The Chills Announce Album 'Snow Bound' + Nationwide Tour

Dunedin music icon Martin Phillipps is gathering together the latest iteration of his band The Chills for an extensive nationwide tour this September and October in support of their latest studio album Snow Bound, the group's first long player since 2015's Silver Bullets. With so many classic tunes under his belt it's impossible to pick favourites from Phillipps' mighty oeuvre, which stretches back to 1982's foundational Dunedin Double EP on Flying Nun Records, needless to say the songs of The Chills are close to the hearts of countless New Zealanders.

Martin Phillipps describes Snow Bound as being about “consolidation, re-grouping, acceptance and mortality", the ten song collection is out on Friday 14th September via Fire Records / Southbound and lead single 'Complex' is releasing digitally this coming Friday [update: it's out now]. The tour features special guest support artists Finn Andrews (The Veils), Tiny Ruins, Reb Fountain, and Steve Gunn, here are the details...

Undertheradar proudly presents... 

The Chills - Snow Bound Tour

Friday 14th September - Hamilton, Altitude w/ Reb Fountain (solo)
Saturday 15th September - Gisborne, The Dome w/ Reb Fountain (solo)
Sunday 16th September - Napier, The Cabana w/ Reb Fountain (solo)
Thursday 20th September - Christchurch, Blue Smoke w/ Finn Andrews (The Veils)
Friday 21st September - Dunedin, 50 Gorillas w/ Finn Andrews (The Veils)
Saturday 22nd September - Wanaka, Water Bar, w/ Finn Andrews (The Veils)
Thursday 27th September - Wellington, San Fran w/ Tiny Ruins (solo)
Friday 28th September - New Plymouth, Mayfair Theatre w/ Tiny Ruins (solo)
Saturday 29th September - Palmerston North, The Globe w/ Tiny Ruins (solo)
Sunday 30th September - Paekakariki, St Peter's Hall w/ Tiny Ruins (solo)
Thursday 4th October - Whangarei, Butter Factory w/ Steve Gunn (U.S.A)
Friday 5th October - Leigh, Sawmill Cafe w/ Finn Andrews (The Veils)
Saturday 6th October - Auckland, Galatos with Tiny Ruins (solo)
Sunday 7th October - Waiheke Island, Artworks Theatre w/ Steve Gunn (U.S.A)

Tickets available HERE via UTR

Watch the vintage video for the band's iconic song 'Pink Frost'...

Here's a stylish clip for their still-relevant tune 'Doledrums'...

Here's their spooky classic 'House With A Hundred Rooms'...

Cast your eyes and ears upon the gloriously skewed clip for their famous single 'Heavenly Pop Hit'...

Press release:

The latest postcard from The Chills’ epic journey is an album about “consolidation, re-grouping, acceptance and mortality,” claims chief Chill, Martin Phillipps,. “Hopefully a kind of Carole King ‘Tapestry’ for ageing punks.”

Wow! Are rock bands allowed to grow old gracefully and assess the world’s and their shortcomings in the process? Is it possible to swerve the obvious and make something that’s bittersweet in tone but harmonious on the ear? Of course it is.

On “Snow Bound” lost heroes are lamented, relationships are re-evaluated, atonement is sought, mortality is mulled over and fake news is undercut. It’s serious stuff, the thoughts of a dysfunctional 50-something wrestling with maturity and discovering that their post-punk DIY beliefs still have a real voice that resonates between the fans of their early years and which can now pass down to the next generation.

Casting our minds back, we can recall that The Guardian mused, “They sound almost like the musical embodiment of autumn,” when confronted with “Silver Bullets”. Three years on, “Snow Bound” nestles heartily in its own winter of discontent. And all this with a humalong melodic verve, Phillipps’ gift for the tempered dalliance of verse and chorus, and those gorgeous euphoric organ fills. Let the soul-searching commence

Track Listing :
Bad Sugar
Time to Atone
The Greatest Guide
Scarred
Complex
Deep Belief
Lord of All I Survey
Snow Bound
Eazy Peazy
In Harmony

“Complex” is the first track to be released to from the album, out this Friday July 6th on all digital platforms.

Consolidating the album out upon the peaks and troughs of New Zealand’s wondrous land and soundscapes, The Chills set off again on an extensive national tour. With main centres, and some smaller towns they missed on the last run, included in the 14 dates. The band will be joined by a cast of very special guests to open the shows, including solo sets from local hero/heroines Finn Andrews (The Veils), Tiny Ruins, Reb Fountain, and renowned American blues and Americana troubadour, Steve Gunn for the Waiheke and Whangarei shows.