New Zealand post-punk shoegaze band Bailterspace plays rare show in San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO -- Noisy New Zealand shoegaze legends Bailterspace bring a rare U.S. tour to the Bottom of the Hill in San Francisco Friday night with local heavy experimental power trio Terry Gross and hooky indie outfit Aluminum.
Initially named Nelsh Bailter Space, the band came together in 1987 in Christchurch as a collaboration between guitarist Alistair Parker (of industrial-influenced post-punk group the Gordons) and drummer Hamish Kilgour of then defunct Flying Nun Records indie-punk legends the Clean. Bassist Ross Humphries (The Terminals, ex-The Pin Group) and keyboardist Glenda Bills filled out the quartet that would later shorten its name to simply Bailter Space.
The band's debut EP for Flying Nun echoed the droning, discordant guitar riffs of the Gordons matched with Kilgour's propulsive beats, but the line-up quickly shifted with the departure of Humphries and Bills. The group continued as a trio with the addition of former bassist for the Gordons John Halvorsen joining the fold. Their full-length debut Tanker delved into dreamier atmospherics and reigned in the dissonance for a more melodic if still melancholy vibe that was well received by late '80s audiences.
With Kilgour leaving the band to play with the reunited Clean, Bailter Space welcomed the Gordons' drum Brent McLachlan, essentially reconvening that group under a new name and approach for the line-up's first recording, 1989's Thermos that somehow managed to be simultaneously more foreboding and more accessible than the threesome had managed as the Gordons. The group's track record with their early releases and growing reputation for bracing live performances would get the band signed to Matador Records for its first U.S. release, the EP The Aim in 1992.
That effort and the follow-up album Robot World further solidified Bailter Space as one of New Zealand's best indie-rock exports. Having relocated to New York City during the Robot World sessions, the trio continued to build on its U.S. following with increased stateside touring and equally acclaimed subsequent albums Vortura and Wammo, which would be its last for Matador before parting ways with the imprint. The group dialed back its productivity in the latter part of the decade after moving to NYC-based indie Turnbuckle Records, putting out two more albums with the label before it folded and Bailter Space went on hiatus.
The trio reconvened with Ian Ljungquist filling in on bass to play its first show in four years at the Bowery Ballroom in 2008, eventually releasing its first album of new material since the late '90s with Strobosphere for Fire Records in 2012 with McLachlan back on bass. It was the band's first with its name shortened to a single word, Bailterspace. Trinine followed the next year, showcasing the threesome's classic shoegaze sound.
If anything, the band's activity has ramped up in the past two years since the release of their latest studio recording Concret, with Matador reissuing Wammo to mark its 25th anniversary and the early '80s material of the Gordons being compiled and made available for the first time in decades. Bailterspace kicks off its current six-date tour of the U.S. with this Friday night show at the Bottom of the Hill featuring a pair of notable SF bands.
Contrary to what one might expect from a band named after the unflappably calm NPR interviewer, the threesome bashes out a bruising, kinetic style of krautrock-influenced groove displayed on their debut recording Shameless Imposter, a two-song 10" vinyl EP released on Valley King Records in 2018.
Featuring the six-string heroics of Manley, Terry Gross came together three years earlier when he started playing with his El Studio co-owner, bassist Donny Newenhouse (Film School, Hot Fog, Buffalo Tooth). The split of Newenhouse's band Peace Creep with talented drummer Phil Becker (Pins of Light, ex-Triclops! and Lower Forty-Eight) and Triclops!/Anywhere guitarist Christian Eric Beaulieu led to some informal jam sessions with Manley and the rhythm section at the studio, sparking the new project.
Digitally recording their freewheeling improvisations at El Studio, the trio began developing its unique chemistry that found the musicians exploring hypnotic extended grooves that at times recalled the droning motorik workouts of German rock experimentalists Can and Neu, but with the added heft of modern rock titans like the Melvins.
Terry Gross started playing live shows on both sides of the Bay, sharing stages with the likes of Big Business, reunited Oakland favorites Drunk Horse and Hot Lunch and establishing a reputation for dealing out their unusual style heady, muscular extended tunes.
The band released a number of tunes via its Bandcamp page during the pandemic, drawing from rehearsal recordings and finding a number of extended pieces to offer fans in order to tide them over until their next official effort. Manley's connection with indie label Thrill Jockey -- which had released albums by Trans Am and Life Coach -- led the trio to a record deal.
Using their studio as an editing tool much in the same way Can would piece together its songs by drawing from raw recorded material, Terry Gross distilled its best sonic exploration into the three sprawling tunes heard on it first full-length album for Thrill Jockey, Soft Opening, two years ago. A follow-up effort is in the works. Opening band Aluminum wasstarted two years ago by Wild Moth guitarist and songwriter Marc Leyda as a bedroom recording project, but has evolved into an SF four-piece exploring a mix of underground post-punk and pop melodies. DJ Sasquatch Borracho plays records before and between bands.
Bailterspace with Terry Gross and Aluminum
Friday, April 21, 8:30 p.m. $17-$20
The Bottom of the Hill