Tour Diary
It was our first time playing shows internationally so we were very excited leaving for the airport, but we accidentally got taken to the domestic area and called two maxi taxis in our frantic energy. We got to Auckland airport after a champagne breakfast in Melbs and were greeted by the friendliest airport staff ever, a sign of what's to come? We stayed with pals Joe Ghatt (Third Eye Stimuli artist) and Courtney Harper (epic visual artist) in Auckland and we honestly can’t thank them enough, they were the best.
We spent our first day cruising around Auckland’s K-Road, hitting some op shops, the local eateries and NZ’s answer to Woolies - Countdown. We also picked up our twelve seater van with our tour manager/driver/label manager and all round legend Josh.
The first show was in Gisborne, a 4/5 hour drive away from Auckland so we hit the road. The drive didn’t disappoint as we stopped alongside Waioeko Gorge and took in our first bit of NZ scenery.
Day 4:
The next day we were off to Mt Maunganui but not before we had our second swim in a beautiful mountain river on the way. Some of the bluest water we’d ever seen! The venue was called Totara Street and was really beautiful theatre vibe. It was another great show and a new pal Fran gave us two avocados with our song lyrics written on them!
After this regional stint, we were back in Auckland to play the iconic Whammy Bar. We were super psyched about this show and it was one of the highlights of the tour, sweaty dark packed rooms are always fun. The Oogars also joined the tour at this show!
The drive to Coramandel and the infamous venue Eggscentric was a mammoth one. Due to landslides, rain and a power lines over the road, we got stuck in traffic for six hours. Luckily we got stuck in another beautiful landscape and did some band meditation next to a river. Once we got moving the drive got even better and we eventually got to Eggscentric. We hit another pre-show swim in the ocean next to the venue and had a wild show that night which featured a rare encore feat Gene vocal improv.
The next morning we found out why it was called Eggscentric and had a beautiful morning swim/brekky combo after sleeping upstairs.
Had some time off in Raglan and enjoyed the local vintage stores, river and oceans, hostel spa and bed bugs (unconfirmed).
After the days off we were keen to get on the road again as we drove to New Plymouth/Taranaki. On the way through we stopped by a Hobbit film location and Waikato falls where we got drenched by the powerful water. Gene also jumped the fence at the Hobbit location to really get the full experience but was promptly told off by the staff.
In the morning we drove up to Mt Taranaki and took in the foggy views. New Plymouth was the second last show of the tour and before the show we got let in to the Len Lye gallery up the road. Shoutout to Naomi for giving us the private tour! This show was very loud but very fun.
On the drive to Wellington and the last show of the tour we were keen to let it all hang out. We saw a more clear view of Mount Taranaki and were in awe!
The last show of the tour was at San Fran in Wellington and we really dug the vibe there. It was a sick way to end the tour and we had a lot of fun with the tour crew post show.
After a rough morning and Maccy Ds brekky, we hit the seven hour drive from Wellington to Auckland. Shoutout here for Josh from putting in some serious driving hours. After getting out of the city we realised we were about to drive through literal Mordor and Mount Doom (were they filmed these locations anyway) so we stopped and took in the powerful energy.
After this we were all feeling very lucky about all the beautiful landscapes we were seeing as pulled into Lake Taupō. This lake is the size of Singapore and was the clearest water ever (true I reckon). We had what was our last swim of the trip and drove the rest of the way back to Auckland.
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We spent the last day/night seeing Pachyman and Automatic at Whammy Bar and loving every second if it.
All in all this tour was a very special time for all of us and we feel very lucky to have done it. Seeing the beautiful landscapes combined with the beautiful music community was such an amazing combo and something we’ll never forget.
