The Pin Group

The first signing of the legendary New Zealand label Flying Nun, Christchurch-based noise pop trio the Pin Group, teamed singer/guitarist Roy Montgomery, bassist Ross Humphrey, and drummer Peter Stapleton. Their 1981 debut single, the Joy Division-influenced "Ambivalence," was the first release on Flying Nun, issued in an edition of 300 copies; the follow-up, "Coat," appeared later that same year. After a 1982 EP, The Pin Group Go to Town, the band dissolved when Montgomery traveled to London for a year-long study program; he and Stapleton later renewed their collaboration as members of drone merchants Dadamah, with the complete Pin Group lineup reuniting in 1992 to record a one-off single, "Eleven Years After." ~ Jason Ankeny