The band has released five studio albums: "Brave Worlds" (1987), "Submarine Bells" (1990), "Soft Bomb" (1992), "Sunburnt" (1996), "Silver Bullets" (2015) and "Snow Bound" (2018). The compilation "Kaleidoscope World" (1986) collects most of their single releases and EPs between 1980 and 1986.
The band is best known as apart of the Dunedin Sound style of indie pop music, which coalesced around the Auckland-based label Flying Nun Records. The band originally formed with the lineup of Martin Phillips (vocals, guitar), his sister Rachel Phillips (keyboards), Peter Gutteridge (guitar), Jane Dodd (bass) and Alan Haig (drums). By the time the band released their debut single "Rolling Moon" in 1982, the lineup had changed to Martin Phillips, Rachel Phillips, Terry Moore (bass), and Martyn Bull. The band disbanded when Bull died of leukemia in 1983.
After Martin Phillips reformed The Chills in 1984, the band never again had a constant lineup, with the only two members to last for more than two albums being bassist Justin Harwood and keyboardist Andrew Todd, who were both members of the group from 1986 to 1990. Terry Moore also rejoined the band sporadically between 1984 and 1992. The Chills disbanded in 1993, but reformed once more in 1995. Since then the band has sporadically toured and recorded.
Heavenly Pop Hit
The Chills Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Seen by ten billion eyes
Set in five billion faces
Then they close in a daze and wait for the dawing
But the daylight and sunrise are brighter in our eyes
Where night cannot devour golden solar power
Once we were dammned, now I guess we are angels
Then awoke with a start, to startling changes
All the tension is ended
The sentance, suspended
And darkenss now sparkles and gleams
And it all seems larger than life to me
I find it rather hard to believe
And so I stand as the sound goes straight through my body
I'm so bloated up happy I can throw things around me
And I'm growing in stages and have been for ages
Just singing and floating and free
Doh (dum dum de da deda da, dum dum de da deda da)
Ooh (dum dum de da deda da)
Dum de dum dum, dum de dum dum
Its a heavenly pop hit, if anyone wants it (ah)
Doh (dum dum de da deda da, dum dum de da deda da)
Ooh (dum dum de da deda da)
Dum de dum dum, dum de dum dum
Its a heavenly pop hit
Its something that we're humming
As we swoop low on trees or we sweep under carpets
We can dive into suns though it's not recommended
We can hover, silent, and listen, closely
It all seems (all seems)
Larger than life to me
I find it (find it)
Hard to believe
So where was our home?
Well, our home was in tears
For it's fruit has gone bad
They'd been that way for years
Yet their lives are elsatic
They should be fantastic
They should be expanding
Doh (dum dum de da deda da, dum dum de da deda da)
Ooh (dum dum de da deda da)
Dum de dum dum, dum de dum dum
Its a heavenly pop hit, if anyone wants it (ah)
Doh (dum dum de da deda da, dum dum de da deda da)
Ooh (dum dum de da deda da)
Dum de dum dum, dum de dum dum
It's a heavenly pop hit, for anybody
For those that still want it
imsite
"Heavenly Pop Hit" by The Chills is a song about hope and transcendence. The lyrics paint a picture of the beauty of the world around us, which is often overlooked or taken for granted. The first verse describes the sunset as seen from the perspective of billions of people all around the world, and how it is followed by darkness and waiting for the dawn. The second verse talks about the transformation of the singer and the world they inhabit. The tension and darkness are gone and have been replaced by beauty and light. The chorus is an expression of pure joy and happiness. The singer feels so happy they could "throw things around me", and they feel as though they are "singing and floating and free". Overall, "Heavenly Pop Hit" celebrates the transformative power of music and the wonder of the world around us.
Some interesting facts about "Heavenly Pop Hit" include:
Line by Line Meaning
Each evening the sun sets in five billion places
The sun sets in different parts of the world, witnessed by numerous people
Seen by ten billion eyes
Billions of people witness the sunset every day
Set in five billion faces
The sun sets in different faces of people across the world
Then they close in a daze and wait for the dawing
People close their eyes after sunset and wait for the next day to begin
But the daylight and sunrise are brighter in our eyes
The artist finds daylight and sunrise more appealing and brighter than the sunset
Where night cannot devour golden solar power
The sun's power is still there even in the darkness of night
Once we were dammned, now I guess we are angels
The singer compares their past struggles to being damned and now feeling like they have overcome and become like angels
For we passed though the dark and avoided the dangers
The artist has gone through difficult times but managed to avoid any major harm or danger
Then awoke with a start, to startling changes
The artist suddenly became aware of significant changes in their life
All the tension is ended
All the stress and anxiety is gone
The sentance, suspended
Any negative judgment or punishment is suspended or lifted
And darkenss now sparkles and gleams
Even the darkness seems brighter and more appealing
And it all seems larger than life to me
Everything seems grand and incredible to the singer
I find it rather hard to believe
The singer is struggling to believe how amazing everything seems
And so I stand as the sound goes straight through my body
The singer is overwhelmed by the music and its effects on their body
I'm so bloated up happy I can throw things around me
The artist is so happy that they feel like they could lift and throw things around them
And I'm growing in stages and have been for ages
The artist has been going through different stages of growth for a long time
Just singing and floating and free
The singer is enjoying their freedom and expressing themselves through singing and feeling weightless
Its a heavenly pop hit, if anyone wants it (ah)
The singer believes their song is a wonderful pop hit that anyone could enjoy
Its something that we're humming
The artist and others enjoy humming the song to themselves
As we swoop low on trees or we sweep under carpets
The artist and others feel free to explore their environments in whimsical ways
We can dive into suns though it's not recommended
The artist and others have a sense of power and freedom to do what they want, even if it's not wise
We can hover, silent, and listen, closely
The singer and others have the ability to float and listen closely to their surroundings
So where was our home?
The artist questions where they originally come from or where they belong
Well, our home was in tears
The singer's original home or situation was full of sadness and grief
For it's fruit has gone bad
The situation has become worse and is now negative
They'd been that way for years
The situation has been negative for a long time
Yet their lives are elsatic
Despite the negative situation, the people affected can still be flexible and adaptable
They should be fantastic
The artist believes the situation could be improved and turned into something amazing
They should be expanding
The singer believes the situation should be growing and improving
It's a heavenly pop hit, for anybody
The singer's song is a great pop hit for anyone to enjoy
For those that still want it
The artist acknowledges not everyone may want to listen to the song, but it is available for those who do
Contributed by Eva I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@69Mucci
This should have been one of the biggest hits in history.
@HumanimalChannel
I still sing this song out loud when I'm out cycling!
@covkid2197
Agreed!!
@clarkstewart6561
Yeah man. I flew back to NZL for my brother's wedding...was in Wanaka...I was living in Taiwan at the time. My bro is a wonderful man but his taste in music scares me....anyway....at the wedding after party...whatever you call it... THIS song was on the dukebox. Needless to say I made sure it was like every 6th song... no idea how I got back to the hotel that night.
But on a positive note: I saw them (many many times) once in the 7th form... my first tjme to try rum. Ended up drinking Guninness all night...after the gig (Warners 91or92CHCH) I went up to Marty and said: Hey, if you've nowhere to crash you can crash at mine. I must have been 17. He pissed himself ... classic. Chills. Love it. Do you know Jean-Paul Sartre Experience? Bailterspace? Straitjacket Fits? Headless Chickens? Able Tasmans? Of course The Clean...as a teenager in NZL I thought music was fucking amazing! Oh.. I really need to add The Skeptics. If you know you know why I just said that.......... anyway... if you wanna see Southern Alps... Push on Thru by Salmonella Dub!!!! Aroha to you all.
@chriscooke4477
But nobody did want it. In my eyes still a Heavenly Pop Hit. I did want it, still do.
@nicktz2637
Littt
@stevecox7075
The Chills are a criminally under-rated band IMHO. This track is just brilliant!
@callum7081
This has got to be the most underrated song of all time
@RobCraig-wf3yi
My friend, you could add that comment to several Chills songs.
I am from Dunedin, my friends Dad owned the Oriental tavern and the Captain Cook those two pubs had Chills, Verlaines, Clean, to name only 3, outrageously blessed musically, Dunedin of the 80s, students come from all over new Zealand. Powerhouse of quality music. Before you get to mainstream releases
@sp4263
Used t love listening to these guys 35yrs ago on the Brisbane 4ZZZ station on the NZ music show ❤❤❤