Redialling a Prayer

Straitjacket Fits

Why a Straitjacket Fits reunion? Well, it seems Shayne Carter, the former Fits frontman, and now the main-man in the soul-powered Dimmer, still has a bit of the old guitar hero in him.

The band - made up of Carter, John Collie, David Wood and Mark Petersen - last played together at the 1994 Big Day Out. A brief reunion gig for their former manager's 40th birthday in January was the spur the band needed to reform for a six-date tour.

"Personally speaking," says Carter, "I thought it'd be a great shame to go through life without having the opportunity to play that riff in APS again - that's a damn good riff."

Collie says they had a few practices before the birthday and weeded out nine songs to play, including "the obligatory" She Speeds, Dialling A Prayer, and APS, off Straitjacket Fit's 1991 album, Melt.

"We were a bit rough to start with, as you'd expect. But, like the old cliche says, it's like a riding a bike kind of thing. We've played some of the songs hundreds of times before," says Collie.

The decision to play a reunion tour "was because we had a really, really good time playing those tunes again", says Carter.

"If it was sad or lame or weird or a hassle, we wouldn't bother. But it was none of those things."

Straitjacket Fits, whose run in the late 80s and early 90s made them one of New Zealand alt-rock's best-remembered bands, will play six concerts around the country starting on April 22 at the Studio in Auckland. Former guitarist and songwriter Andrew Brough was invited to join the reunion but declined.

They also play dates in Wellington and Christchurch, and Dunedin, where the band formed in 1987.

Collie says he wasn't surprised that the songs still stand up today.

"They were always quite good songs, some of them are obviously a bit difficult and young kids these days will consider it prog-rock or something like that," he laughs.

"But they're really good to play and still feel good. You know, we had three practices and all sat around telling each other how weird it was and then proceeded to play some songs. It was scary, like it wasn't 10 years [since] then at all."

The band split up because they were tired of touring and, says Collie, they "were all pretty much ready for it to end" when it did.

Carter has fond memories of that last official gig at New Zealand's first Big Day Out.

"I remember," says Carter, "like most bands about to break up, that we were tired and fed up. But we really didn't want to dribble out to a limp conclusion. Happily then, I can say that I remember the gig as being one of the best we ever did."

Collie agrees: "We got squished in between Smashing Pumpkins and Soundgarden, I think, so it was all pretty exciting. It was probably the biggest crowd we'd ever played to.

"It was strange ... personally I had a really weird day because I'd been having troubles with an ex-girlfriend that day, so all that was swirling round and then we played and it was one of those rare times when the on-stage sound was totally fantastic and we played really, really well. In that sense, it was a nice final gig." - Scott Kara

* Straitjacket Fits play the Studio, Auckland on April 22 and 23, Bar Bodega in Wellington on April 29 and 30, the Civic in Christchurch on May 6, and Sammys in Dunedin on May 7.