The Indie Anthology 69: essential songs

More immortal tunes for the anthology section! Today we go back to the "magical indiepop land" that is Dunedin, New Zealand, to recover one of their finest bands and make a humble tribute to some of their geniuses. Deep down under is the place to be!

Song: Point That Thing Somewhere Else
Artist: The Clean
Year: 1981

Discovered The Clean around 2002-2003, when 'Anthology' was released (and I was discovering the never ending, unmissable, Flying Nun catalogue). I remember that I got instantly hooked by the second CD, the one with the bulk of 'Vehicle' ('Drawing to a Hole', 'Someone', 'The Blue'... oh dear). But the first CD was a bit too rough, may I say a bit too punk to my ears then, making me rating them a bit lower than my beloved Chills and Bats... Blame first impressions, because that first half includes 'Point That Thing Somewhere Else', which originally appeared on debut 12" EP 'Boodle Boodle Boodle' and its mesmerizing. Co-written by the late (and forever missed) Peter Gutteridge, this is indiepop at their best: jangle drowned into delay and fuzz in what ranks as one of the best guitar works of underrated master David Kilgour (legend, legend, legend), an almost kraut rhythm (courtesy of his great brother Hamish and the bass of Robert Scott). Here's the mystery, the edge, the spell, the sense of adventure, the immediacy, the melodic power, the open landscapes, the bewitchment of a sound that once hits you, never let you go... Luckily.