Sneaky Feelings

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Sneaky Feelings were a 1980s New Zealand pop/rock band, led by Matthew Bannister, who recorded on the Flying Nun label. Initially recording with the line-up of Bannister (guitar), David Pine (guitar), Kat Tyrie (bass) and Martin Durrant (drums), Tyrie was replaced by John Kelcher early in the band's career. Durrant left shortly before the band's demise, and was replaced by Ross Burge.

Sneaky Feelings were unusual among Dunedin Sound bands in that all four members of the band sang and several of the members wrote material. The jangle sound of the guitars and layered vocals drew their influence from the music of the Byrds and the Beatles, and comparisons can be made with some of California's Paisley Underground bands.

Sneaky Feelings were one of four Dunedin bands to reap the benefits of the newly-formed Flying Nun label with the release of the Dunedin Double EP, alongside the Stones, the Verlaines and the Chills. Sadly, the multi-voiced harmonies of their sound were not well suited to the primitive recording conditions of early Flying Nun, and as such their sound is rarely captured at its best on the albums they released. The band's biggest hit was with the single "Husband House" in 1985.

After the demise of Sneaky Feelings at the end of the '80s, Bannister moved to Auckland where he founded the Dribbling Darts. He later worked briefly with the Muttonbirds. He also wrote a book about the experience of being in a band during the heyday of the Dunedin Sound movement - Positively George Street.

Further reading

Bannister, M. (1999). Positively George Street. Auckland: Reed Books.