Live Review: Ash Grunwald at Meownui, Wellington

Ash Grunwald

w/ Simon Donald

Meownui, Wellington

Sunday 24 August 2025

Ash Grunwald was the first musician I interviewed for Will Not Fade. Local author John McCrystal helped me edit the interview and I was so proud of the finished result. It gave me a big confidence boost as a writer. Ash was great to talk to and put me onto a bunch of artists and ideas that were new to me.

I saw him play that year, at Meow. I wouldn’t have even classed Meow as a proper venue back then – more a cafe that sometimes hosted folk acts and singer/songwriters. Ash pulled a modest crowd and I remember having a fantastic time. The standout moment for me was when Ash left the stage, walked into the middle of the room, and gave a powerful rendition of “John the Revelator”, just stomping, clapping and hollering. I was so inspired by this that I started a band a few years later that I modelled on this sound of stompy, chanty blues and rock.

So it was very cool to see Ash play again tonight, a decade on. Meow is now more known as a venue than a cafe, and the owners now have an even bigger venue – one of the best in Wellington… Possibly even the country – called Meownui. Ash’s popularity has increased so much over the past ten years that his current NZ tour has resulted in many sold out shows, with demand being great enough for him to play second shows in many towns. And he’s managed to make Meownui feel full on a Sunday night. He joked at one point that being a full time musician is basically living a life of poverty, so this is a pretty awesome achievement to see him have such success.

First of all, it sounded great. Meownui is an old Salvation Army church, so the acoustics have probably always been good in this building. Ash kept giving shout outs to Drew on the mixing desk, and mentioning how much fun he was having, hearing himself on such a good sound system in front of a good sized audience.

And he was was a class performer. Most of his songs have a big stompy feel, so he had us clapping along to many. And many have repeated singing parts, so he got us singing too. It was interactive and immersive.

His set up was a bit different to last time, but the essence was still the same. Last time he had a crazy foot operated thing that housed all these drum and percussion bits. This time he had a few e-drum pedals instead, as well as a cajon box drum he sat on with two pedals attached. He has three guitars too – one being a resonator and another being a hollow body – all of which gave that classic bluesy rock sound, especially when played with a slide.

Ash’s daughter Sunny had been tagging along on tour. She’s currently being homeschooled so that she can come on the road with him. Ash got her up onstage for a Bill Withers song and her voice was a show stopper. Seriously good, even outshining her dad. No doubt Ash is super proud of her.

Ash joined onstage by his daughter, Sunny

Ash has a large repertoire to draw from, and wasn’t afraid to drop a handful of covers in as well. He gave a nod to Chain – the only Australian blues act to hit No. 1 on the charts. As I’d mentioned already, his daughter Sunny came onstage for Bill Withers’ “Grandma’s Hands”. He’s just as happy to draw from the blues greats like Robert Johnson or Howlin’ Wolf, as pop acts like Gnarls Barkley with his cover of “Crazy”. A good song is a good song, and we don’t need to gatekeep with genre.

He was such a pleasure to watch, clearly at home onstage after a lifetime of touring. Whether he was eeking out dolphin sounds, getting lost in the love of the riffs, or letting his dreadlocks fly about as he headbanged, he brought fun, effusive energy to his work.

I thought it was interesting that there weren’t any merch offerings available, because Ash is proving so popular that I have no doubt he would have sold plenty. [Post edit: I’ve since learnt that Ash will have merch at his other shows, but a contractual issue meant that he couldn’t sell it at Meownui.] I’m pleased to see his clear increase in popularity since he last came to Wellington, and seeing him again tonight made it clear why he has begun to sell out big venues.

Tickets for the rest of the dates on Ash’s NZ tour can be found at https://ashgrunwald.com/

Words and photos by Joseph James

Ranges & Man Mountain USA Tour 25: Boston, Rochester, Columbus

Read: Ranges and Man Mountain Tour Diary Part 1

Day 4

Monday 21 July 2025

O’Brien’s Pub, Boston, Ma

w/ The Burning Paris

I’d been looking forward to going to Boston, having spent a few days there last time I was in America.

We drove through Connecticut along the Merritt Parkway, a beautiful stretch of road with many unique bridges and lush woodlands either side.

The guys all wanted to have lobster rolls. Feeling that my day yesterday had been dominated by getting a sandwich, I choose to instead go exploring the city and get some time to myself to recharge.

Boston is a great place. It has the benefits of a big city, having decent public transport and lots to see and do. But it still felt clean and open, with lots of cool old buildings and greenery. And the weather was ideal.

Ranges. Mark on drums, Tim on guitar

David from Man Mountain

There was another post-rock gig in Boston that night, with a lineup of Pelican and Glacier. Surely this affected turnout for our gig. But somehow, even though the turnout wasn’t huge, this was the show that had netted the band the most money on tour so far.

I don’t have too much more to say about Boston. I was exhausted and in a low mood and not really present much that night.

Day 5

Tuesday 22 July 2025

The Spirit Room, Rochester, NY

I woke up feeling significantly better. It’s amazing what a decent sleep can do to improve one’s mood. We set off to Rochester, to the north of New York state.

It was a reasonably long drive but didn’t feel it. On the way we stopped in at The House of Guitars. It’s was a music nerd’s dream. There was a music shop selling instruments, dotted with memorabilia. Rare instruments, many signed by famous musicians. Downstairs was an old recording studio. Through the rabbit warren was a record shop with thousands of records and CDs and t-shirts piled haphazardly. Photos and signatures of bands who stopped by adorned the walls.

The House of Guitars

Mark works for Gibson, painting guitars. He struck a conversation with the staff and turns out they had a lot of mutant contacts. They gave us a tour of the place. They were showing us a stage where in-store performances happen, and mentioned one that Zakk Wylde had done there. Then he dropped the bombshell that Ozzy Osbourne has just passed away.

It was such a weird coincidence. Mark and Chuck had just been talking about Ozzy on the drive there. And last tour, Mark had been talking about recording with Steve Albini the day that we’d heard that Albini had passed. And I remember that Tom Petty died when I first went on tour with Ranges. So we need to stop touring in order to protect these famous musicians?

One of the funniest stories from House of Guitars was about when adult model Jenna Jameson had come to do an in-store signing to promote Jackson guitars. The line was out the door and around the block, with more fans queuing up to meet Jameson than there had been when Green Day had done an in-store signing.

Most of us bought a t-shirt or hoody. Mark picked up a new cymbal at a very good price.

Rochester had an interesting feel. Lots of big stately looking buildings, like the Kodak headquarters and a few sporting venues. But it was fairly quiet and not many people around.

Spirit Room

The venue, Spirit Room, was a cool space. There was all kinds of weird and wacky decor. Lots of taxidermied animals. The statement piece was huge cast of an elephant head that had featured in The Greatest Showman film, as had a taxidermy ostrich. The bar had a drink offer that involved pulling a tarot card from a deck, and then the bartender would make you a cocktail that corresponds with the chosen card. I was sad to hear that the venue was in it’s final days, with the landlord kicking them off the premises in the near future.

We went and got barbecue before the gig. The portions were big and tasty and everyone was having a great time.

Barbeque

We finished the night with a trip to Taco Bell. The Man Mountain guys had recommended the Baja Blast drink, and Tom could not get enough of the “Obama Blast.”

Ranges. Mark on drums, CJ on guitar

Day 6

Wednesday 23 July

The Spacebar, Columbus, Oh

We started the day with a visit to Niagara Falls. I was surprised to see that it didn’t cost to go to, seeing as many American state parks and attractions do charge for entry. It was pretty impressive. The falls created a lot of water spray, and rainbows were being formed in the mist. Canada was on the other side of the river. We walked around, seeing various falls from different vantage points.

Niagara Falls

We got to Columbus early and browsed a few shops – a record store and a curiosity store that stocked a lot of items similar to what we’d seen at The Spirit Room the night before.

Ranges and Man Mountain had played The Spacebar together back in 2017. They were surprised to see some of their stickers still stuck up where they’d placed them, all those years ago.

It was largely as I remembered it. One of the staff mentioned covid and it made me realise how fortunate we are to still have spaces like this, after years of the live music scene coming to a halt.

We ate Skyline Chili. Spaghetti with chilli. I’m not quite sure what makes that different from spaghetti bolognese but it tasted good.

It was a good sized stage, with lots of incandescent lights hanging and giving a nice glow. Both Man Mountain and Ranges played well.

We stopped at a pizza joint on the corner. Last time we’d been there I’d been quite drunk and Jared had carried me out, quoting Lord of the Rings: “I can’t carry the ring for you Mr Frodo, but I can carry you!” Bryan was delighted to see that the pizza joint had The Fellowship of the Ring playing on the TV, purely coincidentally.

After the gig we had a great time celebrating the last night of the tour. Man Mountain had a ridiculously hot chip coated in a chili seasoning that had been sitting in their merch box for years, with nobody brave enough to try the challenge. I ate a good portion of it, with David and Tim also having some. It was punishingly hot and painted our tongues blue.

L-R: Chuck (sound tech), David, Tom, CJ, Tim, Bryan, Mike. Front L-R: Jacob, Mark, Me (Joseph)

We traded merch, signed each others’ posters. The bar was selling a pineapple cider that was popular. We took a group photo together on the stage, before heading downtown to take another with an Arnold Schwarzenegger statue.

We’re all heading to Indiana for Post Festival after this. Ranges are playing on Saturday. Man Mountain played the festival last year, and are coming as attendees this year. It’ll be a nice way to cap things off, without the big drives and exhaustion that can come with touring.

Joseph James

Ranges & Man Mountain USA Tour 25: Chicago, Cleveland, Brooklyn

Read these first if you’d like some further context for this tour blog:

Ranges USA Tour 2017

Ranges Eu Tour 2018

Ranges UK Tour 2024

Ranges Sin album review

The people in the Ranges van are:

CJ Blessum – Guitarist and owner of A Thousand Arms record label and printshop

Mark Levy – Drummer

Tim Moens – Guitarist

Tom Verryken – Bassist

Chuck Goodwin – Sound engineer

Joseph James (me) – Roadie and photographer

Day 1

Friday 18 July 2025

Bookclub, Chicago, Il

w/ Outrun the Sunlight

First day of tour!

I’d been hanging out with CJ for the past few days. We’d driven a looooong way from Montana to Chicago with the gear and merch. Then we swapped CJs truck out for a tour van with 8 seats and space for the instruments.

CJ and I at Dinosaur Park, South Dakota

Last night we picked Tim and Tom up from the airport. It was their first time in America and it was great seeing their reactions to everything. They kept pointing and saying it was like things they’d seen on TV.

We spent the morning grabbing some breakfast (CJ and Tom got chicken and waffles, Tim and I got a pile of fried potatoes, eggs and avocado), stocking up on snacks and drinks for the van, and setting up at Fort Knox Rehearsal space. The problem with half the band living in Belgium is that the guys don’t get the chance to come together and practice. So they booked a practice space to get used to their gear, play through and set, and iron out the kinks.

At the rehearsal space. Chuck on the faders

I had used a trimmer to buzz my head and most my beard the night prior, leaving a small moustache similar to Mark’s. The guys were cracking up and how Mark and I both looked the same. Mark just took it in his stride and said it was a good look.

Bookclub was a cool venue. It wasn’t the easiest to find because it didn’t have signage. The staff were all super friendly and made us feel welcome. The venue had three levels. The upper level was the green room, that we didn’t really use. The ground level had a bar and an enormous TV wall where they played live footage of the bands on stage. And downstairs was the live music space. The stage was an interesting shape, almost a diamond with a mini catwalk jutting out the front and a pillar in the centre.

Van Mountain

Man Mountain arrived and it was fantastic to see the guys again. I’d met them when they’d toured with Ranges on their 2017 tour, and they toured again with Ranges a few years later. I remember they had a pillow with Nicolas Cage’s face on it, and had drawn John Travolta’s face on an inflatable beach ball (a reference to the movie Face/Off, also featuring Nicolas Cage). I bought them a small laser engraved wooden token with an image of “Saint Nicolas” burnt into it and hung it from their wing mirror. They proudly showed me their vehicle – Van Mountain – complete with a custom license plate and some enormous truck nuts dangling from the tow bar.

After soundcheck, Tim and I went for a walk down to Wrigley Field. The Cubs had just played a game and the bars in the surrounding area were pumping. We each got a Chicago style hot dog and walked around.

Bookclub in Chicago

We arrived back at Bookstore during Man Mountain’s set. They’re class musicians and I loved watching them play again after so many years. There’s a lot of subtlety and nuance to their music, and the new songs from their upcoming album were great. I also thought about how last year I’d played Borderlands 3 on Xbox, which featured a Man Mountain song.

I’d suggested that they sell beard combs at their merch table, so was very pleased to see they had some, along with CDs and pins and stickers.

Man Mountain at Bookstore, Chicago

Local prog rock act Outrun the Sunlight are great. I spent a lot of their set standing side of stage, watching the drummer in awe. It’s pretty complex sounding music and you can tell that they’re masters of their craft.

Mark had some friends turn up, and I actually remembered them from the 2017 tour. He wanted to head out to bars with them but I didn’t want to be in such a crowded, noisy space so I hung outside and called my girlfriend back in New Zealand who I hadn’t spoken to in a few days.

On the way out of town we stopped to see a fountain which had sadly just stopped 5 minutes beforehand at 11pm. Everyone nearby had love heart lights that indicated KPop stars Black pink had just played a concert nearby. Tim really loved seeing the Chicago skyline, which was a stark contrast to the buildings in Belgium.

Traffic was a nightmare, even that late at night. We were running low on gas and a lot of the gas stations had their entry blocked or were hard to access due to one way streets. Eventually we found one, which appeared to have a huge party onsite. Loads of people sitting around in deck chairs and blasting loud music. This is after midnight. So weird. We fueled up quickly and then drove off to our accommodation about an hour away.

Day 2

Saturday 19 July 2025

Dunlap’s Corner Bar, Cleveland, Oh

w/ Seeress

It was a fairly long drive to Cleveland. We didn’t have time to look though the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but stopped in to check out the gift shop anyway.

Walking to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

The drive through the city felt a lot different to the insane traffic of Chicago, more spacious and green, with some neat old buildings.

Dunlap’s is a cool space. Joe who ran it was telling me how it is the second oldest bar in the area, started just after the prohibition ended, under the name Pacino’s. It was basically a residential area, and it was pretty funny watching the locals hoon past with insanely loud vehicles. It must have been a local spot for it because the same people drove back and forth along the same stretch, in all manner of crazy vehicles. I’m guessing there was a swimming spot nearby because lots of families went past with swimming costumes and towels. And we saw a beaver cross the road!

Dunlap’s Bar

The stage in Dunlap’s was only big enough to fit a drum kit, so the guitar and bass players set up on the floor in front of the stage. There were a few dim lights and a disco ball that made photography difficult due to low light, but it helped create a cool mood in the space.

Man Mountain was up first. It was really nice catching up with them again, and they kept saying over and over how happy they were to see me after so long. I really love seeing them play. Their music is so comforting and they’ve really honed the dynamics of their songwriting. I asked if they would use the floodlight I remember them using in 2017, and they laughed and said they’d retired it after a bunch of complaints from people who were momentarily blinding by it at their shows.

Tom on bass during Ranges’ set

I wasn’t so keen on Seeress. Man Mountain had packed away some of their lights so it was really dark. The music just didn’t do it for me.

Man Mountain went off to check out a house from A Christmas Story, I guess that’s an iconic film here? We went to our accommodation for much needed sleep ahead of our early start.

Day 3

Sunday 20 July 2025

Gold Sounds, Brooklyn, NY

w/ Another Demon, Precious Blood

Mark is from Brooklyn, so we all knew this would be an interesting day, being a homecoming for him. He’s been so involved in the music scene on so many levels over the years, so he seems to have a connection with almost everyone.

We had an early departure for a long but beautiful drive to NYC. Lovely to see big trees and rivers in Pennsylvania. Certainly nicer than the grassy plains or concrete jungles we’ve encountered this far. A lot of the scenery reminded me of my time in New England when I lived in Maine for a few months.

Everyone was on good spirits and the banter was free flowing, despite the lack of sleep.

Gold Sounds, the venue, opened at 2pm. We arrived at that time, only to discover that we should hold off loading in because there was a matinee show on that afternoon.

On the subway in NYC

We parked up and took the subway to Manhattan to visit Katz’s Delicatessen. There was a long queue to get in. We all ordered pastrami on rye bread with mustard and cheese. They came with a side of pickles and cost over $40 by the time we’d paid for it with a drink and tax and tip included.

Then Mark took us to a bar he used to work at for a few hours before we headed back to the venue.

It was basically a repeat of last time Ranges played NYC: same venue, same visit to Katz’s.

Gold Sounds was ok. The staff were not friendly, the green room was too small to fit much gear and became dangerously cluttered. I thought that booking four bands late on a Sunday night was ambitious, but it was a good turnout. Maybe people don’t have work Monday mornings here?

Ranges set had a few technical mishaps. The cable connecting Tom’s bass cab to the amp kept cutting out, and then his tuning pedal was playing up. Tim used the mic to chat to the audience while they sorted it. All in all it didn’t affect things too much and everyone appeared to enjoy the set.

Joseph James

Live review: distance final Wellington show

distance

w/ Serpent Dream, Sheeps, FVKVSHIMA

Valhalla, Wellington

Friday 6 June 2025

I have nothing but love for Valhalla, the treasured venue that I consider my musical home. That said, it has a notoriously sticky floor a lot of the time. Opening act Serpent Dream was playing and I was shocked to see roughly a dozen people sitting down to enjoy their tunes. It was a suitable reaction to the lovely music, but I’ve always been of the mindset that making any more than the bare minimum of contact with the Valhalla floor was inadvisable. They were a duo: Josh on guitar and some vocals, and Kelda on violin. Kelda had contributed violin to distance recordings in past and they’d always discussed playing together at some point. I’d not encountered Serpent Dream beforehand, but I came away a fan. The ethereal music left us spellbound and paved the way for a great night ahead.

Sheeps have been a mainstay in the local music scene for some time now. I remember first seeing them play when they opened for Hiboux at San Fran during their Migrations tour. I know that they bonded with distance at Twisted Frequency festival one year that they’d both played, and had been tight ever since.

Their drummer Thomas has been living in Auckland for a few years, and it hasn’t always been worth flying him down to Wellington for gigs. Pete from FVKVSHIMA had been filling in here and there, opening for Toe, and playing Newtown Festival and Cubadupa. It was nice to see Thomas back on the drum throne for this gig.

Sheeps play a interesting brand of rock that draws from the lighter side of prog and post rock, while still leaving an impression. Three guitarists play intricate melodies and frontman Dean Blackwell delivers soaring vocals that remind me of Radiohead.

[Sheeps are currently raising funds to press their album Working the Machine on vinyl. Here is a link if you’re interested: https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/getworkingthemachinepressedtovinyl]

FVKVSHIMA and distance have enjoyed a long friendship. I think they both opened for Spook the Horses years ago, which was FVKVSHIMA’s first show. Sam Butler filled in on bass one time – which is no small undertaking, considering how technical FVKVSHIMA’s music is. And the bands have played together many times. They will also be playing together in Christchurch next weekend, at distance’s final show.

I’m a big fan of FVKVSHIMA, and was honored that they were happy to work with me to premiere their debut single “Kuato” last year in May. They have immense stage presence and irresistible djenty grooves. Thematically, they draw heavy influence from from post-apocalyptic and sci-fi canon. Musically, I liken them to Meshuggah and Killing Joke.

Check out their new single “The End is Nigh“, released a few days ago.

It’s a sad moment. distance are one of the best bands to arise from the NZ music scene in the past decade. It started out as a solo lockdown project from Sam Butler, but before long became a fully fledged band. They’ve easily the best actively gigging post-rock band in the country for a lot of their tenure.

We last saw them touring with Australian band Myriad Drone in February. Myriad Drone were about to release their newest record, and were selling it before the official release dates at these shows. distance had an album in the works too, and had planned on releasing it to coincide with that tour, but some delays meant that the album wasn’t ready in time.

It’s a shame, because that album is a ripper. so as not to forget (released March 28, 2025) is a masterpiece. It’s dynamic and nuanced and shows clear growth in songwriting abilities. It also clearly draws from the trio’s metal roots, with plenty of big riffs and blastbeats that are both tasty and tasteful. Without question my favourite album released so far this year, and I feel like I’m still barely scratching the surface with discovering how much it has to offer.

So yeah, it’s sad that such an amazing band is calling it a day, and that they didn’t have much to to showcase their incredible new record. But they’re ending on a high note. Sam Butler is moving to Europe. Exciting new adventures await. A shame that this spells the end of a great band, but I have no doubt we will see more from him at some point in the future.

I haven’t even touched on their set. It was great. Many friends had come together for the farewell, and you could feel a nice energy in the room. A mix of hope and support, celebrating a band that we were proud to be friends with, albeit tinged with a bittersweet sadness.

Sam Austin has a really understated power in his presence, standing strong with a wide stance, holding his big bass guitar and delivering thunderous tones. As a drummer, I always love seeing Levi play. He’s a metal drummer in gazillion bands and I love seeing how he tastefully incorporates his metal chops into a style that doesn’t always ask for it. He has a deft ability to push the music in creative ways.

And then we have Sam Butler. The sonic wizard. distance has always been his project. He looked the part, his long curls hiding his face as he did his best shoegaze impression. But now and again you’d get a peek at his smile. He’s humble and a bit shy on stage. He made a few slip ups pressing the wrong buttons on his pedal board, and he sheepishly confessed that he’d made a terrible error choosing to take his shoes off and play in his socks [see prior entry for Valhalla floor: very sticky and gross]. But we all know that he’s incredible and we love him and his band and all the great contributions they’ve made to the music community as a band and as individuals.

It was fantastic. New lighting that I hadn’t seen at Valhalla before helped set the mood. Kelda from Serpent Dream jumped up onstage to add violin to one song, just as Toby has added sax at distance gigs in the past. The new songs are awesome and the older tracks wrapped themselves with warm familiarity. An end of an era for sure.

Tickets for distance’s final show in Christchurch next Saturday, with FVKVSHIMA, Ragweed and No Broadcast: https://www.undertheradar.co.nz/gig/96239/Distance-Final-Show—w/-Fvkvshima,-Ragweed-and-No-Broadcast.utr

distance links: https://lnk.bio/distancenz

Words and photos by Joseph James

It’s gonna be Okay: An interview with Taylah

I’ve been friends with Taylah quite a while now. She made the move down from her hometown of Kerikeri along with Dean from Adoneye, and soon enough a handful of their friends followed suit. They are all amazing musicians and we’d often have musical jams and parties at each other’s places. [If you watch her Flat Sessions videos on her YouTube channel you’ll see her old flat in Island Bay where a lot of these jams took place]

Taylah with OddJive at Valhalla, April 2019. Photo by Will Not Fade

I’d seen Taylah play in her old band OddJive, but I remember the first time I went to one of her gigs, doing her own music at Rogue & Vagabond. She was joined by her long time collaborator Sam Nakamura and I was floored. She has an incredibly powerful voice, and can transition between a wide range of styles with ease. Some of the music was super fun and upbeat (e.g. “Undies”), and other songs felt like vulnerable tearjerkers (e.g. “Coming Down”), but no matter the mood, the talent was undeniable. Taylah recruited more amazing musos to her band in time, and each gig was more impressive than the last. The aforementioned Flat Sessions are great examples of how good they are.

It’s never a bad time to listen to Taylah’s music. I’m a Kindergarten teacher and frequently have her music playing throughout the days as the tamariki and I play and learn. Not only is Taylah’s music fantastic and fun, but I also think her themes and messages are great for the children to absorb. She touches on things like whakapapa, self acceptance, identity as wahine Māori, and feels super down-to-earth and relatable in many respects. “Okay” is also one of my favourite songs and a total jam, so why not listen to it at work?

Taylah and Sam Nakamura at Rogue & Vagabond, Jan 2022. Photo by Will Not Fade

Taylah made the move up to Tamaki Mākaurau a few years ago as a step towards progressing her musical career. I miss seeing her as frequently as I did when she lived here, but have been hyped to see how Tay has been doing with each milestone she reaches. I had a trip to Auckland in December 2023 and went to visit her at Stebbings recording studios where she spends a lot of her time writing and recording. We had a nice day together and I loved hearing about how she’s been branching out. She’s been making moves into licensing, collaborating on EDM tracks, and learning how to self-produce.

Things have started to get especially exciting of late. Last year she was asked to join Fly My Pretties, a NZ supergroup featuring a revolving cast of some of the premiere musicians found in Aotearoa. And now on March 21, Taylah is releasing her debut EP, Tilt.

I reached out to Tay to see if she’d be down to do an interview to help promote the new release.

Joseph (Will Not Fade): Hi Tay, release day soon! How do you describe your music to people who haven’t heard it?

Taylah: I tell them that I write uplifting neo-soul with a flair of cynicism. You know, just to keep ‘em guessing.

You’ve released singles over the course of your career to date. What made you decide it was time to release a bigger body of work in the form of an EP?

Over 2024, I was writing so much music, and I didn’t know what to do with it. So I created this collection. That’s why the subject matter is so varied for this EP. It covers everything from love, corruption, and sex to magic. It feels like a time stamp of all the lessons I was experiencing over the course of the year.

I’m often really impressed by your lyrics. When writing, how much time do you dedicate to lyrics compared to the music and composition?

I’d say it’s 50/50. I’m still new to producing, so the music creation takes longer because I’m still learning new skills through the project. But writing lyrics is like second nature for me. I write a lot of poems and opinion pieces that never see the light of day, but they tend to pop out through my lyrics. I’m a firm believer that partaking in all art forms will better inform your chosen art form, if that makes sense? Like, doing pottery, cooking, dancing, or woodworking will help me write better lyrics at the end of the day.

Which of your songs are you most proud of?

From this EP, my favourite is ‘Glow’. It’s euphoric, and its message is really beautiful. But from my entire catalogue, my favourite is ‘Today is Hard’. Its lyrical flow is just so pleasing to me.

Last year, you were invited to join Fly My Pretties to co-write their new album Elemental. Tell me about that.

It was the biggest project I’ve ever been a part of. I was flown down to Pōneke for a few songwriting sessions in the beautiful Massey studios to co-write with Laughton Kora (Kora), Barnaby Weir (Black Seeds), Louis TM, and Tawaz. It was such a surreal experience to be creating music with musicians that I’ve listened to since I was a kid. The album we created is incredible, and the live show is even better! The concept surrounds Te Ao Māori and the natural elements. We’ve got another round of shows in Auckland and Christchurch coming up in May/June.

You have Casual Healing doing a guest verse on “Okay”, and you’ve been a featured vocalist on a few EDM tracks. How did that compare to your usual process?

I put on another persona when writing vocals for EDM. I’m more sultry and direct. And the vocals are much more ‘feel’ oriented, so I use a lot of imagery to evoke movement, since dancing is usually the main objective of EDM. It’s been really fun!

You’ve lent your voice to Dera Meelan for previous releases like “After Dark”, what was it like having one of your original tracks remixed by Dera?

It was really cool to see how differently our ears work. When you get a track secured in its pocket, it’s hard to hear it any other way. So a house mix of ‘Sundown’ was really refreshing to hear. Dera has this crazy ability to make sounds that shouldn’t work, musical. It shows in his work with ‘Church & AP’ which I think is vital to their unique sound.

Which musicians have you got on your radar that you’d like to collaborate with?

I would like to write with more Māori artists. I’m on my reo Māori journey, and my dream is to eventually write waiata Māori. So collaborating with artists who are already doing it would be amazing, like MĀ, Lee Stuart, or Jordyn with a Why.

A lot of your early work was produced by Tiny Triumphs, and he has mixed your new EP, but I know you’ve self-produced all your latest releases. How have you found that transition?

Hard. Toby made it look so easy! In all seriousness, though, I have found it both challenging and validating. A big lesson that helped my progress is: writing to my own taste. Instead of trying to sound like someone else, or write ‘radio’ bangers, I’ve learned that if I can listen to it and enjoy it, that’s the tahi. Basically, don’t listen to anyone else’s advice. Keep going.

I really love the covers you do. “Broke” by Samm Henshaw is obviously one that stands out. How do you settle on which songs to cover?

I can feel it in my body. I like to perform songs that feel good to sing, vibrationally. I’ve also really taken to the music coming out of London at the moment, there’s something brewing over there that’s making truly electric music.

You’ve made the shift from your home of Kerikeri to Wellington, and then to Auckland, where you’re currently based. How have things changed for you with each move?

Kerikeri was where I discovered my love of music. Wellington is where I explored different styles, and Auckland is where I’m choosing to launch my career. And I’ve fallen in love with each place. Each step has been vital to my progress as a musician, and I’ve met so many truly inspiring and supportive people throughout.

What do you think success looks like, as a musician?

Well, I used to think it was when lots of other people validated your art. But now, I think it’s the fact that I’m still creating. I still have the itch to write, perform, create, and collaborate. I still feel inspired by other musicians and I still crave connection. THAT is success to me.

Tilt is a big milestone, being your first EP. Where to next?

Well, I’m about to embark on my first headline tour, which feels like such a leap. And once the dust settles for this EP, I’d really like to write a full-length album and maybe get some of those collabs going I was talking about.

Thanks for your time. Is there anything else you’d like to share?

Support local artists! You’ve always offered your help to promote my music, Joe, and that is the mahi that truly supports us small artists. So I appreciate your time and energy to uplift the arts in Aotearoa 🙂

Tilt will be released on March 21 2025, with Taylah doing a three date tour in support of Tilt in March/April.

Tickets can be found via https://linktr.ee/taylahmusic

Taylah links:
https://www.facebook.com/taylahmusic/
https://www.instagram.com/taylahmusicnz/
https://open.spotify.com/artist/2Fu39RmIeY5HD1DGJS4Xk7?si=8A6XkpTSRXabPAU4BrYCRA
https://www.youtube.com/@taylahmusic2897

Taylah at San Fran, July 2023. Photo by Will Not Fade

Will Not Fade

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