Album Review: Ranges – If

It’s no secret that I’m part of the extended Ranges family. Half of my wardrobe is Ranges/A Thousand Arms merch. I’ve tagged along on tours with them across America and the UK and Europe. I’ve written about them extensively, with album reviews, interviews, and tour blogs.

And they provide a lot to write about. Ranges lore runs deep. Every release contains multitudes. There will be secret hidden tracks, black market currency, intricate packaging, and wildly complex deluxe offerings. I’m privy to some of the secrets, and had some of it explained to me, but even so, a lot of it still goes over my head.

CJ on guitar. At Spacebar in Columbus, Ohio, 2025

Ranges has been largely run by CJ Blessum for quite a while now. It used to be more of a group effort, but the band splintered during the covid years. The band was formed in Bozeman, Montana. Jared (bass) moved to Ohio to get married. Joey (guitar) moved to Idaho to be closer to family. A few years later, Wilson (who ran a lot of the art direction and vision) decided to leave A Thousand Arms [a record label/distro/print workshop that CJ and Wilson co-founded, very much intertwined with Ranges] to do his own thing. So CJ was suddenly the sole songwriter. And Ranges became a studio-only band. Still putting out music, but not having the members to play live.

But dunk!records extended an invite for the band to play their 2024 festival. You don’t turn down the opportunity to play dunk!fest if you’re a post-rock band. So CJ and Mark (drums) needed to put together a live band to make it happen. They recruited Tim and Tom from Belgian band Astodan. They’d toured alongside Astodan in the past, so they knew the two Belgians had what it took. Tim and Tom had playing and touring experience, and were used to playing the same genre of music.

Ranges at dunk!fest 2024. Mark on drums, Tom on bass

I reunited with Ranges on that tour. And I can say with complete conviction that their set at dunk!festival 2024 was the best I’ve seen them play. I’d seen them play around 20 times at that point, so I knew something was special about that show. The energy in the room was palpable. Tim and Tom brought something new to the band that elevated Ranges as a live act. The duo were invited to officially join the band, not just as touring members. Ranges played in China later that year at Offside Festival as well.

2025 saw an invitation to play from Post. Festival in Indianapolis. CJ was run off his feet, trying to get all the merch ready for the festival on his own. A Thousand Arms made most of the official t-shirts, hats, posters etc for Post. Festival, as well as for many of the artists on the lineup. He had his hands full doing all that printing, as well as planning a tour, getting his head around sourcing a backline for the Belgians, and writing, recording, and releasing an album. There was no time to make this an international collaborative process. The resulting album, Sin, was still a belter, despite being made in a rush. The band got the opportunity to further gel on that US tour, and played China again at Can Festival early in 2026.

Writing

Which brings us to now. Tim and Tom have been part of Ranges for a few years, but this is the first time they’ve contributed to the Ranges writing and recording process. I can tell they’ve brought something new, and was actually surprised when I first listened to the album. The music feels more explosive and heavier (although the Ranges sound has been tracking that way for some time. I think they’ve transitioned from being more ambient and focusing on sync licensing, to writing rock songs that will go down a treat in a live setting).

Tim is both a guitarist and a drummer. He is also a key songwriter for Astodan. So he was happy to bring these skills to Ranges. He came up with the initial structures and layouts for the songs, and then they worked together as a group to flesh these ideas out.

I think Mark’s playing stands out more on this record. Mark came up in the NYC hardcore and punk scene, so certainly has what it takes to play heavy, but this hasn’t always shone through the music. Mark is tight – he plays time and he plays to a click, which are all very desirable traits in a drummer. But it’s a joy to hear him going a bit harder this time around. I’m guessing that Tim and Tom have brought new dynamics that have challenged Mark to push his playing, especially with Tim’s contribution as a songwriter, seeing how Tim is also a drummer.

Ranges aren’t afraid to build upon loops and backing tracks as a basis for their songs. “Called Not to a New Religion, but to Life” from The Ascensionist, and “The Slings and Arrows of Outrageous Fortune” from 33 are two such examples that work especially well. This album features a similar aspect in the song “You Can Talk With Crowds and Keep Your Virtue or Walk With Kings nor Lose the Common Touch”, a percussive track that I find difficult to describe. Is something being scratched? Or a drum track with odd effects and filters applied?

Tim (guitar) and Mark (drums) at Post. Fest 2025

Concept

Ranges have always been a band that makes concept albums. This is something that I found super compelling when I first reviewed them, with their 24 minute long song, “Night & Day”. I loved the spoken word segments at the start of releases like “If I Were the Devil”, The Gods of the Copybook Headings, and the live version of The Ascensionist – passages that gave the listener insights into what inspired the themes of the music.

The spoken word segments disappeared from their music for a while, and the themes became more obscure. Obviously I still enjoyed the music, but I missed being able to connect with the concepts that inspired the music when they weren’t as prominent. So I’m pleased to see this element returning.

I’ll need to touch on that deep Ranges lore now. Here is a link that could help you unpack some of it, but I’ll try to summarise the salient parts of this discussion here. Forgive me if some details aren’t accurate. Ranges output has eras called Octaves, each comprising of seven main releases. They are currently nearing the end of the second octave. Each album of this octave references or mirrors the corresponding release from the octave beneath.

dunk!festival 2024

CJ collated sermons to accompany tracks written as b-sides for the songs about the seven deadly sins on their last album cycle, which aligns with “If I Were The Devil” from the previous octave. The similarities are easily apparent – discussing the works of the devil, and sins.

Likewise, this album – If – aligns with The Gods of the Copybook Headings from their previous octave – both being centred around Rudyard Kipling poems. If mirrors the structure of Gods, commencing with a recording of a Kipling poem, and then following with songs inspired by respective stanzas of the poems.

Gods was about how society was ignoring old wisdoms, to its detriment. If compliments these themes, focusing on choices, and the consequences of those choices.

I asked CJ about the significance of the ouroboros on the cover art, the snake consuming its own tail. He shared “The ouroboros represents an eternal cycle and the idea of renewal through destruction and creation. Those ideas might seem somewhat at odds with If at face value, but we see choice as something constant. You don’t just choose once. You have to continue making the right choices over and over again, and in a lot of cases there is no real beginning or end to that process. Bettering oneself is a perpetual journey, and thus, the ouroboros.”

I like how the artwork has texture, staining and fading that gives it a vintage appearance, alluding to the ancient wisdoms contained within the poem that Kipling first published in 1910. Like The Gods of the Copybook Headings, these writings still carry true and relevant all these years later.

Something else I noticed from reading Kipling’s poem is that is references “Triumph and Disaster”, which possibly inspired the album by the same name from We Lost the Sea. I put this to CJ and he agreed that there’s a good chance that this is the case, and pointed out that Brand New’s “Sowing Season” also pulls an excerpt from the same poem.

Physical release

I’m unlikely to get my hands on a physical edition of the album for some time. The cost of shipping a record from America to New Zealand is prohibitively expensive – usually about three times the cost of the actual record. Not to mention the currency exchange rate on top of that. So these days I generally make do with digital releases. Which is a real shame, because I know that CJ puts a lot of effort into the merch and physical packaging that comes with each album, especially the deluxe editions. He has a good relationship with dunk!records, who are willing to accommodate the crazy requests he has for pressing records.

Seasoned Ranges fans will know what I’m talking about. Deluxe editions of previous Ranges albums have included ephemera such as chess sets, vodka, coffee beans, tea, ceramics, playing cards, flags, black market currency… even honey from CJ’s own beehives. Often items are hand crafted by the band, or in connection with local Montana businesses who do bespoke orders.

And then there is the vinyl. Sin was pressed in seven variants, each representing one of the seven deadly sins. The deluxe version came with seven 7″ singles. Or how about Babel? Ranges dropped the album, and later on sent out three 12″ singles, months apart. Three extra/hidden tracks they called Confusion of Tongues to complete the album, with screenprinted b-sides.

And of course then there are the cassette tapes and the secret marketplace releases and a whole nother level that I haven’t even scratched the surface of. Ranges are a band that pays special attention to presentation and packaging and ensure that physical releases are part of the experience.

The Deluxe Edition for If will have its own vinyl variant and will be limited to 33 copies in the US and 33 copies in Europe. Each will have a custom, hand-printed alternate cover that folds around the album and is tied together with a ribbon. Those are all being made by hand.

The US edition will also include a handmade custom leather journal with debossed insignia related to the album, accompanied by a Ranges oak pen, as well as a deluxe-exclusive t-shirt, CD, and sticker. Those additional ephemera items will only be available through A Thousand Arms in the US. dunk! will have the European Deluxe Edition with the exclusive vinyl variant and alternate cover.

So how is the album?

I like it. Obviously lots of familiar Ranges elements are at play here. It’s atmospheric, moody. I recognise a lot of CJ’s guitar tones as he strums and swells and paints a picture of feeling. But Ranges continue to evolve, and in honesty, some elements surprised me. Which makes sense, seeing how the band now has two new members contributing to the writing process.

The start of the second track comes in strong, with a sense of power and urgency. I was taken aback when I first heard it, and it still manages to make me sit up with surprise when I hear it now. We hear real fire in their playing, and I can’t help but picture the guys on stage, thrashing about and contorting as they play. And that makes sense too, because although the art and the records are important parts of who Ranges are, they know that their music needs to translate live, especially because they are now at the stage that they are being asked to play – and sometimes headline – prominent post-rock festivals.

Ranges at The Portland Arms, Cambridge

I’m pleased to see the spoken word passage reintroduced for If, giving me a taste of who Ranges were when I first became a fan. It offers a nice taste of both nostalgia and progression – reminding me of why I first loved the band, and showcasing how they’ve grown throughout the decade since then.

I look forward to getting my hands on a physical copy of the record at some point so I can marvel at the art, read through the liner notes that allude to the album concept, and scratch my head at the inevitable cryptic symbols that will allude to some deeper enigmatic layer of lore that the band has created.

Ranges links:

https://www.rangesmusic.com/

https://www.athousandarmsstore.com/collections/ranges

Words and live band photos by Joseph James

Live Review: Ash – 30th Anniversary Tour of 1977 at San Fran, Wellington

Ash

w/ Dropper

1977 30th Anniversary Tour

San Fran, Wellington

Tuesday 15 September 2026

Ash’s debut, 1977 was was the first album I owned, given to me by my big cousin. She knew about all the cool music I’d never heard of. I listened to until it fell apart – quietly (…or not so quietly) becoming the soundtrack to my teenage years. I often wondered if a girl from Mars would appear at my window someday, and “Oh Yeah” became a roadmap for first love.

This was my fourth time seeing the Downpatrick trio: the first two during the Free All Angels era in 2003 and 2005, then again at San Fran in 2025. I also had the privilege of chatting with bassist Mark Hamilton a few weeks back ahead of the tour. We discussed their 30-year journey, their three-string bass lore, and their affection for Kiwi audiences.

San Fran on Cuba Street is a low-ceilinged room that suits high-volume guitar acts. I’m pretty sure the vibrations caused a pint glass in front of me to fall during “Angel Interceptor”! You get the full punch of the backline while being right beside the band.

Local openers Dropper gave off 2000s nostalgia, reminiscent of UK bands like Hundred Reasons. Big, explosive energy, with the bassist jumping about on stage. The drummer was giving it heaps, knocking over his funny wee roto-toms and a few cymbal stands, like Animal from the Muppets reincarnated. The singer wore a U2 shirt; it felt a bit on the nose, but at the same time it was a choice that made sense. It was a shame the vocal mic cut out during the third song. The band still sounded great, but they lost a bit of oomph when this couldn’t be resolved. They did a stellar job and I look forward to seeing them again.

Ash made their entrance to the fanfare of The A-Team soundtrack over the PA and launched straight into “Lose Control”, sounding heavy, tight, and direct from the start.

Mark Hamilton was clearly in his element, throwing his frame around on stage left with his trademark three-string bass: a setup born from being a broke teenager unable to afford a full set of replacement strings when the thin G-string snapped. It has long since become his signature style.

Before starting “Goldfinger”, Tim Wheeler paused to share a piece of New Zealand tour history dating back to October 1996. On their very first trip to Aotearoa, supporting Garbage at Auckland’s North Shore Events Centre, the arena’s fire alarm went off right as they struck the opening chords of the song. The entire venue was evacuated onto the street, and only after the fire service cleared the building could the band return to restart their set. Wheeler commented on how there seemed to be a lot more people when they started again. “ I think they just let everyone in,” he grinned.

Thankfully, it went off without a hitch tonight, rolling straight into the melodic “Girl from Mars”.

The first set delivered the full sequence of 1977. “Kung Fu” had the room shouting along to the Jackie Chan refrains “oh wah, ah ah ah ah!” while “Oh Yeah” – my personal favourite of the band back catalogue – served as the emotional centrepiece of the album run. Drummer Rick McMurray held the rhythm section in a prolonged groove, letting the crowd carry the chorus unassisted before the full arrangement crashed back in.

In the second half, they shifted into newer territory with cuts from Ad Astra, starting with their version of “Zarathustra” from 2001: A Space Odyssey (leaning right into their enduring sci-fi geek credentials), before launching into the title track and “Fun People” with noticeable enthusiasm. “Fun People” in particular stood out as a highlight: heavy, quirky, upbeat, and channeling a glam-tinged blend of David Bowie and M’s classic synth-pop hit “Pop Muzik”.

While new material inevitably brings a shift in audience familiarity compared with 30-year-old anthems, the trio attacked the songs with complete conviction, bringing their A game and a noticeable lift in the energy of the room.

The band closed out with some crowd favourites, including “Shining Light”, prompting an immediate, full-voice singalong across the floor. They powered through the title song from A Life Less Ordinary, before they capping things off with an explosive rendition of “Burn Baby Burn”.

Earlier legs of this anniversary tour saw Ash filling much larger spaces across the UK, such as Glasgow’s Barrowland Ballroom and London’s Roundhouse. In rooms of that scale, the communal singalong choruses of 1977 would be something to hear. While seeing the band in a space like San Fran gives a great sense of intimacy, I think a tour like this is clearly built for bigger venues, where shared nostalgia for the band can carry the trio along through the album they gifted us 30 years ago.
It was exactly what it said on the tin: an opportunity to hear the band play their debut album, a few hits, and give us a tantalizing taste of their more recent work.

Review by Paddy McCann

Photos by Joseph James

Interview with Mark Hamilton, bassist from Ash

As Ash prepare to return to New Zealand next week as part of their 1977 30th anniversary tour, bassist Mark Hamilton got on the line with Paddy McCann to reflect on the band’s origins and the intervening decades since the release of 1977.

“I know we sound the same,” says Paddy, “but I’m actually in Wellington. I’m not just sitting in Ireland pretending.” Hearing them talk, you’d be forgiven for thinking he might be. Paddy grew up in Belfast, about an hour’s drive to Downpatrick in Northern Ireland, where Ash formed. For him, talking to Mark is a bit of a dream come true. “It’s awesome to have a chat with someone whose music I’ve grown up with,” he says. “1977 was one of the first CDs I actually owned. I think I wore it out!”

Paddy mentions discovering the infamous hidden track at the end of the album, “Sick Party”, which features all kinds of random audio of the lads in the studio, including someone vomiting. Paddy had it playing at the restaurant he’d been working at, and everyone was a bit startled when the track came on. “It was just us “messing around in the studio”, really,” Mark grins, “I think we were waiting for Tim to finish writing lyrics. I think a lot of people got caught out like that with “Sick Party””

1977 was actually released in 1996, and Ash are currently on a 30th anniversary tour. They have upcoming dates in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, and Hong Kong, before returning to the UK for more shows later this year. “What does it mean to still be taking that album around the world?” asks Paddy.

“Every time we get asked to come back, it’s like a total honour,” says Mark. “And we’ve got friends in New Zealand as well, so it’s always good fun. We love the Kiwi sense of humour.” He mentions the long flights and jet lag that are promised with a trip to the other side of the world, but remarks that, by doing the Aussie shows first, the band are “pretty all right” by the time they get to NZ.

Ash formed in 1992 as a three-piece band, with Tim Wheeler on lead vocals and guitar, Mark Hamilton on bass, and Rick McMurray on drums. Aside from the success of 1977 itself, it’s pretty impressive that these three have stayed together all this time. The very same trio who originally recorded the album are still playing together, touring these 30th anniversary shows in 2026.

“What’s the trick?” asks Paddy. “I play music, and I can’t be in a band with anybody without someone falling out.” “I think that’s really the key thing,” says Mark. “Egos or personalities can clash, but Tim and I met when we were 12 years old. We were just children, and we grew up as friends… You become almost like brothers, you know so much about each other.”

It was really only a few years after meeting as kids that the two formed Ash with Rick McMurray, and the rest is history. When Paddy asks if Mark had always intended to play bass, he replies “the concept of the band was first, rather than actually me or Tim having instruments. It sounds ridiculous, but the dream was always to be rock stars of some sort.” Mark references the 1989 comedy film Bill and Ted. “It was really inspiring. We were thinking, “oh yeah, just a couple of guys can change the world.” We came up with the concept of a band before any of us had instruments.”

“There were other guys from school who were going to be in the band, and I was originally going to be on the keyboard. Then the guy who was going to be bassist quit the band before it even existed.” (I bet that guy lies awake at night…) “It became a question of which was more important, keyboard or bass. Then Tim said to me: “you get the bass then.” I was like, “all right.””

Tim and Mark asked Santa for guitars that Christmas. “We thought we were taking the piss because guitars were expensive. But there were mail-order guitars for around 90 quid, and we managed to convince our parents. It was Christmas Day or Boxing Day and we got together. On our first try, we couldn’t play. We just didn’t know what we were doing. It was like, “What are we going to do now?” There was no YouTube you could look up. We started working it out ourselves – if you played the same number on the fretboard, it would sound the same. We just started writing songs, like, on day one. It was only bass and guitar playing, so it sounded ridiculous. We have recordings of those early songs, and they’re hilarious. We had these little two-watt amps powered by nine-volt batteries. They were quiet, little starter amps, and the batteries ran out after like half an hour. We were just playing the same notes over and over, really simple little riffs, but it got us in the mindset of writing our own music, which was really important.”

“I saw you play in Wellington in 2024, at San Fran.” says Paddy. “I noticed you were playing with a three-string bass. Is that something you’ve done for a long time?”

“That goes back to the early days as well. In Downpatrick, there was one shop that sold guitar strings. They sold CDs, sheet music, and bits and pieces; but they only sold bass strings in full sets. You couldn’t buy individual strings. When you’re 13 or 14, the G string is the thinnest string, and it breaks first. It was 20 quid to get a new set of bass strings. When you’re young, it’s just too much money to be changing the G string every time. So, I just left it off and started playing without it. I didn’t use it, so I just didn’t need it. Then it just stuck.”

As for the band’s longevity, Mark says it’s like “a vindication.” “We’ve been plugging away, it’s nice to see things rise again. The last few albums went Top 15 in the UK after maybe a decade of not charting at all. A lot of people say, “you’re that band from the ‘90s or early ‘00s, what have you been doing since?” But we’ve been putting out albums and touring ever since. It’s nice to see the uptake again.”

“Ash songs have turned up in some unexpected places, too,” says Paddy. “I was playing Burnout on Xbox and heard you guys. What are your favourite incidences of coming across your music?”

Mark lists off an impressive resume. A bunch of computer games (including the third Gran Turismo and an NHL hockey game), a Jackie Chan movie called Rumble in the Bronx, and the titular song (“A Life Less Ordinary”) for a Danny Boyle film starring Ewan McGregor and Cameron Diaz. “”Orpheus” was on the Shaun of the Dead soundtrack. “Meltdown” as well. A fan sent us an edit of “Orpheus” in Shaun of the Dead and it was a brilliant video, but it was just a random thing where I was like “oh, I forgot we were in that movie.””

In Ireland, “Uncle Pat” was used in a Heineken ad. “You could not escape that advert whenever it was running,” says Mark. “It may not be a song that everyone outside Ireland knows, but everyone in Ireland seems to know it because of that advert.”

“I think you played it when you were here last time,” says Paddy. “There were a lot of people calling for it, it may have been an encore.”

ASH 1977 – 30th Anniversary Australian/NZ Tour Dates:

Australia:

Friday 4th September PERTH, Rosemount Hotel
Saturday 5th September FREMANTLE, Fre.Social
Tuesday 8th September ADELAIDE, Lion Arts Factory
Thursday 10th September BRISBANE, The Tivoli
Friday 11th September MELBOURNE, Northcote Theatre
Saturday 12th September SYDNEY, Metro Theatre

NZ:

Monday 14th September AUCKLAND, Tuning Fork
Tuesday 15th September WELLINGTON, San Fran

NZ Tickets On Sale Now From: https://metropolistouring.com/newzealand/ash/

Paddy McCann is an Irish singer-songwriter who’s lived in Wellington for years. You can often catch him playing at Gibbons Hotel on Taranaki Street. He’s also the frontman of blues rock band Aegir and Ran, who play occasionally but have been abandoned by their bassist (one that plays four strings). You can find his music and more information about his appearances on his Instagram, @paddy_mc_cann.

Interview by Paddy McCann

Live Review: The Wellington Sea Shanty Society at Breaker Bay Hall, Wellington

The Wellington Sea Shanty Society

Breaker Bay Hall, Wellington

Friday 31 July 2026

I met my friend Vorn about sixteen years ago. We both worked for Tranz Metro, the commuter rail network in Wellington. Our job involved selling and clipping tickets on the trains. Many of the staff had worked there for decades – much longer than I’d even been alive. So Vorn and I were both among the “young” staff, even though he has about ten years on me. I don’t remember the exact circumstances of meeting him, but I do remember that Donna from the pay office shared that he was a musician, and not long after he sold me three CDs of his eponymous band. [My reviews of his most recent albums: The Winter Session, The Late Album]

We became friends and I remember him recruiting me to film him for a DIY music video. A few months later he asked me to drum for a gig he’d organised for the adult guitar class he’d been teaching. I was just a teenager, fairly fresh out of school, and finding my footing in the world. It meant so much to me – that a real musician would ask me to contribute to some of his projects – and it gave me a big confidence boost.

Vorn on accordion

Vorn has always been iconic. He used to rock these huge red bejeweled sunglasses that clashed with our navy blue uniform. He was frequently seen biking around town in his fluro yellow Tranz Metro issue jacket, and busking on the waterfront, playing Jimi Hendrix covers on accordion. Vorn is a lovable enigma, perpetually true to himself. [See also, this great Audioculture article about Vorn, written by Michael Hollywood]

The first time I saw The Wellington Sea Shanty Society was at a bar called Mighty Mighty in 2013. I was there to see legendary Japanese rockers Guitar Wolf, and WSSS were playing at the other end of the room while the stage was being set. I remember thinking that it was a novel, fun concept. Most of the songs were reasonably well known, and invited audience singalong and participation.

WSSS was actually Lake’s project. Known for his groups Lake South and Urbantramper, Lake had befriended the French shanty crew Croche Dedans during his travels in France and transplanted the idea back in NZ. It made a lot of sense in this setting, a country settled by seafaring navigators and sailors, and populated by many whalers when first being colonised by Europeans. Lake asked Vorn to collaborate with him, and WSSS was born. WSSS’ third album, Ahoy!, is a collaboration with Croche Dedans, and Lake and Vorn have toured France a few times with them. [I should also share the most recent Croche Dedans album, Glou].

Lake

I remember seeing this video on the Croche Dedans Facebook page. The song was incredible, compelling and meditative, with gorgeous bones that could be fleshed out. I took it to some friends who I was starting a band with and we all agreed to cover it with a blues rock feel. It’s a shame we never properly recorded it, because it was easily our best song.

The first Breaker Bay Shanty event I remember took place in 2020. To me, this is when WSSS ascended from busking status to something more. It wasn’t just two guys playing singalongs on guitar and accordion, it was now an event, with a full band. Thomas (violin) and Nick (drums) from the Vorn band helped flesh out the sound, and MC extraordinaire Louis Tait helped set the scene with his poetic nautical monologues – a thespian possessed by the spirit of Herman Melville.

The setting was perfect. The backdrop of the stage features a beautiful painting of the bay. [You may also recognise it from this The Beths video]. The venue is right on the shore. Everyone had songbooks for singing along – think hymn missals from church, but more scurvy than spiritual.

I wasn’t exactly on my best behaviour. I’d consumed too much rum before the gig – to get into the spirit of things… Lake still uses footage from that night when making promo material for the band, and almost always uses a clip of me drunkenly staring into the camera, whilst wearing a pirate hat.

There was an obnoxious reporter from a current events show who hijacked the evening to get footage for a segment on her show, but once she and the camera crew had left, it was a fantastic night. Easily the best night of the year, and an exciting fixture in the calendar every time the lads book another show there.

I wrote @winstonpeters a campaign jingle and sang from the heart. Thus achieving my political and sea shanty dreams in one song @NZFirst you’re welcome ™️ pic.twitter.com/87TA8eNRwz

— Olivia Caldwell (@OcCaldwell) August 7, 2020

This was a year or two before “Wellerman” blew up on TikTok, and became the viral song that permeates pop culture now. It’s a genuine whaling-era song from Aotearoa that Lake and Vorn had discovered it in some ancient songbooks. I do remember it being a real highlight at WSSS gigs along with “Drunken Sailor”, long before virality struck. Somehow a postman in Scotland discovered this obscure old song from Aotearoa, and a video of him singing it struck a chord that resonated with people to the point that the song has been appropriated the world over. Even The Wiggles now do a version of it. Wellington Sea Shanty Society had two recorded versions of “Wellerman” before the song blew up, and those two songs currently have over three million streams on Spotify between them.

I’ve been coming to Shanty gigs at Breaker Bay Hall since 2020 now. So do they ever feel stale? Not at all. The setlists change over time, although firm favourites usually remain constant. They’ve just released a new EP, Never Mind the Rowlocks (with album art styled to imitate The Sex Pistols’ Never Mind the Bollocks), so have a few new songs to add to the repertoire.

It sounds like the tour to date has been a total blast. The band played a low key pop-up gig on Leftbank in Wellington the night of the EP release. They’ve sold out a lot of their shows on the tour. In Auckland they played a live-to-air for bFM, and featured as the musical guests on televised comedy show 7 Days.

The EP release pop up gig on Leftbank

As we arrive in Breaker Bay, the locale gives a taste of the night to come. It’s a surprisingly calm day, so there is a distinct lack of waves crashing on the rocks nearby. But it’s certainly right on the shore. The air is lightly scented with seaweed. Thankfully that’s about the only smells we get whiffs of – the local sewage treatment plant has been infamous for mishaps all year, with no set resolution in sight for a long time yet.

It’s always interesting to see who shows up to these gigs. We see lots of pirates and sailors, as well as a squid. And stripes. So many stripes. It’s enough to get a zebra hot and bothered.

Dressing up is highly recommended. I won best dressed one year for a sexy mermaid outfit I’d made (complete with wig, shell earrings, and shiny scaled tail/skirt). My best friend Craig won the following year by wearing The Titanic.

You can tell that a lot of people popped into the local Look Sharp shop to get a suitable accessory – think plastic pistols and sailor caps. We see some people waving cutlasses in the air. But some people really put the effort in, and their outfits are quite impressive. Long leather boots, velvet shirts, corsets and waistcoats. And as the saying goes, you get out of it, what you put in. Those who dress up, sing, dance, and embrace the spirit of the night, have the best time. This is not a passive experience.

My mate Paddy had been up late the night before using a hot glue gun to attach trimmings and gold buttons to his blazer, and had pinned a soft toy kookaburra to his epaulette as a stand in for a parrot. The winning outfit of the night was a siren, with shiny tail, blue face makeup and trident. Well deserved.

I don’t want to share too much, lest I spoil the show for any yet uninitiated seafarers. There’s a lot of crowd interaction. Captain Louis, master of ceremony, welcomes us in with his welcoming address. He provides context for the night – touching on the band’s recent album, explaining what a rowlock is, and casting a spell that summoned seabirds and cephalopods into the hall.

And then the band begins. They start with a new original punk shanty. Thomas on the fiddle is that star in that one. Lake and Vorn share lead vocal duties, playing guitar and accordion, respectively. Nick is trialing his new compact pancake drum set, which sounds good despite lacking the depth or resonance of your standard drums.

The set list is varied. The new stuff is more punk themed. One was written in the vein of the much maligned ‘stomp clap hey’ genre of the 2010s. There are authentic olde tyme shanties – some true to form, some with updated lyrics. Lots of WSSS written originals. Shanties sung in Spanish and French. Contemporary covers with nautical themes (“Anchor Me”, “Whaling”), as well as ones that have been reworked to become nautical. I like the songs that are a bit more boisterous and involve punctuating the singing with the odd “HEY!” and “HOORAH!” and the like. There’s so many shouts of “Ho!” throughout the night that we could be at home in a 1990’s rap video.

Louis returns throughout the night to lead games and challenges. It’s a cold, windy night and we’re on the coast. But here, inside the hall, everyone is grinning and breathless and sweaty from all the singing and dancing. It’s frantic and silly and loud. Louis adds a lot to the night, making the evening an experience, more than just a band playing some songs on the stage. He casts quite the figure, with his wild, teased hair, and his poetic addresses. It’s probably a difficult balance, inspiring interactions, mutiny and shenanigans, fending off the heckles, and keeping the evening going roughly to script. As usual, it’s mostly my friends misbehaving. Louis takes it in his stride. We have an awful lot of fun.

Louis at the pop up gig

It’s election year, and WSSS are a political band. It’s not always super on-the-nose, but these are musicians who believe in worker’s rights. Lake used to have a bumper sticker saying “Back the Teachers” on his guitar. They penned the song “We’re Not In London Now (Sam Parnell’s Law)”, about Sam Parnell, who is credited with establishing the 8 hour working day in NZ. And now, the lead single from their new EP is entitled “I Struck for Better Wages“, a rousing number that takes lyrics from 1893 and couples them with music that draws heavily from Dropkick Murphys’ sound with a punk feeling and fiddle.

And I think that in an era of divisiveness and distraction, sometimes it’s salient to come together in a room full of strangers, and celebrate community and creativity and the arts and things that are important. Some of these songs are from the 1800s, and some were written this year. Some are heartbroken and homesick. Some are full of excitement and adventure. But these songs, these shanties – they have the power to bring people together to truly live for a night.

Nick

Words and photos by Joseph James.

Album Review: Man Mountain – Threads of Another Life

The main thing that you need to know about Man Mountain is that they are on the lifelong quest for Toan. Toan is everything to them. I spent some time with the guys last July and we stopped in at Sweetwater – the biggest music shop in the world – and spent hours there. All in the pursuit of that sweet, sweet Toan. Jacob (drums) used a different snare on every track on this new album, so clearly he’s on that Toan journey. David (bass) even named his business after it: Detroit Tube & Tone.

Jokes aside, Man Mountain put a lot of energy into meticulously crafting their sound. I said as much when I was reviewing their first album, Infinity Mirror. Things have been pretty quiet for a while. The covid pandemic halted a lot of things, and Man Mountain went to ground, quietly writing and recording when live gigs needed to be paused. That break took a bit longer than they expected, but they’re returning to the stage again and building momentum along with the album rollout.

I’m blessed to be friends with the guys in Man Mountain, and have seen them play a handful of times on the two American tours I’ve done with Ranges (2017, and 2025). Admittedly, I can get pretty moody when on tour (probably when not on tour as well…). The late nights, long drives, lack of personal space and fast food diet all take their toll on the body. And then I was also drinking a fair bit on that first tour as well. But the guys of Man Mountain were never short of super hospitable – very fun, generous and genuine guys. I think Mid-Westerners are known for it. They took me back to Michigan with them for a few days at the end of my American trip last year and that was easily the highlight of my trip. They’re solid dudes with big hearts.

I don’t have synesthesia, but I can’t help but visualise warm yellow light when I picture their music. In 2017 they had a work light rigged up with a foot switch, that they’d stomp on during the big moments of their songs to add visual dynamics to their set. It was simple, but very effective. They had to retire that after too many people complained about being blinded by it, which I find hilarious. I think they had a few stories about how it was enough to blow fuse boards at venues they were playing too, stopping the gig mid-set as all the electricity goes out.

On the 2025 tour, they had beautiful Edison lamps onstage with them, adding a really nice homely feel to their set. And last time I saw them play, at Spacebar in Columbus, OH, the venue had a bunch of Edison bulbs as well. I think that warm glow complements their aesthetic so well. This is the visual I conjure up when I think of them so I’m pleased to see that the album art follows this thinking. The cover features streetlights snaking along a winding road, and one vinyl variant is actual called Streetlight. Clearly the artist derived the same ideas I did from the music, and encapsulated that feeling so well within the art.

Here are photos from the first and last time I saw Man Mountain play, showing those stage lights in action:

Man Mountain at W. Cross Station in Ypsilanti, October 2017

Man Mountain at Spacebar in Columbus, OH, July 2025

I’ve been listening to this album for a year now. Jacob sent me the tracks to listen to well before they’d finalised things like album art. And I’d always derived that feeling of light in the darkness from the music. I’d never actually discussed the themes or inspirations of the album with the guys, but I just read the press release, and it makes total sense.

“While we didn’t start out with a central theme, it quickly became apparent as we assembled the full collection of songs for this album that each track was inspired by a particular stage of the pandemic,” explains guitarist Mike Reaume. “The names were chosen later to hint at the various stages, but it basically follows our journey from the hopeful and inspired beginnings, through the in-between phase where we felt like everything was sort of stuck in a timeless limbo.”

That tracks completely. This music is hopeful, yearning. It’s dreamy. But it’s also rooted in something heavier.

Listening to this album is like swimming. There’s always that touch of weightlessness, like floating in a warm body of water on a nice day. There are times when you think about the unknowable creatures that may lurk in the depths below, and sometimes a small wave may push you around a bit, but for the most part it’s just a wonderfully serene time.

This may be a redundant statement by virtue of applying to almost all music anyway, but I want to stress that you will be richly rewarded if you listen to Threads of Another Life through quality speakers or headphones. Sometimes I’m just pottering around the house doing chores, and I may have the album playing on a bluetooth speaker and it sounds good. But then plugging it into something a bit better, like the speakers I have hooked up to an amp, really brings the music to life. Jacob and David do a wonderous job of holding down the bottom end, keeping it grounded. And Mike and Bryan bring us to celestial peaks. They really cover the sonic spectrum well. The crisp cymbals, the warm swells, the deep bass – they really come to life with full dynamics. These guys are toanhunters, and you’ve got to respect their quest.

I’ve been listening to this album for a year. Without album art, without knowing the title. Just the music. Great music. And then I finally learnt the the name of the album – Threads of Another Life – and I was surprised to see this fact in the press kit:

The album’s title takes inspiration from The Lord of the Rings, referencing Frodo Baggins’ reflection: “How do you pick up the threads of an old life?”

Then I realise: I have a subtle connection to the album’s title. I was bestowed the nickname Baggins on that first tour – probably because Lord of the Rings was famously filmed in New Zealand. And the album is named after a Baggins quote. Please stop – my ego can only get so big. But jokes aside, the title obviously works, considering how the music is a reflection on how the pandemic altered the world. And I also love that it’s a reference to a fantastical adventure. It seems very fitting.

Man Mountain playing Gold Sounds in Brooklyn, NY

My bias is clearly showing. These guys are my friends, and I’ve shared some great experiences with them. NZ is such a small country, with a tiny population, that going on tour as a band just isn’t very viable here for the most part. So touring with bands in America always feels like a wild dream, a big adventure. Touring can be incredibly mundane, comprising mostly of long drives and gas stations pit stops. But there was always a sense of surrealism too – even the boring parts were a bit exciting because it’s just so different from New Zealand. We don’t have as many late night pizza joints, that’s for sure! Going through experiences like that can help forge incredibly strong bonds.

I feel a bit silly, reviewing an album without touching on the music much. To me, this album sounds like friendship. It evokes a warm, homely glow; a reassuring light in dark times. This album encapsulates the vibes of midwestern hospitality, of authenticity and integrity. There is true craftmanship in these compositions. It’s a grand, masterful album and I cannot do it justice by trying to describe it. Do yourself a favour and listen to it for yourselves.