The Bats - Volume 1 ‎(2014)

This 3CD box set contains three re-issues of New Zealand indie-pop pioneers The Bats including from early original recordings to previously unheard studio outtakes. Featuring tracks from 1984 to 1988, this compilation shows a group that has gone on to influence countless bands around the world with their jangling guitars that express both an optimism and deeper melancholy.

Compiletely Bats, originally released in 1987, gathers together the four-pieces band's first three EPs 'By Night' (1984), 'And Here is Music for the Fireside'(1985) and 'Made Up in Blue' (1986), along with bonus material including demos from the period.

Daddy's Highway, their 1987 debut, stands as one of the most outstanding New Zealand albums from the 1980's that glows throughout with shimmering harmonies, whispered vocals, reeling baselines and a sweet sense of despair that is as catchy as it is thought provoking.

The Law Of Things, recorded in 1988 and released in 1990, was the The Bats' follow up album and yet again showcased the bands knack for irrepressible indie pop songs. Re-issued this year again on 2xLP, this CD version also includes their 1988 EP Four Songs as well as never heard before studio tracks from The Law Of Things sessions.