We asked the question - what is the sound of Auckland' And discovered that Auckland is a sprawling mass of soundscapes. STAMP at THE EDGE is bringing to the Auckland Town Hall a yearly journey of discovery, kicking it off with a juxtaposition between the underground sounds of Americana and the culturally inspired Pacific Roots on 9 and 10 of April.
“Americana from The Auckland Underground” takes Rohan Evans away from the secluded depths of St. Kevin’s Arcade on K’Road and allows him the chance to curate some of the top acts that have passed through the doors of his popular venue, The Wine Cellar. Rohan takes the seasoned performers of alt country, folk and Americana he has watched and booked over the years and brings them together to the Great Hall on Friday night.
Performers such as Karl Steven’s new surf-rock inspired The Drab Doo Riffs, Stars In Their Eyes winner and perennial Wine Cellar favourite Lisa Crawley, Tom Riddell and Storehouse, Steve Abel and rapper/slam poet Tourettes.
Widely known as one of the forefathers of the Aotearoa Roots movement, Tigi Ness brings his wealth of knowledge and years as an overseer of the booming local roots, dub and reggae scene to the stage on Saturday. Pacific Roots heralds what many feel is the other sound Auckland brings to the table through it’s strong Pasifika/Maori heritage and the similarities some claim to the southern US “blues” movement. Tigi’s group Unity Pacific perform alongside his son Che Fu, who has reunited with The Krates for this special occasion.
Highlighting that the sounds can be as broad as the minds that listen to it, The Moisties join the line up on the Saturday, with a mix of slowed out dancehall ragga led by their charismatic Japanese frontman, Atsushi. The likes of The Kingites, Silver and Royala also converge to the Auckland Town Hall for one night only.
Music of a Thousand Lovers brings together for two nights only in one of the most iconic venues in Auckland the musicians and sounds which have been cited as landscape defining, leaving audiences to decide for themselves if this is, in fact, the sound of Auckland.
Americana from the Auckland Underground plays Friday 9 April from 8.30pm (doors open 7pm)
Line up: The Drab Doo Riffs, Lisa Crawley with Tom Rodwell and Storehouse, Steve Able, The Broken Heart Breakers, The Dust Palace, Lubin Rains (The Vietnam War), Death Valley, Tourettes, and The Pirate City Rollers.
Pacific Roots plays Saturday 10 April from 8.30pm (doors open 7pm)
Line up: Che Fu and The Krates, Unity Pacific, Atsushi and The Moisties, The Kingites, Silver, Aurasta, Royala, Obelix and Dubhead.
