Soundtrack to your studies - 1990

The Orientation organiser in 1990 took on far more than he could cope with. The plan for a massive “Funky Town” acid house party at the Auckland Town Hall ended up being a flop and lost $20,000 for the AUSA. There was also a “Rave 1990” series of gigs, but these were on the same weekend that David Bowie’s Tin Machine band played Auckland. As a result, they struggled to draw enough people and so inevitably also lost money (though to a smaller degree). As if that wasn’t enough, there was a debacle when the main entertainment at the Graduation Ball was a country band who were eventually booed offstage.

However, there was still plenty of music on campus throughout the year, especially in the Uni Cafe.

Craccum kept up with the latest events, giving a rave review to the Sugarcubes concert at the Town Hall (with support from JPSE and NRA) and devoting half-a-page to an interview with Straitjacket Fits.

The Top Ten on bFM also shows the power of Flying Nun at the time, with The Chills at No.1 and they would top the national charts soon afterward with their ironically-titled ‘Heavenly Pop Hit.’ They were so popular that they managed to headline at the Auckland Town Hall and they managed to bring in a lot more people than the ‘Funky Town’ acid house party...

However the biggest selling single of the year showed the rap music was beginning to make a real impact. Yes, the ultra-baggy trousers and slick dancing of MC Hammer took him all the way to the top.

What was pumping on your stereo while you were on campus? Suggest songs to add to our 1990s playlist, and you could win $100 Flying Out voucher.