Dean Wareham melts away

Dean Wareham from Galaxie 500. Photo / Supplied

Last year, Dean Wareham finally played in his birth town of Wellington. Now the 48-year-old returns to play songs from his first band, Galaxie 500.

"Starting a band with your friends is like falling in love," Dean Wareham wrote in his fascinating, candid memoir Black Postcards.

"You're young and opinionated and cocky and very excited to be making something new together," he elaborates. "That's what drives the formation of new bands: you've got to think like you're inventing the wheel."

Of course the man who once fronted Galaxie 500 has long since fallen out of love with that notion, and with the other members of that band.

So while Wareham is visiting New Zealand to play their songs on the back of Galaxie 500's three albums being re-released, all his communication with bassist Naomi Yang and drummer Damon Krukowski is via email.

"But that's good - there's no reason for us to talk on the phone," he reflects. "And they're more involved in [the reissues] than I am. Naomi does all the artwork, and Damon in a way functions as the manager. We make all the decisions together."

The acrimony between the two camps began while Galaxie 500 was still together.

Subsequently it was played out online by Yang and Krukowski, and by Wareham in Black Postcards, wherein he felt he had the right to respond.

But while he says they've never discussed these things, there's at least been a dissipation of the animosity. And with a gradual shift in musical opinion over the last two decades, Galaxie 500's legacy can finally take its rightful place.

While the trio, who formed at Harvard University in 1987, made some impact during their four-year existence, it's only over time that their gentle, Velvet Underground-informed guitar pop has been fully appreciated.

And that includes by Wareham himself, who has reassessed Today (1988), Aurora (1989) and This Is Our Music (1990) in light of their reissue on Domino Records.

The albums had already been reissued in 1997, and he's not entirely sure why they're garnering more interest this time around, but thinks it has something to do with Galaxie 500's influence coming to bear in recent years.

"You look back and think all these records sound unique, although it's obvious what our influences were," Wareham considers. "I don't think we were particularly ambitious; in 1988 you couldn't be ambitious. But you had some strong opinions about what's good and what isn't and you make a record. And if you put a record out there that's good, it kind of gets around."

As Wareham relates, pretty soon Galaxie 500 were gaining plaudits in the UK weekly music press and touring in Europe. Although they didn't make huge waves at the time, it was enough of a shock that the internal pressure took its toll, ultimately leading to the band's short lifespan.

Afterwards, Wareham formed New York quartet Luna, who recorded seven albums before disbanding in 2005. Since then he and wife Britta Phillips have been performing as Dean and Britta. It was in this guise Wareham finally played in his birth town of Wellington at the 2010 Festival of the Arts, performing 13 Most Beautiful: Songs For Andy Warhol's Screen Tests.

That memorable show was at the magnificent Wellington Town Hall, but he's looking forward to returning to play much smaller venues in Wellington and Auckland. He'll be joined by bassist Phillips and drummer Anthony Lamarca for the sets of Galaxie 500 songs at Bodega and the Kings Arms.

"There's always been a possibility," Wareham says of resurrecting the band's material. "I did it at first because we had an offer from a guy in Spain. It sounded really good, and when I got home I thought now would be a good time to do a bunch of these dates. It is 20 years later and these records have just been re-released. It's just taken on a life of its own."

* Galaxie 500's Today, Aurora and This Is Our Music deluxe edition reissues are available now on Domino.

* Dean Wareham plays Galaxie 500 on Friday 14 October at Bodega, Wellington and Thursday 20 October at the Kings Arms, Auckland.

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