There is no cure for MS; a debilitating condition whose symptoms include vision problems, numbness, fatigue, balance issues, and muscle weakness.<\/p>\n
Push Push have reformed again and will play four reunion gigs in February. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Instead, sufferers rely on treatments and lifestyle changes to try to manage the condition by reducing relapses.<\/p>\n
Kane and his bandmates defied their critics<\/a> in the New Zealand music scene to top the charts in the early 1990s.<\/p>\n Before their reunion, Kane talked to the Herald about how he had followed through with that self-determination in his approach to life with MS.<\/p>\n \u201cIf there\u2019s one thing most people would agree on about me is I\u2019m a fairly driven individual,\u201d Kane said from his home in Bondi.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, this was just another thing to attack. And I have.\u201d<\/p>\n Kane said it was \u201cobviously alarming in one respect\u201d when he first learned he had MS.<\/p>\n But it wasn\u2019t the first serious medical condition he had been diagnosed with. He was born with haemophilia, a congenital disorder where blood doesn\u2019t clot properly.<\/p>\n From the age of 10, he had been involved in injecting himself with blood factors to help stop spontaneous bleeds.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve spent my life taking care of myself,\u201d Kane said.<\/p>\n \u201cAlthough getting the MS diagnosis was obviously alarming in one respect, I just did what I normally do, which is take care of myself and got on top of it as quickly as I could.\u201d<\/p>\n Kane said there \u201cit was a bit hairy for a couple of years\u201d after he was diagnosed.<\/p>\n That included battling sensory issues, including numbness in his fingers.<\/p>\n \u201cThe way to describe it is if you dip your hands in ice water … then you take them out and kind of can\u2019t feel things for a bit,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a bit like that for me … oh, s***.\u201d<\/p>\n He made \u201cradical changes\u201d to his life in a bid to give himself the best chance of avoiding MS relapses.<\/p>\n That included dietary changes \u2013 he no longer eats meat or dairy \u2013 trying to get a good intake of vitamin D via being in the sunlight and also attempting to lower his stress levels; the latter being \u201ceasier said than done\u201d, he said with a laugh.<\/p>\n He also injects himself several times a week with medication that is aimed to prevent new damage to the central nervous system, slow disease progression and reduce the frequency or severity of relapses.<\/p>\n The initial problems he had in his fingers was not a good situation for a guitarist, Kane said.<\/p>\n \u201cThat certainly affected me. But I\u2019ve been able to keep it at bay such that it hasn\u2019t got any worse than it was in the first few years.\u201d<\/p>\n The transtasman effort to get the band back together<\/p>\n Push Push will perform four gigs \u2013 in Hamilton, Auckland, Mount Maunganui and Whangapar\u0101oa \u2013 between February 19-22 to celebrate 35 years since Trippin\u2019 dominated the Kiwi music charts.<\/p>\n Late last year they released their first single in eight years, E.P.B (Clutching at the Sky).<\/p>\n The song is a reworking of Euphoric Plunder & Bliss, which featured on their 1992 album, Trillion Shades of Happy.<\/p>\n With Kane and Silver both living in Sydney, preparing for the quartet of shows \u2013 including nailing down previously unreleased songs that feature on their new EP \u2013 has been challenging logistically.<\/p>\n In his home studio, Kane has muted the guitar parts of song recordings for him and Silver to jam over.<\/p>\n Back in Auckland, Havoc, drummer Scott Cortese and bassist Steve Abplanalp have been jamming with acclaimed metal guitarist Sharne Scarborough \u2013 laying down a \u201chybrid version of what Silver and I might do\u201d \u2013 in the absence of Push Push\u2019s guitarists.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, it\u2019s going to be interesting when we all five of us get in a room together,\u201d Kane said.<\/p>\n The group will spend two weeks rehearsing together in Auckland before the first of the reunion concerts to be played in Hamilton on February 19.<\/p>\n \u201cI will be flying by the seat of my pants on night one, that\u2019s for sure,\u201d Kane joked.<\/p>\n Despite the distance between Kane and Silver and the rest of the band, Kane said the group were \u201cvery close\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWhenever we\u2019re back in a room together, we just pick up where we leave off.\u201d<\/p>\n Revealed: The truth behind Push Push\u2019s split<\/p>\n After a string of hit singles and the album A Trillion Shades of Happy, Push Push decided to relocate to Australia in mid-1993.<\/p>\n They had enjoyed chart success with Trippin\u2019 there, and had toured Australia twice and gained TV exposure, including performing an energetic version of the hit song on popular Aussie show Hey, Hey It\u2019s Saturday.<\/p>\n Kane said part of the motivation was so the band could \u201cdevelop and evolve\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cAustralia seemed like the logical thing,\u201d he said. \u201cIn a lot of respects, it was restarting.\u201d<\/p>\n Kane, Silver, Abplanalp and Cortese arrived in Australia first, with Havoc set to follow.<\/p>\n The band\u2019s departure came at a time when things had become \u201ctense\u201d within Push Push.<\/p>\n That included Kane and Havoc not \u201cseeing eye to eye\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the time we were the main drivers of the band,\u201d Kane recalled. \u201cThere was stuff that we needed to sort out and we hadn\u2019t. We were looking at life in a different way.<\/p>\n \u201cNeither him or I were mature enough to handle with that situation at all. Despite being as close as we were as friends, as deeply connected as we were, we just didn\u2019t have the capacity to deal with it. We were just 22 years old.\u201d<\/p>\n Kane said a comment Havoc made when farewelling him and Silver at Auckland International Airport summed up the state of their relationship.<\/p>\n \u201cHe said, \u2018Is it worth me coming?\u2019. We\u2019re at the airport and I said, \u2018Well, only you can answer that question\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\nPush Push guitarist Andy Kane has talked about how he manages life with MS ahead of Push Push’s reunion tour. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Andy Kane says MS symptoms, including finger numbness, had caused him plenty of concerns. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Push Push put out a new single late last year, with a five-song EP released around their upcoming tour. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Trippin’ was a runaway hit for Push Push when it was released in mid-1991. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Push Push went their separate ways in mid-1993 after a planned shift to Australia fell apart. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Chart-topping Kiwi band from the early 1990s Push Push are set to roll back the years and rock out in four reunion gigs in February. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n