This is a compilation from The Bats, the New Zealand band that came out of the Flying Nun scene in the eighties. It collects songs from across their first decade or so, and two of them, You Have The Right and I've Seen It All Before, were unreleased before this. The sound is what you'd expect from that corner of Dunedin: jangly guitars, Robert Scott's slightly weary voice, harmonies from Kaye Woodward, and a rhythm section that keeps everything moving without rushing. Paul Kean's bass is warm and present, Malcolm Grant's drums are crisp but not flashy. There's a cover of Made Up In Blue on here, originally by The Clean, which fits right in. The whole thing feels like a band that knows what it's good at and doesn't try to be anything else. If you like The Clean, The Chills, or any of that late-eighties Flying Nun jangle, you'll find a lot to like here. It is not a radical departure or a lost masterpiece. It is a solid collection of songs from a band that made a lot of them.
