"Soft Bomb" is an album by the New Zealand band The Chills, released in 1992. It followed their successful 1990 release "Submarine Bells," which had topped the charts in New Zealand. The album received positive reviews and was accompanied by a world tour featuring an expanded Chills lineup.
However, during their US tour, financial backing and promotion for the album and tour were abruptly withdrawn. This disruption led to the disintegration of the expanded band lineup, and Martin Phillipps, the band's founder, faced the challenge of rebuilding The Chills. Following the album and tour, Phillipps parted ways with Slash Records.
"The Male Monster from the Id," the lead single from The Chills' album "Soft Bomb," gained significant traction at college radio stations in the US, becoming the most added song from the album. By July 1992, Earl Robertson had joined the band on drums. The band had planned around 100 shows to promote the album, but after completing the New Zealand and Australian legs of the tour, it became apparent that Robertson was not a good fit. He was replaced by Craig Mason of Able Tasmans, who was also serving as the band's lighting engineer.
As the tour continued into the US, "Double Summer" was released as a single. The band faced internal tensions due to line-up changes and lower-than-expected ticket sales. Compounding these issues, their label, Slash Records, withdrew promotion for the album and tour in both the US and the UK. London Recordings, which distributed Slash's releases in the UK, also canceled their support for the band’s upcoming tour. In response to these setbacks, Martin Phillipps decided to disband The Chills after their final show in the US.
