Straitjacket Fits - She Speeds

Ok, thought we should kick things off with some of that classic “Dunedin Sound” Flying Nun magic. This track is She Speeds by the legendary Straitjacket Fits off the 1987 ep Life in One Chord. This track was later re-released on the UK version of the 1988 album Hail put out by Rough Trade.

There is a great post at the mixotheque blog with a whole bunch of New Zealand mp3’s you can download. Not sure about the copyright of those tracks, but if it gets people into the whole Flying Nun thing then it can’t be a bad thing. For an introduction to the Dunedin Sound and the Flying Nun story check out Stylus Magazine’s great feature In Love with Those Times: Flying Nun and the Dunedin Sound.

I never did see the Straitjacket Fits live although I did get to change Shayne Carter’s guitar strings during a gig in Christchurch back sometime in 1994 or 1995 when he was fronting Dimmer. A great claim to fame. I am not sure what effects pedals he was using on She Speeds but I assume he was using a hotcake. If anyone out there has some info about that his set up it would be greatly appreciated.