Marlin's Dreaming Announce Summer Tour of Aotearoa New Zealand

Marlin's Dreaming set hearts aflutter with the majestic sounds of their 2024 album HIRL, which comfortably earned a spot on Rolling Stone's Best New Zealand Albums of the 2020s So Far ("a beautifully melancholic step forward"), and now they have revealed plans for their first summer tour since 2020. Commanding swift attention with their 2017 debut Lizard Tears, the Ōtepoti four-piece of Semisi Ma’ia’i, Oscar Johns, Hamish Morgan and De Stevens (who has emerged as an in-demand producer) have a trifecta of headline dates locked in for The Loons in Ōhinehou Lyttelton, Tāmaki Makaurau's Double Whammy and Te Whanganui-a-Tara's San Fran, joined by Tiare Kelly (Benee) on keys duties.

Also performing at Slackbarn festival and Festival of Lights, look forward to fan faves and future classics from the ever-growing songbook of Marlin's Dreaming this January — headline tour brought to you by Banished Music...

"We’re joining to play a couple of great festivals in Slackbarn and Festival of Lights so wanted to take a moment to get out to Christchurch, Auckland, and Wellington. As well as playing through our back catalogue, we also have new music to tease, that I’m really excited to try out live.

It wasn’t until after booking these shows that I realised we hadn’t played a summer tour since 2020, which history has shown was one of the most significant things to happen that year." - Semisi Ma’ia’i

Marlin’s Dreaming

Thursday 15th January - The Loons, Lyttelton
Friday 16th January - Double Whammy, Auckland
Saturday 17th January - San Fran, Wellington

Banished Music presale from Thursday 16th October, subscribe HERE
General on-sale from Friday 17th October

Watch the video for Marlin's Dreaming's swoony 'Earnestly' featuring Erny Belle from 2024's HIRL, directed and edited by frontman Semisi Ma'ia'i...

Press release:

A year and some change since touring HIRL, Marlin’s Dreaming will again bless Aotearoa’s main city centres for a short summer stint this January 2026.

Marlin’s Dreaming has long been associated with New Zealand’s balmier months, but this marks the band’s first summer tour since 2020, and a chance to play through the back catalogue of hits.

Drawing songs from 2024’s sweet, nostalgia inflected album HIRL, its starry debut Lizard Tears, and the scores of sublime tracks between, it’s a chance for fans to get the complete Marlin’s Dreaming summer experience.