Martin Phillipps Of The Chills, Dead At 61

The death of the brilliant, but troubled songwriter marks the final chapter in a lifetime of brilliant hits and near misses.

Martin Phillipps of the Chills in 1992. Photo by Paul Jones/Getty Images

Martin Phillipps was the Chills. He was the singer, songwriter, and brilliantly eccentric lyricist behind one of New Zealand’s most remarkable musical exports. He died this past week at the age of 61.

Phillipps began the Chills in his native Dunedin, New Zealand in 1980. Powered by the DIY ethos of first wave punk, and the jangle of the British Invasion, Phillipps and the Chills developed a new quirky, twee form of jangle pop known as The Dunedin Sound.

The Chills were a local hit and were quickly signed to the then just fledgling, but soon to be legendary Dunedin label Flying Nun. With the push from Flying Nun and the gothic beauty of their first big single, The Chills made an international splash with "‘Pink Frost’.

Throughout the remainder of the 1980s the Chills reeled off a…