Hey friends,
In unfortunate news, DIIV have made the extremely difficult decision to cancel - instead of postpone - their upcoming Australian and New Zealand tours. The band, and us, and our friends in Australia (Mistletone), tried our best to make this happen for later in the year, but unfortunately the future of international tours is entirely uncertain due to Covid-19, and the risks in attempting to forge ahead with this were just far too great.
As such, Banished Music and Strange News Touring - in association with Undertheradar.co.nz and 95bFM - have decided to cancel Strange Universe #001, and revisit the concept when the dust has settled.
We were so excited to bring you these incredible line-ups, and want to thank Cut Off Your Hands, Wax Chattels, Imugi 이무기, Womb, and DJ Mealy Worm for jumping on board.
We, Reuben Bonner from Banished, and Matthew Crawley from Strange News, are still dreaming big, and when the time is right, you can be sure Strange Universe will ride again, with a cool leather jacket and flames down the side.
Refunds for the Auckland show will be made automatically via Ticketmaster, and Banished Music will contact all Wellington ticket holders in the next 24 hours to arrange refunds.
If you are in a position to forgo your refund (or part of it), you can use the proceeds from your ticket to donate to organisers to help offset tour losses.
If you would like to do this in an awesome way to win an incredible prize, please go and purchase as many raffle ticket as you can afford from Banished 4 Life!
https://www.tickettailor.com/events/banishedmusic/363145
We have a very special ticket set up there for proceeds going towards covering the significant costs incurred from the Strange Universe cancellation.
By buying one (or more) of these, you will support us to stay in the fight to bring live music to town, but also, you will go in the draw to win a double pass to every Banished Music promoted show for the rest of time, AND a double pass to every Strange News promoted show for the rest of time too! In case you didn't know Strange News has promoted the likes of Moon Duo, Kurt Vile, The National, Wire, and Beirut, and a squillion more.
What a prize!
Once again, we are sorry to be the bearers of bad news. We're really disappointed and know you will be too.
Thanks for your understanding.
Stay safe friends, and see you soon
Banished Music & Strange News
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Banished Music and Strange News, in unison with 95bFM and www.undertheradar.co.nz are ecstatic to unleash into the cosmos STRANGE UNIVERSE, a brand new concert series of galactic proportions, kicking off with a double-header of Brooklyn’s shoegaze superstars DIIV, and the final ever shows from our very own post-punk paladins CUT OFF YOUR HANDS!
Following the critically lauded 2019 release of their third studio album Deceiver, celebrated sonic explorers DIIV bring their soaring new set to Aotearoa this April/May for two giant shows, their first since their iconic 2016 Laneway set.
Having endured more challenges and changes than most bands could handle, DIIV return with a rejuvenated line-up - Zachary Cole Smith (lead vocals, guitar), Andrew Bailey (guitar), Colin Caulfield (bass), and Ben Newman (drums) - and reports are unanimously calling their recent shows the band’s best yet.
Meanwhile, as all good things must come to an end, local guitar heroes CUT OFF YOUR HANDS will burn brilliant and bright once more for their last ever shows, joining DIIV in both Wellington and Auckland. Having travelled the globe with their angular anthems for over a decade, expect all the energy of the sun packed tightly into these fond farewells, accompanied by the release of their final album HLLH.
There was only one Pōneke band that could complete the already colossal San Fran lineup: hometown siblings WOMB. With shimmering harmonies, and reverberating guitar-based hymnals that will leave you entranced; to experience one of their rare live shows is akin to being lost in a dream.
Fleshing out the astonishing Friday night double-header at Auckland’s mighty Powerstation are three of Tāmaki Makaurau’s finest.
Noise-rock, guitar-less guitar band WAX CHATTELS is a name you should be no stranger to. Tāmaki Makaurau based, but known around the world for their staggering live performance, they create music that’s darkly hypnotic, rhythmically complex and sinister. Wax Chattels will be bringing their powerful and enigmatic musical assault to the Powerstation.
Fast-rising silky electronic duo IMUGI 이무기 have changed the game in the Auckland R&B/electronic music scene with a string of gritty and soulful releases, unflinching festival performances and packed to the rafters headline shows. Their EP Vacasian is a trip through the diasporic-Asian-girl-psyche and the healing it takes to go from self-consciousness to self-awareness.
Finally, rounding out this extraordinary bill is the eclectic and wonderful DJ MEALY WORM (95bFM), whose selections always confound and delight.
The collaboration between Matthew Crawley’s Strange News and Reuben Bonner’s Banished From The Universe / Banished Music has been a mutual quest that these two ancient friends have hinted at for over a decade. Finally materialising into fruition via a wondrous and Strange Universe of sound and vision, this show is set to be the first of many, and all for the love of music.
