The Malchicks formed in the late Eighties in the Auckland guitar scene, and rose to prominence with substantial radio play for an early recording of the song "Vanilla", which was eventually released on one of the BFM Freak The Sheep Compilations.
The bands line-up was:
Matthew Dalzell - Guitar / Vocals
Coralie Martin - Bass / Vocals
Simon Matthews - Guitar
Laura - Drums
Laura was replaced by Jason Ennor before the band started work on their debut EP Lotus recorded at the Lab Studios in February of 1992, recorded with the aid of an Arts Council Grant.
The band was originally supposed to release this EP through Flying Nun records, a requirement of the Arts Council Grant system is that you secure release of your planned recordings before you apply for a grant. The Flying Nun deal fell through and the band eventually released the CD EP though Failsafe, the band fronting the production costs from their grant.
The EP was released in November 1992 and was followed by a national tour.
1993 saw instability in the group's line-up, with drummer Ennor choosing to concentrate on his other band Love Buzz, leaving the Malchicks to perform live drummer-less.
Songs from this period were pretty impressive and Rob Mayes, attending one of the gigs encouraged the band to work toward an album of material. The band persuaded drummer Ennor to return for the sessions after failing to find a suitable replacement, and recorded 9 songs at the Lab studios in February 1994, which resulted in the Mercury album. Bassist Coralie Martin left New Zealand soon after completion of the album to work in Japan, and Dalzell shifted to Wellington to take up work in the diplomats office, effectively ceasing band activities. The album was completed at the end of the year and say posthumous release in early 1995.
The Mercury album really saw the Malchicks grow as songwriters and featured some finely constructed and recorded songs. The opening track "Head To Head" surpassed anything on the Lotus EP, and the single "Milestone" provided a charming uplifting pop feel, courtesy of Coralie Martin's excellent vocals and harmonies.
The band received a video grant for "Milestone" and the video had to be made without the whole band in it due to them being spread across the globe. Coralie Martin shot footage of herself in Japan and this was edited together with local footage to complete the video.
Due to the lack of the band to promote the album Mercury received a very limited release and did not get to reach a wider audience as it perhaps deserved. A bit of a lost classic but a good testament to what the band could have been.
