Titans of the song-o-sphere OTIS MACE COMBO venture forth for another amazing night of lavish lyrics and hook laden melodies and.... as special guests, all the way from the deep south, welcome WILDCARDS AOTEAROA. ( David Eggleton and Richard Wallace )
Otis Mace Combo fresh from gigs at ONEONESIX in Whangarei and more recently Whammy Bar honing their sick brand of melodramatic lounge folk and expertly blended psycho billy sleaze never fail to please.
And from Dunedin , making a rare appearance WILDCARDS AOTEAROA weld the mind bending word smithery of lockdown laureate poet David Eggleton and guitar virtuoso Richard Wallace.
A night of stimulating fodder for these foggy times.
Poet David Eggleton and musician Richard Wallis combine to present a comic and lyric
portrait of Aotearoa New Zealand and its place in the South Pacific Moana Nui today. Their
Wild Cards Aotearoa duo presents cascading lyrics, wild musicality and lightning humour.
David Eggleton, the Poet Laureate of Aotearoa 2019 - 2022, has been
described as a a jazz-bop-beatnik poet whose poems never cease to amaze and
astound in their creativity ... in performance he is no longer a just a poet
but a ranter, a raver, a conjuror ... his poetry spirals into todays world
from a Polynesian heritage.
David Eggleton, an acclaimed writer, has received just about
every literary award for poetry it is possible to receive in New Zealand, from the Prime
Ministers Award for Excellence in Poetry in 2016 to PEN NZ Best First Book of Poems in
1987. Overseas, amongst other events, he has taken part in the Poetry Olympics and the
Ranters Cup Final, winning Street Entertainer of the Year for Poetry at the London Convent
Garden Festival.
Richard Wallis is a Waikouaiti-based classical guitarist, rock musician and a soundscape
musician.
Reviews:
The blend of poetry and music was a treat- Backstage Pass
“The poetry is endlessly imaginative, it’s funny — plus intellectually rewarding.”
“David Eggleton delivers poetry that is considered, pulsating with energy. It’s alive, vital and
contemporary, steeped in popular and postmodern culture. It offers a vision of New Zealand
which is at once resolutely local and yet not quite recognisable or predictable. It offers a
vision of ourselves which defies expectation to surprise and charm.”
“Musician and composer Richard Wallis deserves a special mention for setting the mood and
tone. His well-thought-out use of soothing and inspiring background scores complemented
the poetry delivered on stage. It was the driving force that kept the audience grooving (in
their heads of course), and kept people who view poetry as boring entertained.”
