Tall Dwarfs are a

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

rock band formed in 1981 by Chris Knox and Alec Bathgate, who helped pioneer the

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 ...

style of rock music. The duo were former members of

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 ...

. The band lacked a drummer, but would use household objects and hand claps to act as

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

. Both members can play

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

, with 12 strings and

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

often heard on their records. Both can play

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

as well, which has been utilised on some of their songs. The

Casiotone Casiotone was a series of home electronic keyboards made by Casio in the early 1980s. Casio promoted the Casiotone 201 (CT-201) as "the first electronic keyboard with full-size keys that anyone could afford". The name "Casiotone" disappeared from ...

is frequently used too, especially on live concerts. Their debut was the EP ''Three Songs'' (1981), and for many years they released EPs only. The album '' Weeville'' (1990) was their first full-length album. They did, however, release a number of full-length compilations of their EPs, like '' Hello Cruel World'' and ''The Short and Sick of It''. In the liner notes to their album '' 3 EPs'' (1994) (released as a single CD, or as three vinyl EPs collected in one box), they asked for listeners' rhythm tracks: "Send us your idea of a great T.D. throb." The responses came from many different countries and were used for the next album, '' Stumpy'' (1997). This album was credited to "International Tall Dwarfs." Bands who have claimed to be influenced by the Tall Dwarfs include

Guided by Voices Guided by Voices is an American indie rock band formed in 1983 in Dayton, Ohio. It has made frequent personnel changes but always maintained the presence of principal songwriter Robert Pollard. The most well-known lineup of the band consisted o ...

, Jay Reatard, Superchunk,

Elf Power Elf Power is an American indie rock band that originated in Athens, Georgia, United States. The line-up consists of guitarist/vocalist Andrew Rieger, keyboardist Laura Carter, guitarist Dave Wrathgabar, bassist Bryan Poole, and drummer Peter ...

Neutral Milk Hotel Neutral Milk Hotel was an American band formed by Jeff Mangum in Ruston, Louisiana, in 1989. They were active until 1998, and then from 2013 to 2015. The band's music featured a deliberately low-quality sound, influenced by indie rock and psy ...

and

Olivia Tremor Control The Olivia Tremor Control were an American psychedelic band from Athens, Georgia that released two studio albums, a bonus disc, a singles collection and a live album between 1996 and 2000. The main members were Will Cullen Hart, Bill Doss, ...

. In 2005, they did a small number of concerts in the US, playing with the Olivia Tremor Control.

Discography

References

External links

Audioculture profile

Flying Nun
– Flying Nun Records official website New Zealand indie rock groups Flying Nun Records artists Dunedin Sound musical groups {{NewZealand-band-stub