Martin John James Phillipps (2 July 1963 – 28 July 2024) was a New Zealand singer-songwriter and musician. He was the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for

The Chills The Chills are a New Zealand indie rock band that formed in Dunedin in 1980. The band were fronted by founding mainstay singer-songwriter, guitarist Martin Phillipps (singer), Martin Phillipps (2 July 1963 – 28 July 2024). During the mid-1 ...

. As part of the

Dunedin sound The Dunedin sound was a musical and cultural movement in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand, in the early 1980s. It helped found indie rock as a genre. The scene is associated with Flying Nun Records, an independent label. Bands associated with th ...

, Phillipps and the Chills helped lay the groundwork for modern

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

, and the band's innovative approach to alternative rock and

lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate stylistic ch ...

formed his legacy. After he died suddenly in 2024,

Split Enz Split Enz were a New Zealand band formed in 1972. Regarded as the first New Zealand band to gain significant recognition outside of Australasia, they were initially noted for their progressive rock, progressive/art rock sound, flamboyant visua ...

and

Crowded House Crowded House are an Australian-New Zealand rock band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia, in 1985. Its founding members were Neil Finn (vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter) and Paul Hester (drums), who were both for ...

frontman

Neil Finn Neil Mullane Finn (born 27 May 1958) is a New Zealand singer-songwriter and musician. He is best known for being a principal member of Split Enz and for being the lead singer of Crowded House. He was also a member of Fleetwood Mac from 2018 ...

said Phillipps was a "true original, fascinated by and devoted to the magic and mystery of music".

Early life

Phillipps was born in

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

in 1963, to parents the Reverend Donald Phillipps and Barbara (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Laurenson). Before the end of the decade the family had moved to

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

for the elder Phillipps' career as the

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

of the

University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...

. He attended George Street Normal School in

Dunedin North Dunedin North, also known as North Dunedin, is a major inner suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin, located northeast of the city centre. It contains many of the city's major institutions, including the city's university, polytechnic, ...

, and formed his first band, The Same, at

Logan Park High School Logan Park High School is a high school founded in 1974 in Dunedin, New Zealand. It has a roll of students as of with a teaching staff of about 50, with some 18 further auxiliary and administrative staff. History The school was built on th ...

at the age of 15. Initially on guitar, he became its lead singer shortly after. His early musical influences included

Nick Drake Nicholas Rodney Drake (19 June 1948 – 25 November 1974) was an English singer-songwriter and musician. An accomplished acoustic guitarist, Drake signed to Island Records at the age of twenty while still a student at the University of Cambridg ...

Randy Newman Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter, arranger, pianist, composer, conductor and orchestrator. He is known for his non-rhotic Southern American English, Southern-accented singing style, early America ...

The Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...

, and other aspects of

psychedelic music Psychedelic music (sometimes called psychedelia) is a wide range of popular music styles and genres influenced by 1960s psychedelia, a subculture of people who used psychedelic drugs such as Dmt, DMT, Lysergic acid diethylamide, LSD, mescaline, ...

Career

With his first band The Same, Phillipps began to play regular gigs as a teenager, beginning with the school ball at Logan Park. He then began supporting Chris Knox's band

Toy Love Toy Love were a New Zealand New wave music, new wave and punk rock band that originated in Dunedin and was active from 1978 to 1980. Members included Chris Knox, Alec Bathgate and Paul Kean. History Chris Knox was the band's front man and ot ...

, but mostly played covers before forming The Chills in 1980, aged 17, with high school friend

Jane Dodd Jane Dodd (born 1962) is a New Zealand musician and contemporary jeweller. She is well known for her role as a bass player in early Dunedin-based Flying Nun Records groups The Chills and The Verlaines, was a long-standing member of Auckland gro ...

(also of

The Verlaines 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. Formed at the beginning of Dunedin sound, The Verlaine ...

). The Chills' initial line-up included his sister Rachel Phillipps on keyboards, former

The Clean The Clean was a New Zealand indie rock band formed in Dunedin in 1978. They have been described as the most influential band to come from the Flying Nun label, which recorded many artists associated with the "Dunedin sound", and one of the fir ...

frontman

Peter Gutteridge Peter Gutteridge (19 May 1961 – 15 September 2014) was a New Zealand musician, credited with pioneering the Dunedin sound with The Clean and The Chills.Joyce, Colin"New Zealand Indie Rock Icon Peter Gutteridge Dies"''SPIN''. 15 September 2014 ...

on guitar, Dodd on bass guitar, and Alan Haig on drums. The band made their live performance debut in support of Bored Games at Dunedin's Coronation Hall on 15 November 1980; Gutteridge departed shortly thereafter. By June 1981, Dodd and Rachel Phillipps had also left, leaving the Chills on a brief hiatus. The band poached Terry Moore from Bored Games as their new bass guitarist, and then were joined by Fraser Batts, who played keyboard. In June 1982, they provided three tracks, " Kaleidoscope World", "Frantic Drift" and "Satin Doll", for a local various artists double- 12" record, extended play, '' Dunedin Double'' via the

Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...

label

Flying Nun Records Flying Nun Records is a New Zealand independent record label formed in Christchurch in 1981 by music store manager Roger Shepherd. Described by ''The Guardian'' as "one of the world's great independent labels", Flying Nun is notable for bringi ...

, which marked their recording debut.Thompson 2000, p. 259

Health issues and death

Phillipps's health and career was affected for much of his later life by

hepatitis-C Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection period, people often have mild or no symptoms. Early symptoms can includ ...

, which he likely caught as a result of a needlestick injury. He made successful efforts to quit drugs, and in the late 2010s he was cured of hepatitis. His health was permanently impaired, however. A feature-length documentary about Martin's health struggles and his music, ''The Chills: The Triumph and Tragedy of Martin Phillipps'' was directed by Julia Parnell and

Rob Curry Rob Curry is a British film director, best known for his work on theatrical documentaries. His films include TEMPEST (released in UK cinemas in 2012), and Way of the Morris (co-directed with Tim Plester), which premiered at SXSW and was released ...

and released in 2019. Phillipps was found dead at his home in

Tainui Tainui is a tribal waka (canoe), waka confederation of New Zealand Māori people, Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki Māori, Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapo ...

, South Dunedin, on 28 July 2024. His funeral at

Dunedin Town Hall The Dunedin Town Hall, also known as the Dunedin Centre, is a municipal building in the city of Dunedin in New Zealand. It is located in the heart of the city extending from The Octagon, Dunedin, The Octagon, the central plaza, to Moray Place, D ...

was attended by hundreds of friends, fans, and family members, with the service led by former New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister

Grant Robertson Grant Murray Robertson (born 30 October 1971) is a retired New Zealand politician and member of the Labour Party who served as the Minister of Finance from 2017 to 2023, as Minister of Foreign Affairs in November 2023, and as the 19th Deputy Pr ...

. His body was cremated after the service.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillipps, Martin Musicians from Dunedin Dunedin Sound musicians 1963 births 2024 deaths Flying Nun Records artists The Chills members People educated at Logan Park High School New Zealand rock guitarists New Zealand rock singers 20th-century New Zealand male musicians 21st-century New Zealand male musicians 20th-century New Zealand male singers 21st-century New Zealand male singers Indie rock musicians