guide)