Silicon Marks 20th Anniversary of Drive with a Sneaky Little Remix
Buckle Up!
Bic Runga
releases
'Drive' (Silicon Remix)
Bic Runga - 'Drive' (Silicon Remix) on iTunes!
Dropping like robotic manna from a futuristic heaven comes Silicon's 'Drive' remix, continuing the awesome 20th
anniversary celebration of Bic Runga's 'Drive'.
Bic says "It's been fun to hear Drive reimagined in 2017, a song that was only ever released as an acoustic demo 20
years ago. This remix by Silicon makes me think of self driving cars and sad lovesick robots."
Awesomely transforming this heralded treasure from its acoustic routes, Silicon's 'Drive' remix brings listeners into a
completely new Bic Runga dimension, allowing them insight into a side of Bic they never imagined - futuristic and dancey
- a vocoded parallel universe that is fully embraced by her alter-ego.
A prodigiously talented multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and producer who remains resistant to any kind of easy
pigeonholing, Kody Nielson may well have concocted the purest distillation of his hyperactive musical brain yet, in the
shape of Silicon. Created in the small hours when the energy is strong, Silicon sends out pulses of warped, genuinely
soulful, retro-futuristic electronica that smudges the lines between human warmth and disembodied voices from the
machine.
Born to a New Zealand jazz musician father and Hawaiian hula-dancer mother, Kody and his brother Ruban (Unknown Mortal
Orchestra) have spent their lives immersed in music and art. The Mint Chicks, an infamous noise band they formed in
2001, released three albums and a swarm of vinyl EPs and singles over a period of nine years, predominantly for the
Flying Nun label, attracting a significant cult following in the process.
In 2016, Silicon was awarded the prestigious Taite Music Prize for his futuristic funk-tinged album Personal Computer. Not content with this, Kody, relentless songwriter, currently holds three unreleased albums under his creative belt.
Since the release of her first single Drive in 1996 – a top ten hit when she was just twenty – Bic Runga has been
awarded almost every musical honour in New Zealand, including the prestigious APRA Silver Scroll songwriting award. Bic
has won the most Tuis (New Zealand Music Awards) by any individual, ever (twenty). She has won Best Female Vocalist four
times and Best Producer three times. Bic’s debut album Drive was certified seven times platinum and featured the
enormous hit, 'Sway'. The follow up Beautiful Collision in 2002 was certified an incredible eleven-times platinum and featured the hits 'Get Some Sleep', 'Something Good' and
'Listening For The Weather'.
Beautiful Collision was followed by an album recorded live with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra. This album included beautiful
orchestral versions of all her hits and a recording of the classic Jacque Brel song 'Ne Me Quitte Pas', which was an
early indicator of Bic's next move to relocate to Paris. Paris life resulted in the more cinematic Birds album in 2005 which also won Album Of The Year and featured the hit 'Winning Arrow'.
Her songs have featured in film soundtracks (American Pie), her records have been released around the world, and she has
won loyal followings in Europe, Asia and North America.
In January 2006, The Queen made Runga a member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Zealand New Year's Honours
List.
In 2016 Bic was the recipient of the Legacy award at the New Zealand music awards and inducted in to New Zealand Music
hall of fame.
In 2017 Bic was nominated for a second Silver Scroll award with 'Close Your Eyes', and acknowledged her robotic id,
finally setting it free.
ENDS