The Dunedin sound was a musical and cultural movement in Dunedin, Otago, in the early 1980s. It helped found indie rock as a genre. The scene is associated with Flying Nun Records an independent label.
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from Dùn Èideann, the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. The city has a rich Māori, Scottish, and Chinese heritage.
The Verlaines are a New Zealand rock band from Dunedin. Formed in 1981 by Graeme Downes, Craig Easton, Anita Pillai, Phillip Higham and Greg Kerr, the band went through multiple line-ups.
Sneaky Feelings are a New Zealand pop rock band which releases on the Flying Nun Records music label. The band formed in 1980 with the line-up of Matthew Bannister, David Pine, Kat Tyrie and Martin Durrant. Tyrie was replaced by John Kelcher in 1984. Durrant was temporarily replaced by Ross Burge in 1988 for the band's second tour of Europe.
Jan Hellriegel is a singer/songwriter based in Auckland, New Zealand.
Shayne P. Carter is a New Zealand musician best known for leading Straitjacket Fits from 1986 to 1994, and as the only permanent member of Dimmer (1995–2012).
The Chills are a New Zealand rock band that formed in Dunedin in 1980. The band are fronted by founding mainstay singer-songwriter, guitarist Martin Phillipps. During the mid-1990s they were billed as Martin Phillipps & the Chills. Their top ten studio albums in their homeland are Submarine Bells (1990), Soft Bomb (1992), Snow Bound (2018) and Scatterbrain (2021). The Chills were a cult band in other parts of the world as one of the earliest proponents of the Dunedin sound. Their top 20 singles are "Pink Frost", "Doledrums", "I Love My Leather Jacket" (1986), "Heavenly Pop Hit" (1990) and "Male Monster from the Id" (1992).
David Auld Kilgour is a New Zealand songwriter, musician and recording artist from Dunedin. He first started playing guitar as a teenager in the late 1970s. With brother Hamish he formed The Clean, a group that went on to become one of the principal acts of the Dunedin Sound.
Andrew Mark Brough was a singer, songwriter and guitarist from Dunedin, New Zealand. Best known for his work with the Straitjacket Fits, he later led the band Bike. In 1996 he was shortlisted for the APRA Silver Scroll and in 2008 he was inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame.
Tally Hall is an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in December 2002, and publicly active until the conclusion of their Good & Evil tour in 2011. The band is known for its upbeat melodies and whimsical lyrics. The members originally described their musical style as "wonky rock", later redefining their sound as "fabloo", in an effort to not let their music be defined by any particular genres after critics began defining the characteristics of "wonky rock".
Die! Die! Die! is a three-piece New Zealand noise pop/punk/post-punk band. Formed in late 2003, the band has released seven albums, all backed with extensive international touring. A number of different bass guitarists have played alongside the permanent members, Andrew Wilson and Michael Prain (drums). Lachlan Anderson is currently in his second spell with the band.
Marcus William Turner was a New Zealand singer-songwriter and folk musician. He performed at folk festivals in New Zealand, Australia, and overseas. He was also a presenter in the TVNZ children's television programmes Spot On, How's That and Play School.
Julian Temple Band is an Indie band from Dunedin, New Zealand, fronted by Californian/New Zealand singer-songwriter Julian Temple. They formed in February 2004 as a surf-rock inspired project after post-graduate work at the University of Otago. The band has independently recorded and released seven albums; In Sea (2006), Quiet Earth (2009), Balance Escapes (2010), Upsidedownbackwards (2012), Ceiling in the Sky (2015), Antarctica (2018), and Tunnels (2023).
Six60 is a New Zealand pop rock band formed in Dunedin, Otago in 2008. The band consists of Matiu Walters, Ji Fraser, Chris Mac, Marlon Gerbes (synthesiser), Hoani Matenga and Eli Paewai (drums).
Herriot Row is the musical moniker of New Zealand songwriter Simon Comber who has also recorded and performed under his own name. The moniker references the street Heriot Row in Dunedin, which in turn references Heriot Row in Dunedin's counterpart, Edinburgh in Scotland.
Chad Fischer is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer from Santa Monica, California, also known as the frontman of the band Lazlo Bane.
"Pink Frost" is a song by New Zealand band The Chills. The song was originally recorded in 1982. It was released as a single in 1984. Its B-side was the instrumental track "Purple Girl". It reached number 17 on the New Zealand singles chart.
Nadia Reid is a singer-songwriter and guitarist from Port Chalmers, New Zealand. She has released three albums and toured internationally.
Cloudboy was an electronic music group from Dunedin, New Zealand, that recorded and performed between 1995 and 2003. Their music is described as dark and introspective, mixed with occasionally upbeat songs. The band had three main members, Demarnia Lloyd as lead vocalist, Johannes Contag on keyboards, and Craig Monk with other instruments. Chris O'Connor was with the group on drums between 2001 and 2003. They then moved to Wellington for their debut studio album Down at the End of the Garden.
Millicent Ellen Lovelock is a singer-songwriter and guitarist from New Zealand who performs as Repulsive Woman. She was a member of Dunedin bands, Astro Children and Trick Mammoth (2013–2015). As Repulsive Woman she released her debut album, Relief, in June 2019. Late that year Lovelock relocated to Manchester. Relief won the Taite Music Prize for Best Independent Debut in May 2020.
