“Tofa Soifua” by The Coolies

Day 15 of NZ Music Month is the lo-fi fuzzy-warble din of Auckland’s long running garage punks The Coolies. Here’s “Tofa Soifua”

“Tofa Soifua” (goodbye in Samoan) is from a recent album “Kaka” which came out in December 2015 and was released on US label Feeding Tube Records. It’s a grainy collection of puposefully lo-fi noise and punk with some diversions – like this track – into almost ‘Krautrock’ grooves.

The Coolies have been a thing for almost 20 years now, in an on/off, stop/start way. Their first riotous performances were in the last days of the 20th century.

The Coolies are still Tina Pihema and Sjionel Timu, and, for the past 10 years of more intermittent activity, Stefan Neville (Pumice) on drums.

Original drummer Fiona Campbell can now be found over in the States with the excellent record label M’Lady’s Records and in bands like Coasting.

Although the broke-down sound on “Kaka” carries a sonic link back to their earliest single in 1999 that earliest recording sound was presumably forced by circumstance.

Now there is a wilful desire to obscure themselves behind the barriers of Stefan Neville’s intentionally distressed recordings. The songs on “Kaka” are worth taking the time to explore, so don’t let that deter you.

“Awful & Awesome” by Pumice

Day 27 of the May Month of Madness Marathon for NZ Music Month is the accurately-titled “Awful & Awesome” from Pumice.

“Awful & Awesome” is from a collection of songs from a couple of releases dating from 2006. “Recorded September 2006 on Chris Moons 4 track during an Artists Residency at AS220, Providence, RI, USA” is what it says on the Stabbiesetc. Bandcamp. It IS awesome, in that lo-fi fuzzy damaged DIY way Pumice’s Stefan Neville has made his trademark. The ‘awfulness’ becomes just another part of what we might euphemistically call “character” here.

Pumice is an acquired taste. If you are used to your music being like a fine wine, or maybe the half-decent cider of indie-pop, or even the Scrumpy of DIY-recorded music, then Pumice will come across a bit like the organic cider vinegar of music (the cloudy unfiltered, unpasteurized stuff with the floaty bits in it). You know it’s good for you in small doses, but most of us just can’t take a lot of it.

Anyway, that’s all just a roundabout back-handed way of telling you there is a huge treasure trove of Pumice obscurities (and other related lo-fi artists) reaching back into last century, all assembled on Stabbiesetc. bandcamp. There’s also a Stabbiesetc. website.

For those who lament the demise of great Scottish underground/ experimental music store Volcanic Tongue, then Stabbiesetc. might provide some of your unfiltered yeasty fermented music fix.