The Verlaines

A literate and dramatic sector of New Zealand's Dunedin sound and Flying Nun circles, the Verlaines' disenchanted guitar pop has been an indie fixture since the early '80s. Formed around the jangly and excitable songwriting of vocalist/guitarist Graeme Downes, the Verlaines cycled through several lineup changes as they eked out albums over the years, retaining a consistent sound from their early singles (collected on 1987's brilliant Juvenilia) to '90s output like Way Out Where, to their tenth studio album, 2019's Dunedin Spleen. Downes formed the Verlaines in 1981. The group...