{"id":8937,"date":"2025-12-16T06:29:39","date_gmt":"2025-12-15T17:29:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/?p=8937"},"modified":"2026-05-02T09:12:05","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T21:12:05","slug":"the-resurrectionists-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/2025\/12\/the-resurrectionists-2","title":{"rendered":"Resurrectionists"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:17px\">The Resurrectionists were a short-lived but sharply defined post-punk\/funk outfit from Wellington, active during 1984. Formed by guitarist Nigel Elder and vocalist Michael Musgrove, the lineup expanded to include bassist Richard Watts and drummer James Gilberd, both of whom had previously played with Elder in <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/2025\/06\/neoteric-tribesmen\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"359\">Neoteric Tribesmen<\/a><\/strong> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/2025\/04\/condemned-sector\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"171\">Condemned Sector<\/a><\/strong>. Watts was also the original bassist for Wellington punk band <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/2025\/07\/flesh-d-vice\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"247\">Flesh D-Vice<\/a><\/strong> during 1983. The band quickly developed a taut, rhythm-driven sound that sat between post-punk abrasion and funk propulsion. In March 1984, trumpeter Steve Roach joined, adding a brassy edge to the band.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div data-wp-context=\"{ &quot;autoclose&quot;: false, &quot;accordionItems&quot;: [] }\" data-wp-interactive=\"core\/accordion\" role=\"group\" class=\"wp-block-accordion is-layout-flow wp-block-accordion-is-layout-flow\">\n<div data-wp-class--is-open=\"state.isOpen\" data-wp-context=\"{ &quot;id&quot;: &quot;accordion-item-1&quot;, &quot;openByDefault&quot;: false }\" data-wp-init=\"callbacks.initAccordionItems\" data-wp-on-window--hashchange=\"callbacks.hashChange\" class=\"wp-block-accordion-item is-layout-flow wp-block-accordion-item-is-layout-flow\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-accordion-heading\"><button aria-expanded=\"false\" aria-controls=\"accordion-item-1-panel\" data-wp-bind--aria-expanded=\"state.isOpen\" data-wp-on--click=\"actions.toggle\" id=\"accordion-item-1\" type=\"button\" class=\"wp-block-accordion-heading__toggle\"><span class=\"wp-block-accordion-heading__toggle-title\">Read more<\/span><span class=\"wp-block-accordion-heading__toggle-icon\" aria-hidden=\"true\">+<\/span><\/button><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div aria-labelledby=\"accordion-item-1\" data-wp-bind--hidden=\"state.isHidden\" data-wp-on--beforematch=\"actions.handleBeforeMatch\" id=\"accordion-item-1-panel\" role=\"region\" class=\"wp-block-accordion-panel is-layout-flow wp-block-accordion-panel-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:17px\">The Resurrectionists made their live debut in 1984 at <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/2024\/01\/rawa-house\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"12204\">Rawa House<\/a><\/strong>, a small arts collective venue in upper Cuba Street. That year they played a run of notable local shows, including the Rainbow Explosion party at Victoria University alongside <strong>For Crying Out Loud<\/strong> and <strong>Tin Syndrome<\/strong>, followed by a two night set at <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/2024\/06\/the-terminus\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"12712\">The Terminus<\/a><\/strong> on the corner of Courtenay Place and Taranaki Street. In July 1984 they entered Victoria University\u2019s Band of the Year competition, marking the high point of their brief original run.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:17px\">The band played their final gig of the period on 22 September 1984 at the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/2025\/05\/clyde-quay-tavern\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"17653\">Clyde Quay Tavern<\/a><\/strong>. Despite their momentum, the Resurrectionists never made any recordings, leaving their reputation to rest entirely on live performances and word of mouth. After the split, members went on to form or join projects including <strong>Danse with a Stranger<\/strong>, <strong>Spader Non<\/strong>, and the jazz-leaning <strong>Scat Cats and The Corgettes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:17px\">In August 1986 the Resurrectionists briefly re-emerged for a one-off concert titled &#8220;Closer to the Source&#8221; at the <strong>Electric Ballroom<\/strong>. The event combined live music with film and featured <strong>Urban Dwellers<\/strong> as support. According to bassist Richard Watts, the reunion came about while members were between bands, and the group found their playing noticeably sharpened, even revisiting an old <strong>Neoteric Tribesmen<\/strong> song, \u201cFolk Tale of the Sun Man.\u201d Forty years later Nigel and James are still playing together in the post-punk tribute band <strong>Condenser<\/strong>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-stripes\" style=\"font-size:16px\"><table><tbody><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Origin<\/strong><\/td><td>Wellington<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Genre<\/strong><\/td><td>post-punk<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Years Active<\/strong><\/td><td>1983 &#8211; 1984, 1986<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Associated Acts<\/strong><\/td><td>Neoteric Tribesmen<br>Condemned Sector<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Past Members<\/strong><\/td><td>Richard Watts (bass)<br>James Gilberd (drums)<br>Nigel Elder (guitar)<br>Michael Musgrove (vocals)<br>Steve Roche (trumpet)<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Link<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:15px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.audioculture.co.nz\/articles\/richard-watts-on-wellington-punk-days-early-to-mid-1980s\">Audioculture<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter is-style-columns\" data-effect=\"slide\"><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper\"><ul class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper\"><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"720\" height=\"503\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-8949\" data-id=\"8949\" src=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_05.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_05.jpg 720w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_05-300x210.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"724\" height=\"1024\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-8944\" data-id=\"8944\" src=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_01-724x1024.jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_01-724x1024.jpeg 724w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_01-212x300.jpeg 212w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_01-768x1087.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_01.jpeg 848w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 724px) 100vw, 724px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a aria-label=\"Pause Slideshow\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause\" role=\"button\"><\/a><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Timeline<\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1983, December<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:15px\">The Resurrectionists form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">1984<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1984, May 20, Rawa House<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1984, June 1, Victoria Uni Hall<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"759\" src=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1984_06_01_vicuni-1024x759.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8940\" style=\"object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1984_06_01_vicuni-1024x759.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1984_06_01_vicuni-300x222.jpg 300w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1984_06_01_vicuni-768x569.jpg 768w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1984_06_01_vicuni-1170x867.jpg 1170w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1984_06_01_vicuni.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1984, June 27\/ 28, The Terminus<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1984, July 5, Victoria University Hall<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:15px\">Band Of The Year competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter is-style-rectangular\" data-effect=\"slide\"><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper\"><ul class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper\"><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"724\" height=\"1024\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-8947\" data-id=\"8947\" src=\"http:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_04-724x1024.jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_04-724x1024.jpeg 724w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_04-212x300.jpeg 212w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_04-768x1087.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_04.jpeg 848w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 724px) 100vw, 724px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"724\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-8945\" data-id=\"8945\" src=\"http:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_02-1024x724.jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_02-1024x724.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_02-300x212.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_02-768x543.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_02-1170x827.jpeg 1170w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_02.jpeg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a aria-label=\"Pause Slideshow\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause\" role=\"button\"><\/a><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1984, September 22, Clyde Quay Tavern<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:15px\">The Resurrectionists play their last gig. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">1986<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1986, August 29, Electric Ballroom<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"font-size:15px\">The Resurrectionists reform for a one-off show. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"736\" src=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1986_08_29_electricballroom-1024x736.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-8941\" style=\"object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1986_08_29_electricballroom-1024x736.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1986_08_29_electricballroom-300x216.jpg 300w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1986_08_29_electricballroom-768x552.jpg 768w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1986_08_29_electricballroom-1170x840.jpg 1170w, https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/1986_08_29_electricballroom.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Resurrectionists were a short-lived but sharply defined post-punk\/funk outfit from Wellington, active during 1984. Formed by guitarist Nigel Elder and vocalist Michael Musgrove, the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8943,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[138,251,139,128,252],"class_list":["post-8937","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bands","tag-james-gilberd","tag-michael-musgrove","tag-nigel-elder","tag-richard-watts","tag-steve-roach","two-columns"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pe2JUk-2k9","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/theresurrectionists_03.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8937","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8937"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8937\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23970,"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8937\/revisions\/23970"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8943"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8937"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8937"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upthepunks.co.nz\/bands\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8937"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}