Goodshirt
New Zealand music band
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Goodshirt are an innovative alternative/pop/rock band from Auckland,[1][2][3] New Zealand. The band formed when keyboardist Gareth Thomas left his computer recording setup with the Fisher brothers, Rodney and Murray, for safe keeping.[4]
Goodshirt | |
|---|---|
Mike, Rodney, Gareth and Murray | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Grey Lynn, Auckland, New Zealand |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2000–2005, 2012–present |
| Labels | CEMENT Records, Hark Entertainment |
While still a three piece, the band submitted their song "Green" to a track competition run by radio station 9inety6dot1. Subsequently, station manager Grant Hislop became their manager, and the band was rounded out with drummer Mike Beehre joining the fold.[4]
"Sophie" by keyboard/bassist/vocalist Gareth Thomas[5][6] was the fourth single from their debut album Good. It was a number one single in New Zealand.[7] Good was released in Canada, Australia, and Japan.[8]
A second album, Fiji Baby, was released in 2004. Like its predecessor, it reached number 5 in the New Zealand charts.[9]
The band went on hiatus in 2005 when Rodney Fisher moved to London to work with Breaks Co-Op,[10] but reunited in 2011,[11] and in early 2012 they began playing again with support gigs for Hall & Oates and Icehouse as part of the A Day on the Green festival. In May 2012 Goodshirt released the new EP Skinny Mirror and including the singles "So Charming" and "Out of Our League".[12]
In 2014, the band released a cover of "Sierra Leone" originally by Coconut Rough. It was made available as a free download through their SoundCloud band page, along with the release of an official music video on YouTube.[13][14]
Members
- Rodney Fisher – guitar and vocals
- Murray Fisher – guitar
- Gareth Thomas – keyboards/bass and vocals
- Mike Beehre – drums
Music videos
Five videos were directed by Joe Lonie, including some that were shot in a single take.[15] Lonie notes that at the height of their close creative relationship, "they even talked about me being an unofficial fifth member of the band."[16]
| Year | Music video | Director | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | "Green" (version 1) | Florian Habicht | Set at a beach, the band are buried up to their necks in sand, surrounded by hula-hooping schoolgirls. Filmed in black and white. |
| 2001 | "Green" (version 2) | Joe Lonie | Filmed in one continuous take and upside down and sped-up. The band take turns using the sink in a bathroom, with all objects and liquids falling up.[17] |
| "Blowing Dirt" (version 1) | Set at a car wrecker and filmed backwards and in one continuous take, Rodney sings while a Mazda 929 is "un-smashed-up" in the background.[16] | ||
| "Blowing Dirt" (version 2) | Set at a car wrecker and filmed backwards and in one continuous take, Rodney sings while an Austin 1300 is "un-smashed-up" in the background.[18] | ||
| "Place to Be" | Shot in a continuous take and slowed down, the camera follows Rodney through an old building as he eats fruit while singing, coming across a series of unusual situations.[19] | ||
| 2002 | "Sophie" | Filmed in a continuous take, a young woman listens to music on headphones, unaware that burglars (played by Goodshirt) are behind her, stealing everything in her flat.[20] "Sophie" won Best Music Video at the 2003 New Zealand Music Awards.[21] | |
| "Monotone" | Shot in a continuous take, with the camera circling a badminton court. The band are dressed as "Good" and "Evil" teams of badminton-playing beekeepers who seem unable to score a point.[22] | ||
| 2003 | "Buck it Up" | Kezia Barnett | A bullied schoolboy experiences strange visions one day at school. "Buck It Up" won Best Group Video at the 2004 Juice TV Awards.[23] |
| 2004 | "Cement" | After pursuing his Rapunzel-like dream woman, Gareth finds himself trapped in a domestic gothic nightmare.[24] | |
| "Fiji Baby" | Wade Shotter | Filmed primarily in a single hotel room set. Rodney checks into a fleabag hotel and messes around for a few hours.[25] | |
| "Lucy" | A current affairs show host (played by former 60 Minutes host Amanda Millar) profiles three men who are smitten with Lucy, a famous model.[26] | ||
| 2011 | "So Charming" | Helena Brooks | Dressed in sharp suits, the band members commit a number of anti-social acts and misdemeanours.[27] |
| 2012 | "Out of our League" | Rodney Fisher | Rodney plays a man whose two young children build a giant kite around him and fly him in the sky, with Goodshirt playing the "pro kite champions" team.[28] |
| 2014 | "Sierra Leone" | Tim Brown | Depicts a man struggling through a nightmarish, psychedelic desert environment. Heavily stylised and a departure from their previous video styles, combining film and animation techniques, with a nod to the original music video by Coconut Rough. |
Discography
Albums
| Year | Title | Details | Peak chart positions |
Certifications |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NZ[29] | ||||
| 2001 | Good |
|
5 |
|
| 2004 | Fiji Baby |
|
5 |
|
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||
EPs
Singles
Featured appearances
Goodshirt has appeared on many compilations and soundtracks in both New Zealand and Australia.
- 2001 – Starf(Star)Ckers Cyber Garage Music from Planet Aotearoa (Antenna Recordings/EMI) – "Everyday"
- 2001 – Channel Z The Best of Vol. 2 (Warner Music) – "Blowing Dirt"
- 2001 – 100% Kiwi Rock (Warner Music) "Green"
- 2002 – Top of the Pops 2002 Vol. 2 (Universal Music) – "Sophie"
- 2002 – Channel Z: The Best of Vol. 3 (Universal Music) – "Green"
- 2003 – The Strip Soundtrack (Loop Recordings) – "Sophie"
- 2003 – Coleman Sessions Recorded Live at York Street (Warner Music) – "Green"
- 2004 – Hot Wheels: Hot Hits 4 (Shock Records) – "Blowing Dirt"
- 2004 – State of the Nation (EMI) – "Buck It Up"
- 2004 – Big Day Out 04 (Universal Music) – "Sophie"
- 2004 – Now That's What I Call Music 16 (EMI) – "Fiji Baby"
- 2004 – Triumph (Sony Music) – "Sophie"
- 2005 – Top of the Pops 2005 (Universal Music) – "Buck It Up"
- 2005 – Lazy Sunday 5 (EMI) – "My Racing Head"
- 2005 – Triple J – Like a Version: Vol. 1 (ABC Music) – "Gouge Away" (Pixies cover)
- 2006 – More Nature (Sony BMG) – "Sophie"
- 2007 – Outrageous Fortune Westside Rules (WM New Zealand) – "Buck It Up"